A.      To those who doubt the promises of God, the day of the Lord is just an abstract idea from Christianity.  However, for true believers in the Lord, the day of the Lord is a certainty that affects their lives every day.

B.      In this final lesson from 2Peter, we will consider how belief in the day of the Lord determines what kind of people we ought to be.

II.      LOOKING FOR THE DAY OF GOD

A.      Mockers do not believe in the day of God, but believers must eagerly prepare for the coming destruction (3:11-12).

                                                             1.      The present heavens and earth are destined for complete destruction.

a.       Notice the emphasis placed on this utter destruction:

i.         “But the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved for fire…” (3:7)

ii.        “The heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.” (3:10)

iii.      “The heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!” (3:12)

b.       Remember that this destruction is “for the day of judgment of ungodly men” (3:7).

                                                             2.      Therefore, we must prepare ourselves for the day of God.

a.       Certainly, we ought not to invest ourselves in this world because it will be destroyed.

b.       We also do not want to be among the ungodly men for whom the destruction is prepared.

i.         Ungodly men will be unprepared for the day of God, for it will come upon them like a thief (3:10).

ii.        Notice 1Thessalonians 5:2-3 – “For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night.  While they are saying, ‘Peace and safety!’ then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape.”

c.        Instead, we must practice “holy conduct and godliness” in anticipation of the day of the Lord.

i.         Every person must answer for his own conduct when the Lord comes again.  Only those who practice holiness and godliness will be able to answer well.

ii.        Consider 2Corinthians 5:10 – “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

d.       Notice how we are to both look for and hasten the coming of the day of God.

i.         Knowing that the day is coming, we are to be alert and ready for it at all times (see 1Thess. 5:4-10).

ii.        In the parable of the expectant servant, the Lord said, “Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching” (Luke 12:37).

iii.      To hasten the day of God, we eagerly look forward to it and even pray for it, saying, “Lord, come” (1Cor. 16:23; also see Rev. 22:20).  For Christians, that day will be a very good day, for all that we have hoped will be realized.

B.      By God’s promise, not only do we look for the destruction of the present heavens and earth, but we also look for a new heavens and a new earth (3:13).

                                                             1.      For Christians, the day of the Lord is not about destruction, but rather it is about a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

a.       The present heavens and earth and the ungodly men who dwell in them will be gone.

b.       The new heavens and new earth will be a place in which only righteousness dwells.  No ungodliness will be found there.

                                                             2.      Consider John’s description of the new heaven and the new earth in Revelation 21:1-4.

a.       The first heaven, the first earth, and the sea will be done away (the physical world will be destroyed).

b.       John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from heaven.

i.         The holy city is a figure of God’s people throughout Revelation (3:12; 11:2; 20:9).

ii.        This city is the bride of Christ, which is the final, glorified state of the church in heaven (19:7-9; Eph. 5:25-27; 1Cor. 15:23-24).

iii.      This is the city that was sought by holy men of old (Heb. 11:10, 13-16).  In Hebrews 12:22-24, it is called “the city of the living God,” “the heavenly Jerusalem,” and “the church of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven.”

iv.      In that city, God shall dwell among His people, and the “first things” (all the consequences of sin that dwelt in the first earth – death, mourning, crying, and pain) will pass away.

C.      Because we look for these things, we also prepare for them and regard God’s patient delay as our salvation (3:14-16).

                                                             1.      “In holy conduct and godliness” (3:11), we are to “be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless.”

                                                             2.      In the previous lesson, we noted that mockers scoff at the Lord’s delay in coming (3:4).  Rather than scoffing, Christians are to be thankful for His delay.

a.       The Lord’s delay is a sign of His patience, for He patiently waits to give everyone an opportunity to repent (3:9).

b.       Christians recognize this, and therefore we regard the Lord’s patience as our salvation.  His patience gave us a chance to repent and be saved.

                                                             3.      This same message had also been written by the apostle Paul.

a.       We do not know exactly which letters Peter referenced here or whether these were letters not preserved in the Bible.  Certainly, Paul did write similar messages in his letters to the Thessalonians and the Corinthians.

b.       Peter acknowledged that some of Paul’s writings are difficult to understand and that “the untaught and unstable distort” them, “as they do also the rest of the Scriptures to their own destruction.”

i.         From the first century until now, Paul’s more difficult writings have been misused and abused.

ii.        Notice that Peter counted Paul’s writings as Scripture, meaning that he held them in equal esteem with the Old Testament writings (see 1:20-21).

III.   BE ON YOUR GUARD

A.      Now that Peter has sounded the warning, it is our responsibility to be on guard against these dangers (3:17).

                                                             1.      Forewarned is forearmed.  Peter’s warnings have alerted us to the dangers of false teachers and mockers so that we are now on guard against them.

                                                             2.      In chapter 2, Peter described how “unprincipled men” use deceit and fleshly desire to entice unstable souls and carry them away with their error.  We have been warned lest we fall from our own steadfastness (the danger of apostasy – see 2:20-22).

B.      Rather than allowing ourselves to be carried away in error, let us grow in the Lord (3:18a).

                                                             1.      Spiritual growth occurs through the grace and knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

a.       The grace and knowledge of the Lord come to us via the word of God.  It is the word of God that gives us growth in respect to salvation (1Pet. 2:1-3).

b.       In a similar message, Paul wrote, “The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” (Tit. 2:11-13).

                                                             2.      This is a final admonition to build Christian character just as Peter wrote in 1:2-11.

C.      The letter closes with a doxology (3:18b).

                                                             1.      A doxology is an expression of praise to God.

                                                             2.      Several of the epistles contain with similar doxologies (Rom. 16:25-27; Eph. 3:20-21; Phil. 4:20; 1Tim. 6:16; 2Tim. 4:18; Heb. 13:21; 1Pet. 5:11; Jude 24-25; Rev. 1:6).

IV.    CONCLUSION

A.      These last two verses are a good summary of the entire epistle of 2Peter.

B.      Let us now apply the message of 2Peter by building up our Christian character (chapter 1), guarding ourselves against false teachers (chapter 2), and rejecting the ridicule of mockers (chapter 3).