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“Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord to be salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction” (3:14-16).

Imagine the case of a man who has been cast upon a dreary inhospitable, deserted island. He knows the “mayday” message was heard, the coordinates of his location  were  understood, and that soon a vessel will come and bear him away.

He paces its barren and deserted sands, looks at the overcast sky, and anxiously awaits the arrival of the rescue ship which will carry him to a land of light and life.

Such is much like the Christian saint. He is an exile far from his home. His sentiments are correctly stated in the emotionally charged statements of Paul, “For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven; . . . indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, . . .” (2 Corinthians 5:2, 4).

Peter expressed this sentiment when he exhorted his readers to be “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (3:12).

The believer knows that the rescue vessel is prepared and the convoy is ready which will bear him away from a barren wilderness to a happy land flowing with milk and honey. But the rescue seems so far away! It seems we are stuck waiting to be rescued.

The anxiety of waiting is well known. Each of us  has  yearned  for  some  important  event  to arrive, and the waiting has seemed endless. Each passing day adds to the anxiety of the delay. Delays are irritating and depressing.

The gloomy periods of waiting spawned the Army’s ridiculous motto, “Hurry up and wait!”

Peter’s present words are written to brethren who, like us, were stuck waiting for the second coming. They were impatient and restless.

The thought that the second coming would never take place had pricked the minds of several (3:4). Peter turns to this delay and deals with it so his brethren could accept the delay and act properly during it.

The Bible is quite frank in stating that a delay would exist between the ascension of Christ and His second coming. Even with the large number of Bible texts advising us about the delay, it is still easy to join with those in Peter’s time and ask, “Why is the delay so long?”

The gracious Father in heaven never wants His children to be left in a quandary of faith.

He provided the readers of Peter’s second letter an answer to this nagging question. The delay is now in progress; we are stuck waiting. Peter reveals what we should do while we are stuck waiting in 2 Peter 3:14-16.

REMEMBER TO . . . DO YOUR UTMOST TO BE PREPARED (3:14)

Peter’s words stress preparation in two broad areas. Preparation with God. First, there must be preparation with God—“peace” (3:14). Although some see this peace being applied to all relationships shared in the church (to God, self, and others), the context seems to limit it only to one’s relationship with God.

Those who await the second coming of Christ must be sure they have made proper peace with God.   A peaceful relationship with God results only when one has been justified through Christ’s sacrifice.  It is impossible for one to have peace with God until this process has been completed. In 1:2-4, Peter referred to this reconciliation and peace with God.

He remarked that believers had become partakers of the divine nature “having escaped the corruption that is in the world.”

When we realize that we are terminal people living  on  a  terminal  earth  (3:10),  we  should quickly sue for peace with God. How do you stand in regard to having secured “peace” with the Almighty God?

Preparation for Life

Second, there must be preparation in life—“spotless and blameless” (3:14). The words found here are the exact opposite of those found in 2:13 describing the people wedded to the ungodliness of this world: “They are stains and blemishes.”

To help you understand the interesting use found here, consider the words in the original Greek. “Spot” is translated from the word  spiloi,  while “spotless” comes from the Greek word aspilos. The word “blemish” is from momoi, while “blameless” is derived from amometos.

Peter urges believers to live  exactly  opposite  from  those  in  the  world. Believers are to be free from the vices which stain and blot the soul (cf. Revelation 3:4). Basically, this point addresses the morality of daily living. Believers are to make sure they live as their Lord did.

Christ lived each day “unblemished and spotless” (1 Peter 1:19). When believers discipline their lives, they will live in the same way and be prepared for the Lord’s return (1 John 3:3).

This encouragement is timely for God’s children today. How easy it is to become engrossed in this world and forget about the world that is to come!

Peter tries to warn us about being blinded by the anxieties and cares of this world. He urges us to “be diligent.” The term literally means to strive earnestly, zealously for an objective.

One of the newer translations renders this phrase as “make every effort.” We must have enthusiasm as we wait for the Lord to return. A halfhearted response will never do.

This response of Peter to the anxious cries of his brethren who longed for the second coming needs to be understood today. Use this time to prepare yourself for the Lord’s return.

Prepare first, by establishing a peaceful relationship between yourself and God. Prepare, second, by living a life of moral uprightness. Prepare by being diligent.

As one old saint faced the end of his days, he reflected on these timely words of Peter. His remarks are impressive: “There is nothing more certain than death; nothing more uncertain than the time of dying. I will, therefore, be prepared for that at all times, which may come at any time, and must come at one time or another. I shall not hasten my death by being ready, but sweeten it. It makes me not die the sooner, but the better.”

While you are stuck waiting for Christ to come back, use every minute to make sure you are ready.

REMEMBER TO . . . KEEP YOUR MIND FOCUSED ON THE PURPOSE OF DELAY (3:15a)

Peter asks his readers to remember a point that he has already forcefully made. The delay in Christ’s return exists so that all who so desire may be saved (cf. 3:9). You could paraphrase the point like this, “And remember why He is waiting. He is giving us time to get His message of salvation to others.” Instead of viewing the de- lay as a broken promise by God, we are urged to see it as evidence of His great patience to provide all men with peace.

The godless may scoff at the delay because they fail to understand its benevolent purpose. They fail to realize that during the delay God is holding the door of salvation open as long as possible. But when the Bridegroom comes for His bride, the door of hope will be slammed shut never to be reopened. All who wait until the last minute to be saved will face the same catastrophe as the foolish virgins. They returned after buying additional oil for their lamps only to find “the door was shut” and their pleas for the door to be reopened fell upon deaf ears (cf. Matthew 25:1-13).

Christians have a pressing duty to realize that they are bound by the delay in Christ’s return to reach others by teaching them the gospel. During the delay, it is wrong for God’s saints to imagine that they have no duty or obligation to the lost. Christ spoke of His mission: “My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to accomplish His work.” His mission was to come to earth to save lost men (John 3:16). But He urged the same mission upon His disciples: Do you not say, “There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest”? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes, and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.  Already he who reaps is receiving wages, and is gathering fruit for life eternal; . . . (John 4:35, 36).

Since the Lord is delaying His return so lost souls can be saved, do you see your personal duty to help seek and save lost souls? The time is short. We must act quickly in seizing opportunities to fulfill our obligations.

The following story illustrates the plight of present-day evangelistic zeal in the church. When a little boy was lost in the woods, an alarm was sounded. The whole community responded: Fishermen abandoned their boats, merchants closed and left their shops, farmers forsook their plows and fields, and housewives left their washing and ironing. Everyone turned out to hunt for the little fellow. Feverish haste was evident because during the night harm might come to him.

With their tireless searching, the frightened child was found. As a result of the rescue, joy was felt by all. Today that little boy is grown. He is lost again, but no one seems to care. His mom and dad are too busy making a living.

The church is too busy and seems not to care. No alarm is sounded. Yet a far worse fate looms ahead for him now—he is lost in sin and no one seems to care enough to do anything about it. Be diligent in using the delay to save the souls of those who are lost.

REMEMBER TO . . . HANDLE THE SCRIPTURES IN THE RIGHT WAY (3:15b, 16)

The delay in Christ’s return has been adequately explained (cf. 3:8-13). Even with that clear explanation, some will refuse to accept it.

The emphasis in this point is upon doctrinal steadfastness. We must be sure to handle rightly God’s Word (cf. 2 Timothy 2:15). Peter says that some unethical teachers “distort” the Scriptures. This term refers to the action of a windless wrench, an instrument of torture, or the “rack.”

Peter uses it here to portray the distortion, straining, and twisting that false teachers use on truth. They will twist and torture the truth so that it appears to uphold their error. Those who participate in such acts will face destruction (3:16b).

God expects us to act with responsibility when we interpret His Book. We must be consistent with all other biblical texts. We must not change fundamental doctrines.

During the in-between stage while we are waiting for Christ’s return, God has given us the Bible to guide us. Let us be honest in its doctrine and truthful in its application to our lives. To do otherwise brings a grim harvest on the judgment day! How deadly delay can be when it comes to obeying God’s commands to be saved. Do not wait! When you to do until He comes?”

These pressing questions are clearly answered by Peter. We are indeed stuck  waiting  for  Jesus  Christ  to  return.  But being stuck does not mean we should be doing nothing. Peter tells us, “Be diligent!”

Two Approaches to the Bible (2 Peter 3:14, 16)

1. The Right Approach. “Be diligent” (3:14). This leads to peace, spotlessness, and blamelessness

 

2. 2. The Wrong “Distort” the Scriptures to suit our prejudices (3:16). This leads to destruction

CONCLUSION

The Lord has delayed His return so our delay in rendering obedience to His will may cease. Peter’s thoughts could not be stated in clearer terms. Procrastination on our part will only lead to tragedy. Let us be careful and not hesitate or prolong our delay in obeying His command understand this point.

Peter believes the Scriptures play a vital role in the life of the Christian (see 1 Peter 1:22–2:3; 2:8; 3:1; 2 Peter 1:3-4, 12-21; 2:21; 3:1-7, 14-18). And he does not cease challenging us to turn our attention to the Scriptures.

Even while Peter points us to the Word, he warns that some will seek to turn us from the truths of the Scriptures by perverting the teaching of Scripture. He does not look for prophets to arise, apparently because prophets are no longer necessary. After all, God has spoken fully and finally in Christ (Hebrews 1:1-3; 2:1-4).

But he does warn us false teachers will arise. They may not claim to reveal new truth from God on the level of Scripture, but they will seek to distort the Scriptures, twisting them to teach something vastly different from the intended meaning of the Bible.

In these closing verses of his second epistle, Peter draws our attention one final time to the Scriptures and the crucial role they play in our lives. He wants us to know that Paul’s letters are part of the inspired Word of God and that Paul is not one of the false teachers, although some distort his words to mean something far from what he intended.

If Paul is blamed for teaching error, Peter wants his readers to know Paul is not the one at fault. Paul’s teaching is in agreement with the revelation God gave through the Old Testament prophets, with the teaching of our Lord, and with the writings of the other apostles.

We sometimes hear someone say, “Your interpretation of Scripture is but one of many interpretations.” If we want to convince someone our interpretation of the Scriptures is correct, they might respond that the Bible is capable of meaning whatever one wants it to mean. This, of course, could be said of any writing.

We must not wrongly conclude that men’s failure to interpret Scripture accurately proves God did not clearly reveal Himself and His message to men in the Bible. Neither is it true that the meaning of Scripture is so obscure it is virtually impossible to discern. There is one correct interpretation of Scripture, and the rest is often the result of Scripture twisting, whether intentional or not.

Our purpose in this concluding lesson of 2 Peter is to note the characteristics of Scripture twisters so we may be alert to their presence among us. Further, we will identify the most common ways men twist the meaning of Scripture to help us avoid those errors in our study and interpretation of the Bible. In this way, we will be able to sharpen our interpretive skills and “accurately handle the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

What We Should Know About Scripture Twisters

(1) We should expect Scripture twisters to arise within the church. We can expect to arise from within the church those who will twist the meaning of Scriptures as they interpret, apply, and teach the Bible.

(2) We should also know the most likely areas for error to be introduced. Peter informs us that Scripture twisters deny a coming day of judgment (3:1-4), even though their judgment is sure (2:1, 3, 9, 12, 17). It would seem from 2 Peter 2:1 that Scripture twisters twist the Scriptures concerning the person and the work of Jesus Christ in that they “deny the Master who bought them.” In addition, Scripture twisters undermine the Biblical teaching on holy living (2 Peter 2:2; contrast 3:11, 14). I have seem it happen most often when a group of ‘church leaders’ decide to take a weekend away to study again what scripture teaches about a given subject…and you can usually predict that they will come to a ‘new understanding’ related to the use of instruments, women, and even whether they should serve communion on Saturday night ‘because it might encourage more participation of the young people.”

(3) Those who twist Scripture will twist any or all of the Bible, but they will often base their teachings on an obscure or problematic text. Peter acknowledges that some of Paul’s writings are “difficult to understand” (verse 16). These seem to be the starting point for the truth twisters. They begin with a problematic passage, developing their unorthodox doctrines, and then turn to the clear, emphatic texts, denying what they dogmatically teach.

(4) Those who twist Scripture are described by Peter as “untaught and unstable.” The two terms are introduced by a common article. This seems to indicate these two terms are to be viewed as interrelated.

(5) Scripture twisters have ulterior motives which are far from pure. The teachings of the Scripture twisters is self-serving and often rooted in greed and the desire for monetary gain (Titus 1:11; Jude 11, 16; contrast Acts 20:33; 1 Thessalonians 2:5-6; 1 Timothy 3:3; 6:3-5). For some, their twisted teaching is rooted in the ambition to have a personal following (Acts 20:30). They exploit their victims out of greed (2:3) and not out of a genuine love and concern (see 2 Peter 1:12-15; 1 Thessalonians 2:3-12).

(6) The appeal of Scripture twisters is in providing a pretext for self-indulgence and sin for their followers, as well as themselves. They entice those who are immature and vulnerable…scripture twisters assure men Christians can indulge the flesh (Jude 4) with no consequences.

(7) Those who twist Scripture do so to their own destruction It is little wonder that Scripture twisters deny the second coming of our Lord and the judgment to come. After all, His coming is a day of judgment for them. But Peter’s teaching is clear. Those who distort the truth of God’s Word do so to their own destruction (3:16; see also 2:1, 3, 9-13, 20-22; 3:7).

Sharpening our Sensitivity to Scripture Twisters

Peter’s words are written so Christians will be on their guard, alert to those who twist the Scriptures. He expects the saints not only can, but should, be able to discern those who pervert God’s Word.

Every Christian should be able to recognize those about whom Peter warns us.

We must be like the Bereans, always putting the teaching of others (even those whom we respect) to the test. Does the teaching we receive square with the truths of God’s Word (see Acts 17:11)? Bible teaching must never be a substitute for our own personal study of the Word of God; it is an enhancement to our own study. Good teaching should only encourage and facilitate the personal study of God’s Word, never discourage it.

Second, the best preventative for false teaching by others is to actively pursue godliness and personal spiritual growth. Those who do not know God personally through faith in Jesus Christ are not able to comprehend the truths of God’s Word. Those who know God, and who desire to do His will, will be enabled to understand divine truth.

Levels of Error

Not all errors are alike. Some errors are more dangerous and even more culpable than others. Some errors stem from ignorance. We simply do not know the Scriptures well enough. It may be that we speculate where we should simply acknowledge our ignorance (see Deuteronomy 29:29) and study the Word to determine the truth.

Some errors are errors of personal opinion or belief. For example, Christians may differ over the interpretation of a particular passage, especially a problematic passage. Everyone cannot be right. Perhaps no one is right. So long as we identify our interpretation as our opinion, I do not think we are in trouble. But when we teach our opinion as absolute truth, we are venturing into dangerous waters.

We need to distinguish between our convictions, which we should not impose on others, and the teaching of God’s principles and commands which all are to accept and practice. Paul is very careful to indicate to his readers those matters which are his personal conviction and those which are not.

I believe we should distinguish between those errors we sincerely hold as personal opinion or conviction and those we teach and advocate to others as God’s truth. Once we take on the role of teacher, we assume responsibility not only for ourselves, but for others, which is an awesome thing.

No wonder James admonishes us that not many should become teachers (James 4:1). Those things we teach others as the command of Christ become matters of great importance, and if we err on this level, we err seriously, to our own shipwreck and that of any who follow us in our error.

We should also beware of teaching in such a way us to set aside or undermine what God has given to His people as a clear command. We are told by our Lord to teach believers all that He has commanded us (Matthew 28:18-20), so let us see that the commands of Christ are the curriculum of discipleship. To fail to teach these, or to teach them in error, is very serious business.

Ways We Twist Scripture

(1) We err greatly in our interpretation and application of God’s Word when we subordinate the revelation of God’s truth to our own reason. When God’s command is clear, it does not matter nearly so much that we understand why the command is given as that we obey it. Too many Christians refuse to believe or obey Scripture until it makes sense to them. Some think Christians should understand the “full depth of injury” that others have brought upon them before they forgive them.

Adam and Eve did not understand why God forbade them to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They did not need to know this. In fact, eating of the tree is what would give them this knowledge. All they needed to know was that God had given this command and then to obey it.

More faith is required to obey God when we don’t understand why than to obey when the reasons are glaring us in the face.

(2) We are on very dangerous ground when we seek to “integrate” God’s truth, as revealed in Scripture, with “man’s truth,” as currently understood and taught from outside the Scriptures. “All truth is God’s truth,” we are told. That statement has a dangerous tendency, as currently applied. It tends to put all “truth” on the same level. It suggests that what is currently believed to be “true” through science, for example, is just as surely true as the truths of the Bible. It suggests that such scientific truth is just as certainly true as biblical truth. It suggests that secular “truth,” as currently understood, is just as important and as necessary to apply as God’s truth.

I do not believe this to be true. Only God’s truth—the truth God has revealed in His Word—is true truth, that which we can be assured is truth. Scientific truths continue to change. Biblical truth never changes.

How sad to see Christians rushing back to the Scriptures to reinterpret them because modern science has apparently exposed some new truth which challenges God’s truth as taught in his Word. How sad to hear Christians who are alleged experts in some secular field proclaim these “truths” on the same level as the truth of God’s Word.

The Bible is the only revelation of truth which is inspired, inerrant, and infallible. The Bible reveals every truth essential for life and godliness. It is not God’s truth (as revealed in Scripture), plus other “truth,” which we need to live godly lives; it is God’s truth alone.

Any truth not found in God’s truth is subordinate to God’s truth, and it is secondary to God’s truth, if indeed it is true at all. No wonder Christians are reading so many books beside (and often in place of) the Bible. They think they will find truth which is more necessary and important there. They are wrong. If any book is of great value to the Christian, it will be one which turns our attention and allegiance back to the Book.

(3) We twist the Scriptures when we “strain gnats and swallow camels.” This error was practiced by the scribes and Pharisees. They made much of the little details of the Scriptures, but they missed the main point. They put much emphasis on the specific commands of the Law but failed to grasp the major principles like justice and mercy, matters about which the prophets spoke.

And so it was that in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus interpreted the Law in such a way as to get to the heart of the Law. The Law not only prohibits murder, it requires us to deal with hatred by granting or seeking forgiveness.

The Law not only prohibits immorality, it teaches us to deal with impure thoughts as sin. This is the reason David loved the Law of God and meditated upon it (see Psalm 119).

The Law teaches us the principles of life and reveals to us the character and the heart of God. When we spiritualize the Scriptures, causing them to teach what they do not, we are beginning to twist the Scriptures.

(4) We twist the Scriptures when we take them farther than they were intended to be interpreted or applied. The Judaizers of Paul’s day took the command to be circumcised and imposed it upon the Gentiles, insisting they must do so to be saved (cf. Acts 15:1-2).

(5) We twist the Scriptures when we accommodate our own culture in the interpretation and application of God’s Word. In its most blatant form, we find the Scriptures to be in error or invalid when our cultural values differ from what they teach. And so it is that some have set aside Paul’s teaching on the role women are to play in the church.

Now, many ordain women as ministers and as overseers. We look down upon Paul for being a chauvinist. And in matters which are sensitive, we either play down or remain silent if the Scriptures collide with culture.

And so the sin of homosexuality is no longer called sin and condemned as such. To do so would require that we exercise discipline on those who practice what God condemns.

In order to have large, “successful,” happy churches, we do not hold to the same standards of marriage and divorce our Lord did. To do so would be to alienate and offend some and reduce church roles and budgets.

(6) We twist the Scriptures when we fail to hold seemingly contradictory truths in tension. We like to have our truth in neat little packages, all nicely labeled and easy to keep separated. And so we, like the Pharisees of old, want truth to be one way or the other, but not both:

16 And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any. 17 Tell us therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to give a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?” (Matthew 22:16-17).

They wanted Jesus to tell them they should pay their taxes or they should not. They were trying to press Jesus into saying men should either obey Caesar or obey God. Either way, they could get Jesus in trouble. Jesus told them they should submit to God and to Caesar. They couldn’t have it all one way.

Truths must be held in tension. God is sovereign. Nothing happens that is not a part of His sovereign decree. Yet we have been commanded to do certain things. We are humanly responsible for our decisions and actions. These two truths, the sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man, are both true and must be held in tension. Those who would seek to hold one truth and deny the other will distort the Scriptures.

(7) We twist the Scriptures by the misappropriation of truth. Grace is now distorted to sanctify sin. Grace is our excuse for sin, rather than an escape from sin. Sovereignty is an excuse for inactivity and passivity, etc. The Scriptures are twisted to excuse sin rather than expose and eradicate it.

(9) We twist the Scriptures when we selectively deny biblical teachings or commands. Sometimes this is a bold, outright denial of the truth of God’s Word. We do it by setting certain Scriptures aside, not by denying their truth, but by denying their application to us. Some set aside Paul’s teachings (not to mention Peter’s) on the conduct of women by telling us these teachings were for a different time and a different culture.

In His Great Commission, Jesus instructed the church to make disciples by “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:20). How many of our Lord’s commandments, as recorded in the Gospels, are taken seriously today, by evangelical, conservative Christians? By you?

Conclusion

Peter knows he is soon to die. Knowing this, he is intent on calling his readers to continually remember and apply the truths of God’s Word. How much nearer we are to the day of our Lord’s return. And how many are those who seek to twist the Scriptures to their destruction and, if possible, ours. Let us be men and women of the Word.

We are individually responsible to discern error and to respond to it biblically.

As the last days approach, let us fix our hope on the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us seek to live holy lives, so that we practice and proclaim the excellencies of God before a godless world. May we be men and women of the Word, encouraged in our study of the Bible by faithful teachers and turning from those who are false.

3:1 Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.  In this passage we see clearly displayed the principles of preaching which Peter observed.

(1) He believed in the value of repetition. He knows that it is necessary for a thing to be said over and over again if it is to penetrate the mind.

(2) He believed in the need for reminder. Again and again the New Testament makes it clear that preaching and teaching are so often not the introducing of new truth but the reminding of a man of what he already knows.

(3) He believed in the value of a compliment. The Greek word literally means “sun-judged.” A piece of pottery was “sun-judged” when it was held up to the sunlight in order to see any flaws or cracks. The thinking and intentions of God’s people must be able to stand up under scrutiny and not be led astray by immoral desires (Philippians 4:8–9). It is his intention to rouse their pure mind. By using this phrase Peter appeals to his people as having minds uncontaminated by heresy. It is as if he said to them: “You really are fine people—if you would only remember it.”

WHOLESOME MINDS If Peter were writing today, what concepts and ideas would he warn us against? He would warn us against beliefs that •      the difference between right and wrong is all a matter of personal choice. You ought to feel good about your beliefs and not offend anyone else’s choices. •      religion provides value only if it helps a person adjust to life and get a sense of self-worth. Religion that worries people is spooky and medieval. •      the worst sin is being intolerant of someone else’s ideas. After all, who are you to judge another person’s preferences? In contrast, Christians today believe that God is real, that God has spoken, that he is in control, and that all people should believe in him. Let God’s Word determine your thinking. He, not the world around us, sets our standards.

3:2 That you should remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles. (4) He believed in the unity of Scripture. As he saw it there was a pattern in Scripture; and the Bible was a book centered in Christ. The Old Testament foretells Christ; the gospels tell of Jesus the Christ; and the apostles bring the message of that Christ to men.

Because God’s Word is true, we must pay attention to it and take its message seriously. New converts must be taught the Word and established in the doctrines of the faith, for new Christians are the false teacher’s primary targets. But older Christians must also be reminded of the importance of Bible doctrine and, in particular, the doctrines that relate to the return of Christ. Prophetic teaching must not lull us to sleep. Rather, it must awaken us to live godly lives and to seek to win the lost.

3:3 First of all you must understand this, that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and indulging their own lusts. The “last days” began with Christ’s resurrection and will continue until his return.

The more the false teachers scoff, the more the Christians should be settled in their faith, knowing that this was only further assurance of Christ’s second coming.

SCOFFERS AND INQUIRERS In some churches, it’s considered discourteous to question anything. If you raise a question, you’re challenging authority and acting like a scoffer. Ironically, that kind of church is a scoffer’s dream-come-true. Where questions are not allowed, false teachers flourish like maggots in a garbage can. To inquire is a good thing. Inquirers raise honest, heartfelt questions; scoffers avoid real questions in favor of arguments that diminish God’s stature and ignore God’s Word. Inquirers want to know God better; scoffers want to hear themselves talk. While guarding against scoffers, healthy churches encourage inquirers. A church should never be a place where your mind closes down. Are you a scoffer or an inquirer?

3:4 And saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!”  What is their argument? The uniformity of the world. “Nothing cataclysmic has happened in the past,” they argue, “so there is no reason to believe it will happen in the future.” They take the “scientific approach” by examining evidence, applying reason, and drawing a conclusion. The fact that they willfully ignore a good deal of evidence does not seem to disturb them.

The scientific approach works admirably in matters that relate to the material universe, but you cannot take Bible prophecy into a laboratory and treat it as though it were another hypothesis.

For that matter, the so-called “laws of science” are really only educated conclusions based on a limited number of experiments and tests. These laws are generalizations, always subject to change, because no scientist can perform an infinite number of experiments to prove his claim. Nor can he completely control all the factors involved in the experiments and in his own thinking.

3:5–6  They deliberately ignore this fact, that by the word of God heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water and by means of water. What these scoffers were forgetting in their argument (that the world had remained unchanged since creation) was that God had created the world. The Creation disproves their “all things continue” argument because the creation of the earth was an imposed change on the formless void (Genesis 1:1–2). The very reason the world was continuing on in a stable, predictable pattern was because God, in his grace, had created it that way.

By the word of God the heavens were created (Genesis 1:6–8). By the word of God, an earth was formed out of water and by means of water (referring to the waters being gathered to allow the dry land to appear, Genesis 1:9–10).

However, this stability should not be taken for granted. The false teachers deliberately chose to ignore the fact that God had been involved in the world. For the waters that had parted in order to allow the dry land to appear had returned and covered the entire world—this was God’s judgment.

Peter continued:  By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.  As the creation was an act of God, so was the Flood. World refers to God’s judgment and destruction of the inhabitants of the world, not the world itself.

3:7 But by the same word the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the godless.  By God’s word, the heavens and the earth were created (3:5); by his word, the earth’s inhabitants were destroyed in judgment (3:6); by the same word God will bring future judgment and destruction. God had intervened before; he will intervene again.

But instead of destruction by water, Peter wrote that the heavens and earth have been reserved for fire. In Noah’s day the earth was judged by water; at the Second Coming it will be judged by fire.

Peter’s point was that destruction would come and the godless (those who have not believed) will not escape.

3:8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  Not only were they ignorant of what God had done in the past (2 Peter 3:5), but they were also ignorant of what God was like. When you study the works of God, especially in the Old Testament, you can see that He is never in a hurry, but He is never late.

He could have created the entire universe in an instant, yet He preferred to do it over a period of six days. He could have delivered Israel from Egypt in a moment, yet He preferred to invest eighty years in training Moses. For that matter, He could have sent the Savior much sooner, but He waited until “the fullness of the time was come” (Gal. 4:4). While God works in time, He is not limited by time.

To God, a thousand years is as one day, and one day as a thousand years. God can accomplish in one day what it would take others a millennium to accomplish! He waits to work, but once He begins to work, He gets things done!

The question still remained, “Why was the Lord delaying so long?”  Peter offered two reasons in 3:8–9. First of all, the Lord does not count time as people do. He is above and outside of the sphere of time. God sees all of eternity past and eternity future.

ANY DAY NOW To Christians wondering about God’s delayed return, Peter offers a three-part challenge. 1.    When has God ever failed to keep a promise? Never, and God will not fail now. 2.    When has God ever fulfilled a promise in quite the exact way all of us smart people think he should? Never. So don’t get too smart now. 3.    What could God possibly be waiting for? Well, look around at needy souls, lost without a Savior, ignorant of God’s promise. If you don’t have a tear in your eye, you’ve missed the point of God’s patience. Stop wondering; start spreading the word. Don’t let any human reasoning deter you from your hope and your duty.

3:9  The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

The second reason for the Lord’s delay concerning His promise (the promise of his return) was not slackness. God was not tardy or late. Unlike people, God does not forget his promises, nor is he late in following through on them. Instead, the Lord is delaying his return because he is longsuffering and compassionate. He wants as many people as will to come to faith in him.

The Christian has three bold reasons for believing in His return: (1) He was once here (John 1:1-17; 1 John 1:1-3); (2) He has promised to return (John 14:1-3; Acts 1:10, 11; Revelation 22:12); (3) Jerusalem was destroyed (A.D. 70) and overridden by the Gentiles as Jesus prophesied would take place prior to His return (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21). What Jesus foretold concerning Jerusalem has come to pass and cannot be denied.

Love is the reason that he delays the destruction of the world. God desires all people to be saved. He is not indifferent. God gave people free will. Some will exercise their free will and reject God, but this is not God’s desire.

God is loving, but he also executes perfect justice. His perfect love causes him to be merciful to those who recognize their sin and turn back to him, but he cannot ignore those who willfully sin.

God’s “delay” is actually an indication that He has a plan for this world and that He is working His plan. There should be no question in anybody’s mind whether God wants sinners to be saved.

1 Timothy 2:4 affirms that God “will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” These verses give both the negative and the positive, and together they assure us that God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezek. 18:23, 32; 33:11). He shows His mercy to all (Rom. 11:32) even though not all will be saved.

 3:10   But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.  The day of the Lord is the day of Christ’s return and of God’s judgment on the earth. Peter explained that no matter how long it might take, the Day of the Lord will come, and it will come unexpectedly. We should live each day as though Christ could return at any moment. Christians must be morally clean and spiritually alert.

The Day of the Lord will be a time of judgment and destruction, for  the heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

This is an extremely skeptical world. We live in extremely skeptical times. We are suspicious of everything. We tend to think that everything is guided by ulterior motives. We tend to believe that true openness and genuine honesty do not exist.

Our skepticism profoundly impacts the way we look at God. We do not place as much emphasis on what God said as on what God did not say. We are devoted to determining what God actually wants. We often attempt to determine God’s true desires by “reading between the lines.”

I sincerely doubt that any of us are capable of imagining the enormous frustration that we inflict on God.

Have you ever considered how easily God could have “given up” on humanity? Have you ever considered how easily God could have decided that one of the worst mistakes He ever made was creating humans with a free will?

If God were human, He would have cut His losses a long time ago. To me the greatest evidences that God is not human are seen in His patience, His forgiveness, and His mercy.

No human, not even the best of the best, can endure as much abuse, misrepresentation, and neglect as does God, and remain patient, forgiving, and merciful.

Important for us to relate more and more with the nature of God…important that we come to know Him as He really is. We begin with a strange text:

Abraham’s Bargain (Genesis 18:16-33). When God’s intentions regarding Sodom and Gomorrah becomes clear, Abraham is concerned because he has family down there. He begins bartering with God…think of his audacity….50…45…40…30…20 …10.

This is the very nature of God! He longs to save! The primary character of this text is not Abraham but God.

The Constant Refrain

(Exodus 34:6) “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…”

God is a holy God and His nature is not to be taken for granted…but His nature is clearly revealed again…He wants to save!

Relate rebellious nature of the children of Israel and see the end result:

(Numbers 14:18) “‘The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.'”

The law is read before a large group of people and, after standing for hours, they repented of their sins…and remembered God in the past and related it to their present:

(Nehemiah 9:17) “They refused to listen and failed to remember the miracles you performed among them. They became stiff-necked and in their rebellion appointed a leader in order to return to their slavery. But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them…”

Psalmist complains about the abuse he’s taken in life:

(Psalms 86:15) “But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”

(Psalms 103:8-14) “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. {9} He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; {10} he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. {11} For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; {12} as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. {13} As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; {14} for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.”

This statement is like John 3:16 to the Jewish people……it is given as a constant reminder for the Israelites…..(Psalms 145:8) “The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.”

(Joel 2:13) “Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.”

(Jonah 4:2) “He prayed to the LORD, “O LORD, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity.”

(Nahum 1:3) “The LORD is slow to anger and great in power; the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished. His way is in the whirlwind and the storm, and clouds are the dust of his feet.”

What Patience Is/Is Not

Patience is “slow to anger” and “steadfastness.”

Patience is not: apathy or tolerance. God is holy and He will reckon eventually with the unholiness of man and his willful decisions…of his ignoring the teachings of God. “Whatever” will not be tolerated by God when all is made right on His timetable.

Patience With a Purpose

God’s patience is for the purpose of giving an opportunity to repent. (Romans 2:4) “Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you toward repentance?”

(2 Peter 3:9-10) “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. {10} But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.”

Why has Christ not yet returned to earth? Because God loves man; He does not want any person to perish, not a single person. God is not slack in fulfilling His promise nor is He powerless to return and judge the earth. He has not returned for one reason and one reason only. He wants more and more people to come to repentance.

Very simply, God is slow to give in and to judge and condemn us. God loves and cares for us despite our sin and rebellion, cursing and rejection. This is the very reason He sent Christ to save us. He loves and cares for us; therefore, He is suffering a long time with us.

God wants no person to perish. To perish is a terrible thing. It means to be utterly lost and destroyed. It means to lose eternal life and to be cut off from life forever and ever.

It means to be spiritually destitute, completely empty of all good. It means to suffer the judgment, condemnation, and punishment of separation from God forever and ever. It means to be in a state of suffering forever and ever apart from God.

The point is this: God does not want us perishing; He does not want us cut off and separated from Him. God wants us to spend eternity with Him not apart from Him.

There are in this passage three great truths on which to nourish the mind and rest the heart.

Time is not the same to God as it is to man.  As the Psalmist had it:  “A thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night” (Psalm 90:4).

When we think of the world’s hundreds of thousands of years of existence, it is easy to feel dwarfed into insignificance; when we think of the slowness of human progress, it is easy to become discouraged into pessimism.

There is comfort in the thought of a God who has all eternity to work in.  It is only against the background of eternity that things appear in their true proportions and assume their real value.

We can also see from this passage that time is always to be regarded as an opportunity.  As Peter saw it, the years God gave the world were a further opportunity for men to repent and turn to him.  Every day which comes to us is a gift of mercy.  It is an opportunity to develop ourselves; to render some service to our fellow-men; to take one step nearer to God.

Finally, there is another echo of a truth which so often lies in the background of New Testament thought.  God, says Peter, does not wish any to perish.

Ever and again there shines in Scripture the glint of the larger hope.  We are not forbidden to believe that somehow and some time the God who loves the world will bring the whole world to himself.

A Word Straight to You and Me. God hasn’t and will never give up on you and me! It’s easy for us to think God acts toward us the way we act toward each other. We’ve all had people “give up on us” as a result of some disagreement or event. One of the great tragedies is when family “gives up on us.” The message today: God doesn’t give up on us.

Patience. God is often more patient with us than we are with ourselves. We assume that if we fall, we aren’t born again. If we stumble, then we aren’t truly converted. If we have the old desires, then we must not be a new creation.

If you are anxious about this, please remember, “God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again” (Phil. 1:6 ).^[1]

Closing comments

God’s people are to be patient. The psalmist learned to be patient when confronted with the prosperity of the wicked:

Psalm 37:1–3 (ESV) Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! ² For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. ³ Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

Psalm 37:9–13 (ESV) For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. ¹⁰ In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. ¹¹ But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace. ¹² The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, ¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming.

Psalm 37:34–38 (ESV) Wait for the Lord and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off. ³⁵ I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree. ³⁶ But he passed away, and behold, he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found. ³⁷ Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace. ³⁸ But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.

Patience is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). Christian love is patient (1 Cor. 13:4, 7).  Christians need patient endurance in the face of persecution. Perseverance is part of maturity (Jas. 1:2-4). Job’s perseverance is another example for suffering Christians (Jas. 5:11).

^[1] Lucado, M., & Gibbs, T. A. 2001, 1996. God’s inspirational promises . J. Countryman: Nashville, TN

We Americans do not handle delays very well. Our culture simply does not like to wait. Yet we wait less today than men have ever waited.

We travel at high speed waiting less to arrive at a distant place. Communica­tions which formerly took months now are completed in seconds. Meals which used to take hours to cook are now done in minutes in microwave ovens.

People used to have to wait until they had cash to purchase a new car or home. Now these things are bought on credit. We do not have to wait. Fewer and fewer people are willing to wait until marriage to enjoy the pleasures of sex. We Americans are not accustomed to waiting.

Men do not enjoy waiting for anything, or anyone, including God. But the trust is men have been waiting on God all through history.

Noah waited a good 100 years or so for the flood to come upon the earth (compare Genesis 5:32; 6:10; 7:6).

Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years for the birth of the son God had promised them (compare Genesis 12:4; 21:5).

Abraham did not even possess the promised land in his lifetime, and it was more than 400 years until his descendants took possession of it (compare Genesis 12:1-3; 15:12-16).

From their constant questions about the coming of our Lord’s kingdom, it was evident the disciples were not excited about waiting either.

When Jesus tarried three days before going to the place Lazarus had fallen sick and died, both Martha and Mary cautiously chided Jesus for coming too late (see John 11:21, 32).

God’s promises never come too late; in truth, they are never “late” at all. When the Scriptures indicate a time for God’s actions, the fulfillment is always precisely on time (see Exodus 12:40-41).

When Jeremiah prophesied that Judah would be expelled from the land and held captive in Babylon for 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11-12), the fulfillment of this prophecy would take place precisely at the end of 70 years. Knowing this, Daniel prayed accordingly (Daniel 9:1-3ff.).

Likewise, the birth of the Lord Jesus came about exactly on schedule (Galatians 4:4-5).

But there are mockers who seek to convince themselves and others that the promise of our Lord’s second coming is false based upon the passage of much time and compounded by no visible evidences that He will come at all.

A woman who worked for the Internal Revenue Service at times had to communicate with delinquent taxpayers.

On one occasion she called Anchorage and was patched through to a ham operator in the Aleutian Islands. Two hours later the ham operator raised the taxpayer’s home base and from there reached him at sea with his fishing fleet.

After the woman identified herself as being with the IRS in Utah, there was a long pause. Then over the static from somewhere in the North Pacific came: “Ha! Ha! Come and get me!” (In Reader’s Digest, “Life in These United States,” 10/82)

A lot of people scoff at God and the warning of His coming judgment like that fisherman scoffed at the IRS. They somehow think that either it will never happen because it hasn’t happened yet or that if it ever does happen, they’ll be okay.

And while few are so bold as openly to scoff at God and the judgment, many do so practically by living as if they will never stand before Him to give an account. The idea of facing Him in judgment is so far from their minds that it never affects how they live.

Mockers believe they have given God plenty of time to fulfill His promise to return and thus have now concluded that His time is up. “If He hasn’t come by now,” they say, “He simply isn’t coming.”

Another prevalent response: I read of a minister who was talking with a colleague about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The colleague said, “Well, if that’s the way God really is, then I’m not going to believe in Him!”

That is strange logic! Not believing in God doesn’t make Him go away. Yet I’ve often heard people dismiss God’s judgment by saying, “I believe in a God of love. He would never judge anyone, except maybe the worst of the worst of sinners.”

Or, some will say, “I don’t believe in the Old Testament God of judgment. I believe in Jesus, who never condemned anyone.”

Really? Jesus spoke more often and more graphically about hell than anyone else in the Bible. He used the story of Sodom’s destruction to warn about the final judgment when He returns (Luke 17:29-32).

The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, reveals a God who will bring judgment on sinners, but who shows mercy to those who repent of their sins and trust in Him.

In our text, Peter wants his readers to know that although God’s judgment may be delayed, it is absolutely certain.

He uses three historical examples of judgment and two examples of God’s rescuing the righteous from judgment both to warn and to encourage.

The warning is, God will righteously judge all the ungodly. None will escape. The encouragement is, God will rescue the godly from judgment. Therefore, we should have the courage to stand firm in following God in an ungodly world.

The fallen angels (2:4). For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of deepest darkness to be kept until the judgment.

We wish we knew more about the creation of the angels and the fall of Lucifer and his host, but most of these details are shrouded in mystery.

Many Bible students believe that Isaiah 14:12-15 describes the fall of Lucifer, the highest of the angels. Some students feel that Ezekiel 28:11-19 also deals with the same topic.

Revelation 12:4 suggests that perhaps one third of the angels fell with Lucifer, who became Satan, the adversary of God.

If God did not even spare his angels, neither will he spare the false teachers. Judgment will come. The angels who sinned were cast … into hell. That phrase in Greek is one word (used only here in the New Testament), literally meaning “to cast into Tartarus.”

In Greek mythology, Tartarus, located in the lowest part of the underworld, was the place of punishment of rebellious gods and the departed spirits of very evil people.

These angels were imprisoned in this hell, committed … to chains of deepest darkness.

It is not necessary to debate the hidden mysteries of this verse in order to get the main message: God judges rebellion and will not spare those who reject His will.

If God judged the angels, who in many respects are higher than men, then certainly He will judge rebellious men.

The old world (2:5). If he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others. I think that with the flood we often get so hung up on the geologic issues or questions of how Noah could get all those animals on the ark that we miss the main point, namely, that the flood was a horrific judgment on the entire earth.

Everyone and everything that were not on the ark perished! The Bible uses the flood story as a warning to everyone since that time that a far worse future judgment is coming, when all the ungodly who are not “on board” Jesus Christ will perish eternally.

Yet even as God was destroying all the sinful people in Noah’s day, he powerfully protected those who followed him, eight people in all: Noah and seven of his relatives (his wife, three sons, and their wives, Genesis 8:16).

Genesis 6:3 indicates that God waited 120 years before He sent the Flood. All during that time, Noah ministered as a “herald” of God’s righteousness.

Nobody believed Noah’s message! Jesus made it clear that people were enjoying their normal lives up to the very day that Noah and his family entered the ark! (Luke 17:26-27).

No doubt there were plenty of “experts” who laughed at Noah and assured the people that a rainstorm was out of the question. Had anybody ever seen one? The apostates in Peter’s day used that same argument to “prove” that the Day of the Lord would not come (2 Peter 3:3ff).

God’s punishment is not arbitrary. Those who deserve punishment will receive his punishment; those who trust in him will receive his grace.

Peter’s readers should understand the comparison—those who choose the wrong path face eternal consequences.

If you want to read a description of the world before the Flood, read Romans 1:18ff.

CHOICES – The choices sound simple—follow God or rebellious humanity— but there was nothing simple about Noah’s decision.

• His faith in God gave him the reputation of an outcast, a fool. No one wants to feel that way today. We rely too readily on the approval of others.
• Noah invested all he had in God’s promise. He placed his entire family fortune, everything he had, inside that ark. Today, we rely on diversified portfolios to protect against uncertain markets. We don’t trust our financial security to God alone.
• Noah’s witness was entirely rejected. He convinced no one. As a preacher, he would have been regarded as a total failure.

If the choice between God and the world seems simple and clear, perhaps you have not counted the real cost.

When you compare our world with Noah’s world, you see some frightening parallels. The population was multiplying (Gen. 6:1), and the world was filled with wickedness (Gen. 6:5) and violence (Gen. 6:11, 13).

Lawlessness abounded. True believers were a minority, and nobody paid any attention to them! But the Flood came and the entire population of the world was destroyed. God does indeed judge those who reject His truth. The choices sound simple—follow God or rebellious humanity— but there was nothing simple about Noah’s decision.

Sodom and Gomorrah (2:6). If he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly.

Genesis 18–19 describes the sinfulness of these cities and Abraham’s effort to keep them from being destroyed.

When not even ten righteous people could be found in the cities, God destroyed the cities by burning them to ashes: “The Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and he overthrew those cities, and all the Plain” (Genesis 19:24–25).

After the conflagration, “Abraham … looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the Plain and saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of a furnace” (Genesis 19:27–28).

Lot’s future sons-in-law thought that he was joking when he warned them to flee the impending judgment.

These actions today are being condoned/praised rather than seen for what they represent. In what sense were their filthy deeds “unlawful”?

They were contrary to nature (see Rom. 1:24-27). The flagrant sin of Sodom and the other cities was unnatural sex, sodomy, or homosexual behavior, a sin that is clearly condemned in Scripture.

⁹ Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, ¹⁰ nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. ¹¹ And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

In spite of Abraham’s intercessory prayer (Gen. 18:22ff) and Lot’s last-minute warning, the people of Sodom perished in fire and brimstone.

Peter states that God made the people of Sodom “an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter.”

In other words, the judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah was not a one-time oddity. It is in Scripture as a warning of the judgment to come.

2:9 Then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment.

God has reserved the unjust for special punishment on that day of judgment. The false teachers may seem successful (for “many” follow them), but in the end, they will be condemned.

What a contrast between the false teachers and the true children of God! We have an inheritance reserved for us (1 Peter 1:4) because Jesus Christ is preparing a home for us in heaven (John 14:1-6).

Some people would have us believe that God will save all people because he is so loving. But it is foolish to think that God will cancel the last judgment. Don’t ever minimize the certainty of God’s judgment on those who rebel against him.

We have a lot of emphasis on tolerance of others and the self-help benefits of the Bible, but we must not dilute God’s clear words of warning. To turn away from God is to turn to ruin.

Conclusion. I read recently of a brochure that a funeral home printed and displayed on the day of a burial: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life.” But they left out some crucial words: “shall not perish but have eternal life”!

Jesus didn’t come and die on the cross just to give us warm, fuzzy feelings about God’s love.

He offered Himself to pay the penalty for sin that we deserved to rescue us from the wrath to come (1 Thess. 1:10).

The preservation of Noah and the rescue of Lot give us the hope that if we trust in Christ and turn from our sins, and are immersed in water in order to have our sins forgiven, God will mercifully spare us from the judgment to come.

We Americans do not handle delays very well. Our culture simply does not like to wait. Yet we wait less today than men have ever waited.

We travel at high speed waiting less to arrive at a distant place. Communica­tions which formerly took months now are completed in seconds. Meals which used to take hours to cook are now done in minutes in microwave ovens.

People used to have to wait until they had cash to purchase a new car or home. Now these things are bought on credit. We do not have to wait. Fewer and fewer people are willing to wait until marriage to enjoy the pleasures of sex. We Americans are not accustomed to waiting.

Men do not enjoy waiting for anything, or anyone, including God. But the trust is men have been waiting on God all through history.

Noah waited a good 100 years or so for the flood to come upon the earth (compare Genesis 5:32; 6:10; 7:6).

Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years for the birth of the son God had promised them (compare Genesis 12:4; 21:5).

Abraham did not even possess the promised land in his lifetime, and it was more than 400 years until his descendants took possession of it (compare Genesis 12:1-3; 15:12-16).

From their constant questions about the coming of our Lord’s kingdom, it was evident the disciples were not excited about waiting either.

When Jesus tarried three days before going to the place Lazarus had fallen sick and died, both Martha and Mary cautiously chided Jesus for coming too late (see John 11:21, 32).

God’s promises never come too late; in truth, they are never “late” at all. When the Scriptures indicate a time for God’s actions, the fulfillment is always precisely on time (see Exodus 12:40-41).

When Jeremiah prophesied that Judah would be expelled from the land and held captive in Babylon for 70 years (Jeremiah 25:11-12), the fulfillment of this prophecy would take place precisely at the end of 70 years. Knowing this, Daniel prayed accordingly (Daniel 9:1-3ff.).

Likewise, the birth of the Lord Jesus came about exactly on schedule (Galatians 4:4-5).

God is never “late;” He is always “on time.”

But there are mockers who seek to convince themselves and others that the promise of our Lord’s second coming is false based upon the passage of much time and compounded by no visible evidences that He will come at all.

A woman who worked for the Internal Revenue Service at times had to communicate with delinquent taxpayers. On one occasion she called Anchorage and was patched through to a ham operator in the Aleutian Islands. Two hours later the ham operator raised the taxpayer’s home base and from there reached him at sea with his fishing fleet.

After the woman identified herself as being with the IRS in Utah, there was a long pause. Then over the static from somewhere in the North Pacific came: “Ha! Ha! Come and get me!” (In Reader’s Digest, “Life in These United States,” 10/82)

A lot of people scoff at God and the warning of His coming judgment like that fisherman scoffed at the IRS. They somehow think that either it will never happen because it hasn’t happened yet or that if it ever does happen, they’ll be okay.

And while few are so bold as openly to scoff at God and the judgment, many do so practically by living as if they will never stand before Him to give an account. The idea of facing Him in judgment is so far from their minds that it never affects how they live.

Mockers believe they have given God plenty of time to fulfill His promise to return and thus have now concluded that His time is up. “If He hasn’t come by now,” they say, “He simply isn’t coming.”

Another prevalent response: I read of a minister who was talking with a colleague about the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The colleague said, “Well, if that’s the way God really is, then I’m not going to believe in Him!”

That is strange logic! Not believing in God doesn’t make Him go away. Yet I’ve often heard people dismiss God’s judgment by saying, “I believe in a God of love. He would never judge anyone, except maybe the worst of the worst of sinners.”

Or, some will say, “I don’t believe in the Old Testament God of judgment. I believe in Jesus, who never condemned anyone.”

Really? Jesus spoke more often and more graphically about hell than anyone else in the Bible. He used the story of Sodom’s destruction to warn about the final judgment when He returns (Luke 17:29-32).

The entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, reveals a God who will bring judgment on sinners, but who shows mercy to those who repent of their sins and trust in Him.

Peter saw no hope for these apostates/false teachers; their doom was sealed. His attitude was different from that of “tolerant” religious people today who say, “Well, they may not agree with us, but there are many roads to heaven.”

Peter made it clear that these false teachers had “forsaken the right way” (2 Peter 2:15), which simply means they were going the wrong way!

In our text, Peter wants his readers to know that although God’s judgment may be delayed, it is absolutely certain. He uses three historical examples of judgment and two examples of God’s rescuing the righteous from judgment both to warn and to encourage. The warning is, God will righteously judge all the ungodly. None will escape. The encouragement is, God will rescue the godly from judgment. Therefore, we should have the courage to stand firm in following God in an ungodly world.

Since God judges all the ungodly and mercifully saves the godly, we should stand firm in following Him and resist all false teaching.

In this section, Peter proved that judgment finally does come, no matter how secure the sinner might feel. He used three examples to verify this truth (see also Jude 6-8).

The fallen angels (2:4). For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of deepest darkness to be kept until the judgment.

We wish we knew more about the creation of the angels and the fall of Lucifer and his host, but most of these details are shrouded in mystery.

Many Bible students believe that Isaiah 14:12-15 describes the fall of Lucifer, the highest of the angels. Some students feel that Ezekiel 28:11-19 also deals with the same topic.

Revelation 12:4 suggests that perhaps one third of the angels fell with Lucifer, who became Satan, the adversary of God.

If some people still did not believe in future judgment and punishment, Peter gave examples of how God had judged evil in the past.

If God did not even spare his angels, neither will he spare the false teachers. Judgment will come. The angels who sinned were cast … into hell. That phrase in Greek is one word (used only here in the New Testament), literally meaning “to cast into Tartarus.”

In Greek mythology, Tartarus, located in the lowest part of the underworld, was the place of punishment of rebellious gods and the departed spirits of very evil people.

These angels were imprisoned in this hell, committed … to chains of deepest darkness.

False teachers will face the same judgment as the rebellious angels. Where are these fallen angels now? We know that Satan is free and at work in the world (1 Peter 5:8), and that he has an army of demonic powers assisting him (Eph. 6:10-12), who are probably some of the fallen angels.

It is not necessary to debate the hidden mysteries of this verse in order to get the main message: God judges rebellion and will not spare those who reject His will.

If God judged the angels, who in many respects are higher than men, then certainly He will judge rebellious men.

The old world (2:5). If he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others. I think that with the flood we often get so hung up on the geologic issues or questions of how Noah could get all those animals on the ark that we miss the main point, namely, that the flood was a horrific judgment on the entire earth.

Everyone and everything that were not on the ark perished! The Bible uses the flood story as a warning to everyone since that time that a far worse future judgment is coming, when all the ungodly who are not “on board” Jesus Christ will perish eternally.

Peter referred to the Flood three times in his two letters (see 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 2:5; 3:6). God did not spare the ancient world—for the great sinfulness of all mankind led him to destroy the entire rebellious civilization.

Yet even as God was destroying all the sinful people in Noah’s day, he powerfully protected those who followed him, eight people in all: Noah and seven of his relatives (his wife, three sons, and their wives, Genesis 8:16).

Genesis 6:3 indicates that God waited 120 years before He sent the Flood. All during that time, Noah ministered as a “herald” of God’s righteousness. If you want to read a description of the world before the Flood, read Romans 1:18ff.

Salvation had been available to everyone (Peter described Noah as a preacher of righteousness); however, few had chosen to believe.

Gentile civilization had become so corrupt that it was necessary for God to wipe the earth clean. He saved only eight people, Noah and his family, because they had faith in God (Heb. 11:7).

But nobody believed Noah’s message! Jesus made it clear that people were enjoying their normal lives up to the very day that Noah and his family entered the ark! (Luke 17:26-27).

No doubt there were plenty of “experts” who laughed at Noah and assured the people that a rainstorm was out of the question. Had anybody ever seen one? The apostates in Peter’s day used that same argument to “prove” that the Day of the Lord would not come (2 Peter 3:3ff).

God’s punishment is not arbitrary. Those who deserve punishment will receive his punishment; those who trust in him will receive his grace. Peter’s readers should understand the comparison—those who choose the wrong path face eternal consequences.

CHOICES – The choices sound simple—follow God or rebellious humanity— but there was nothing simple about Noah’s decision.

• His faith in God gave him the reputation of an outcast, a fool. No one wants to feel that way today. We rely too readily on the approval of others.
• Noah invested all he had in God’s promise. He placed his entire family fortune, everything he had, inside that ark. Today, we rely on diversified portfolios to protect against uncertain markets. We don’t trust our financial security to God alone.
• Noah’s witness was entirely rejected. He convinced no one. As a preacher, he would have been regarded as a total failure.

Today, we smartly pick careers that provide significant incentive and reward. Who would decide to invest his or her life when there are no observable results to be gained?

If the choice between God and the world seems simple and clear, perhaps you have not counted the real cost. Very few counselors today will advise the Noah track. It’s just too risky. But there really is no other choice!

When you compare our world with Noah’s world, you see some frightening parallels. The population was multiplying (Gen. 6:1), and the world was filled with wickedness (Gen. 6:5) and violence (Gen. 6:11, 13).

Lawlessness abounded. True believers were a minority, and nobody paid any attention to them! But the Flood came and the entire population of the world was destroyed. God does indeed judge those who reject His truth. The choices sound simple—follow God or rebellious humanity— but there was nothing simple about Noah’s decision.

Sodom and Gomorrah (2:6). If he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly. A third example of God’s certain punishment of evil is the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. Genesis 18–19 describes the sinfulness of these cities and Abraham’s effort to keep them from being destroyed.

When not even ten righteous people could be found in the cities, God destroyed the cities by burning them to ashes: “The Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven; and he overthrew those cities, and all the Plain” (Genesis 19:24–25).

After the conflagration, “Abraham … looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and toward all the land of the Plain and saw the smoke of the land going up like the smoke of a furnace” (Genesis 19:27–28).

Lot’s future sons-in-law thought that he was joking when he warned them to flee the impending judgment.

In what sense were their filthy deeds “unlawful”? They were contrary to nature (see Rom. 1:24-27). The flagrant sin of Sodom and the other cities was unnatural sex, sodomy, or homosexual behavior, a sin that is clearly condemned in Scripture (Lev. 18:22; Rom. 1:24-27; 1 Cor. 6:9).

In spite of Abraham’s intercessory prayer (Gen. 18:22ff) and Lot’s last-minute warning, the people of Sodom perished in fire and brimstone.

Ezekiel (16:49) also informs us that the people of Sodom were arrogant and had abundant food and ease, but they did not help the poor.

Peter states that God made the people of Sodom “an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter.”

In other words, the judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah was not a one-time oddity. It is in Scripture as a warning of the judgment to come.

Having cited these three examples of certain judgment, Peter then applied the lesson to the subject at hand, the false teachers

2:9 Then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment.

God has reserved the unjust for special punishment on that day of judgment. The false teachers may seem successful (for “many” follow them), but in the end, they will be condemned.

What a contrast between the false teachers and the true children of God! We have an inheritance reserved for us (1 Peter 1:4) because Jesus Christ is preparing a home for us in heaven (John 14:1-6).

Some people would have us believe that God will save all people because he is so loving. But it is foolish to think that God will cancel the last judgment. Don’t ever minimize the certainty of God’s judgment on those who rebel against him.

We have a lot of emphasis on tolerance of others and the self-help benefits of the Bible, but we must not dilute God’s clear words of warning. To turn away from God is to turn to ruin.

Conclusion. I read recently of a brochure that a funeral home printed and displayed on the day of a burial: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life.” But they left out some crucial words: “shall not perish but have eternal life”!

Jesus didn’t come and die on the cross just to give us warm, fuzzy feelings about God’s love.

He offered Himself to pay the penalty for sin that we deserved to rescue us from the wrath to come (1 Thess. 1:10).

The preservation of Noah and the rescue of Lot give us the hope that if we trust in Christ and turn from our sins, and are immersed in water in order to have our sins forgiven, God will mercifully spare us from the judgment to come.

e.

When you think of cruelty, you probably think of terrorists blowing up innocent people or of evil parents abusing a little child. But you probably wouldn’t think of false prophets.

John MacArthur writes, “Nothing is more wicked than for someone to claim to speak for God to the salvation of souls when in reality he speaks for Satan to the damnation of souls.”

It’s interesting that in 2 Peter 2 there are no direct exhortations or commands. Rather, Peter just describes the false teachers and their evil ways at length.

It’s as if he is holding up a Most Wanted Poster with some hideous, evil-looking characters, saying, “This is what these guys look like, so watch out for them!”

One of the most successful rackets in the world today is that of selling “fake art.” Even some of the finest galleries and private collections have been invaded by paintings that are clever counterfeits of the great masters.

But counterfeits are nothing new. Satan is the “great imitator” (2 Cor. 11:13-15), and he has been hard at work ever since he deceived Eve in the Garden (Gen. 3:1-7).

He has false Christians (Matt. 13:38; John 8:44), a false gospel (Gal. 1:6-9), and even a false righteousness (Rom. 9:30-10:4).

The nation Israel was constantly being led astray by false prophets. Elijah had to contend with the prophets of Baal when they promoted a pagan religion.

It was the Jewish false prophets who did the most damage, for they claimed to speak for Jehovah God.

Why do people follow the pseudo-prophets? Because the religion of the false prophets was easy, comfortable, and popular. The fact that the false prophets preached a false peace did not worry the people (Jer. 6:14). That was the message they wanted to hear!

Jesus had told the disciples that false teachers would come:

• “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:15–16).
• “And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray” (Matthew 24:11).

Peter spared no words against these false teachers, explaining their evil characteristics and motives, the danger of their teaching, and the certainty of their fate.

The church has done a great deal to identify false teachers and cults today, so what dangers do we face?

False teachers today may be the ones who ignore or leave out elements of scriptural teaching such as:

• warnings about Christ’s second coming
• dangers of cultural infiltration into our lifestyles through materialism and secularism
• pitfalls of sexual immorality and greed.

Peter presented three aspects of this subject of false teachers in the church.

1. Beware of false teachers because they are a perpetual threat to God’s people

“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you ….” The first phrase refers back to the history of God’s people in the Old Testament.

It is true that Christians have wrongly divided over minor doctrinal disputes, personality conflicts, and other petty issues. Such divisions are sin.

But it is also a sin to minimize doctrine to the point where in the name of love and unity, we tolerate false teachers who deny the fundamental doctrines of the faith.

1. C. Ryle: “Controversy in religion is a hateful thing. It is hard enough to fight the devil, the world and the flesh, without private differences in our own camp. But there is one thing which is worse than controversy—and that is false doctrine tolerated, allowed, and permitted without protest …. Three things there are which men never ought to trifle with—a little poison, a little false doctrine, and a little sin.”

2. Beware of false teachers because their methods are subtle and deceptive.

Peter says (v. 1) that these false teachers “will secretly introduce destructive heresies.” They will use (v. 3) “false words.”

We get our word “plastic” from the Greek word for “false.” It meant, “made up,” or “fabricated.”

The false teachers were accusing Peter and the apostles of following “cleverly devised tales” (1:16), but Peter counters by saying that they are making up their own stories and doctrines.

In contrast to the inspired prophets and apostles, who wrote down God’s revealed truth in His Word, these false teachers were tools of Satan to promote deception.

The Greek word translated “secretly introduce” means to bring in from outside. They add worldly concepts to the Bible and give them the same authority as Scripture.

False teachers often use Scripture, but they twist it by bringing in teaching from outside to pervert the true meaning of Scripture. Often, they are not up-front about their agenda.

They cleverly work in a little error here and another error there, until they have taken people into a complete denial of the gospel. Paul warned that just as Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, even so his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness (2 Cor. 11:13-15). But they use subtlety and deception to gain followers.

3. Beware of false teachers because their doctrine is destructive.

Peter calls their teaching, “destructive heresies.” The word heresy originally was a neutral term that referred to a school of thought or a teaching. It can also refer to factions or divisions within the church (Gal. 5:20; 1 Cor. 11:18; Titus 3:10).

But by adding the word “destructive,” Peter shows that he is talking about seriously wrong doctrine that destroys lives and churches and, if unchecked, leads to eternal judgment.

Peter takes us to the root of their destructive heresy when he adds (2:1), “even denying the Master who bought them.” Master is a strong word for Sovereign or Owner.

We get our word “despot” from it, but in New Testament times it did not have the negative connotation that “despot” has in our language.

It was used for the earthly master of slaves or to emphasize God’s absolute lordship.

Here (and in Jude 4) it refers to Jesus Christ. These false teachers were denying, both by their teaching and lifestyle, the lordship of Jesus Christ as the rightful owner of His people.

If someone claims that you can believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and yet not submit to Him as Lord, it is destructive doctrine. It deceives people into thinking that they are saved because they “accepted Christ through baptism.”

But Jesus said that He will say to such people, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Matt. 7:23). They will be damned because their lives denied “the Master who bought them.”

4. Beware of false teachers because their influence is alluring.

“Many will follow their sensuality…” (2:2). They had a large following. They were “successful!”

It’s amazing how the Christian world thinks that if a man has a huge following, he must be sound in the faith. If he builds a megachurch, the Christian world looks to him as a leader, without questioning what he teaches.

These false teachers invariably cater to the flesh. They do not preach against sin. They do not mention divine judgment or hell.

They avoid truths like denying yourself, taking up your cross, and following Christ no matter what the cost.

Rather, they soothe people with uplifting thoughts about how much God loves you and wants you to have your best life now.

If they ever mention the death of Christ, they say that He did it because He believed in your great worth. Now you need to believe in yourself and ask God to help you fulfill your dreams. People follow that kind of false teaching by the droves, because it feeds their pride.

5. Beware of false teachers because their motives are impure.

Peter shows that these men are driven by two related evil motives: sensuality and greed. At the root of both of these is their own self-centeredness and pride. They want to exploit their followers to gratify themselves.

There is always a connection between false doctrine and impure living. Sometimes it’s difficult to figure out which came first, but invariably, they are intertwined.

False doctrine leads to ungodly living, but the reverse is also true. If a man gets involved in sexual sin, the Bible convicts him. So he has to change the teaching somehow to dodge his guilty conscience.

6. Beware of false teachers because their teaching and lifestyles result in dishonor to the way of the truth.

Peter says (2:2), “because of them the way of the truth will be maligned.”

The Christian faith is the way of the truth because Jesus Himself is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).

But when professing Christians, and especially professing Christian leaders, do not live according to the truth of God’s Word, unbelievers mock and disregard the truth.

The TV preachers who live lavishly while milking their audiences for more money and the well-known pastors who get exposed in sex scandals cause the world to scoff at the faith. Steer clear of them all!

7. Beware of false teachers because they and all that follow them are heading toward eternal destruction.

Peter uses the word “destruction” 5 of the 18 times that it appears in the New Testament.

He adds (v. 3), “their judgment from long ago is not idle and their destruction is not asleep.”

He also uses the word in 3:7 in reference to “the day of judgment and the destruction of ungodly men” and again in 3:17, where he says that the false teachers twist the Scriptures “to their own destruction.”

The fact that many follow the evil example of their conduct is proof that people would rather follow the false than the true, the sensual rather than the spiritual.

These false teachers are very successful in their ministry:

• They have glowing statistics to report and crowds gather to hear them!
• They flatter sinners and tell them the kind of ego-building words that they want to hear.

Religion can be a tremendous tool for exploiting weak people, and these false teachers use religion just to get what they can. They are not ministers; they are merchandisers.

The true minister of Jesus Christ has nothing to hide: his life and ministry are an open book. He preaches the truth in love and does not twist the Scriptures to support his own selfish ideas.

The false teachers are not dummies. Their “made-up” stories were not so ridiculous that gullible people would dismiss them as jokes. The false teachers were probably experts at stretching the truth … until the final product was no longer the truth.

We have in the church today two kinds of false teachers. First, there are those who “loose” what God has “bound.” (See Matthew 16:19 and 18:18.)

That is, they teach as unnecessary some things that in God’s sight are essential.

Second, there are those who would “bind” what God has “loosed.” That is, they teach as necessary some things that God did not make essential.

I call this “Jesus +.

Safeguards will help along the way:

• Pay attention to the teacher’s ethical and moral behavior. The Bible stresses that false teachers will have immorality in their lives. Watch how they treat people and money. Don’t excuse or cover up bad behavior.
• Choose your church carefully. Is the living Christ at the center of your church’s ministry? Do leaders pray? Is the Bible honored and taught? Is God at work there?

“False” churches may be very busy, but their teaching reveals the void when Christ and the Bible are pushed to the side. If that is the case, go somewhere else.