God promise

• 1^st – The PURPOSE… vs. 1-2
  • 1^st – Need to REMEMBER… vs. 1
    • Beloved – I now write to you this second [letter]!
      • As Peter turns to his THIRD topic – in his FINAL letter before he went home…
      • He reminds us WHY he wrote the epistle – he wrote it to the BELOVED [ἀγαπητός]
      • His epistle is addressed to those who love God – and are loved by God!
      • And it was written to stir us up – 7x in NT – the root word of which means to wake up!
      • Romans 13:11 – “It is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.”

• In both of which I stir up your pure minds!
  • STIR UP [διεγείρω] – to continually [present] WAKE us up …
  • PURE minds [εἰλικρινής] – 2x in NT – to be judged [κρίνω] by the sun [εἴλη]
  • Marble statues were very common in Roman culture – one in every yard…
  • But when the masons were carving the statues – they might make a mistake…
  • Rather than starting over – they would use wax mixed with marble to cover their error…
  • It looked good – until the heat of the sun would melt the wax – revealing the sin!
  • When we first get up in the morning – we might think we look pretty good…
  • But when we turn on the light – get closer to a mirror – lots of imperfections…
  • The closer we get to Jesus – we WAKE UP and realize just how much of a sinner we are…
  • Diving us to hold all that much tighter to Jesus – not trusting in ourselves!
  • I John 1:7 – “If we walk in the light as He is in the light – we have fellowship with one another – and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”
• By way of reminder!
  • Peter opened up this epistle noting the importance of reminding us – II Peter 1:13
  • Now he closes it with the same exhortation – we need to WAKE UP…
  • It is too easy to fall into APATHY – get comfortable in our Christian walk…
  • We must JUDGE our thoughts by the LIGHT of the WORD – so we can be PURE!
• 2^nd – What to REMEMBER… vs. 2
  • That you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets…
  • And of the commandment of us – the apostles of the Lord and Savior!
  • We are to be REMEBER [passive] the words that were spoken – TWO groups…
  • The words spoken before [in the past] by the Holy Prophets – the Old Testament…
  • The commandment of the apostles of our Lord and Savior – the New Testament…
  • What we NEED to remember – is the entirety of Word of God – the Bible…
  • Because when we are in the Word – Old and New Testaments…
  • We will find that it shines the LIGHT of Christ into our lives – giving us a PURE mind!
  • Psalm 119:11 – “Your word I have hidden in my heart – that I might not sin against You!”

• 2^nd – The scoffers… vs. 3
  • 1^st – Knowing this…
    • The RESULT of being in the WORD – is that we will KNOW…
    • KNOW [γινώσκω] – to UNDERSTAND [present] through our KNOWLEDGE of the WORD…
    • The inference is that if we are NOT in the WORD – then we will NOT know!
    • If we are NOT well grounded in the WORD – we are VULNERABLE…
    • We have seen there are FALSE teachers who try to deceive us – keep us from following Jesus…
    • And if we listen to them – we will be like a ship tossed about in a storm – Ephesians 4:14
    • We will never KNOW where we are – where we came from – or where we are going!
    • It is only as we are ROOTED in the WORD – that we will know truth from a lie!
    • John 17:17 – “[Jesus said to the Father] Your word is truth.”
  • 2^nd – Scoffers will come…
    • SCOFFER [ἐμπαίκτης] – 2x in NT – also Jude 1:18 – the noun form of the verb to MOCK…
    • MOCK [ἐμπαίζω] – 13x in NT – all but two of them in relation to crucifying Jesus…
    • The gist of the word being someone who MOCKS Jesus – refuses to believe in the gospel…
    • So men will [future] absolutely [indicative] come whose only purpose is to MOCK Jesus!
  • 3^rd – The Last Days…
    • In the LAST DAYS – a term that is often misunderstood – we tend to think of Revelation…
      • The LAST DAYS began when the Holy Spirit was poured out on Pentecost – Acts 2:17
      • And will continue right up to the rapture of the church – I Thessalonians 4:16
      • In between these TWO events are the LAST DAYS – when HARD times will come!
      • II Timothy 3:1 – “In the last days perilous [χαλεπός] times will come…”
      • When Jesus came to the east side of the Sea of Galilee – two men met him…
      • They were so VIOLENT [χαλεπός] no one could pass by that way…
      • Even when the people tried to chain them up – they broke the chains!
    • Why MOCKERS come in the LAST DAYS…
      • In basketball – the first three quarters do not matter as much – as the FOURTH quarter…
      • The team will play its HARDEST – because they know the final bell is moments away!
      • Satan knows his time is SHORT – so he is trying his hardest…
      • He is become VIOLENT – hold nothing back – to try and keep people from God…
      • Every cult – false teaching – and lie he can come up with is everywhere you look…
      • We need to KNOW – not underestimate the dangerous times we live in!
  • 4^th – Walking in their own lusts…
    • The MOTIVE of these MOCKERS – is to walk after their own LUSTS [ἐπιθυμία]
    • One EASY way to spot a MOCKER – they are always in it for themselves…
    • MOCKERS do not look to bless [help] they only look to PLEASE [ἐπιθυμία] themselves!
    • Philippians 3:17-19 – “They are enemies of the Christ.  Their future is eternal destruction. Their god is their appetite… all they think about is this life…”

• 3^rd – What scoffers say… vs. 4
  • 1^st – Where is the promise… vs. 4
    • Saying [present] – Where is the promise of His coming!
      • The first question that MOCKERS bring up – where is Jesus…
      • The PROMISE – is that Jesus would come back for US – John 14:1-3
      • At the end of the SEVEN years of Tribulation – the DAY of the LORD – Revelation 6-18
      • Jesus will come out of Heaven on a white horse – King of Kings – Revelation 19:16
      • He will return with US – ten thousands of His saints – Jude 1:14
      • He will arrive in Jerusalem – and touch down on the Mount of Olives – Acts 1:11
      • When He touches down the Mountain will split in TWO – Zechariah 14:4
      • With one word he will defeat the Antichrist and his army – II Thessalonians 2:8
      • And Jesus will JUDGE those who survive the Tribulation – Matthew 25:31-46
      • Then He will establish His MILLENNIAL Kingdom – Revelation 20:1-4
      • And we – the CHURCH – will rule and reign with Him for 1000 years – I Corinthians 6:2-3
    • But it has been 2000 years – and still Jesus has NOT returned…
      • The argument being – if He has NOT come yet – then maybe He NEVER will…
      • But BEFORE the TRIBULATION – BEFORE the SECOND coming of Jesus…
      • The CHURCH must be RAPTURED [Latin of ἁρπάζω] – I Thessalonians 4:14-17
      • No one KNOWS the day or hour – only the Father in heaven – Mark 13:32
      • Within a GENERATION of the REBIRTH of Israel – May 14, 1948 – Mark 13:28-32
      • Those who believe in Jesus – will be CAUGHT up into heaven – BEFORE the Tribulation!
• Until then – PREACH the Word…
  • Romans 11:25– “This will last only until the complete number of Gentiles comes to Christ.”
  • There are a SET number of people who will receive Jesus as their savior…
  • ONLY God knows the number – or who will be the LAST gentile to be saved…
  • But when the last PERSON to believe – receives Jesus – the RAPTURE happens!
  • We are NOT waiting for the RETURN of Jesus – we are WAITING for the RAPTURE…
  • And although there is NOTHING we can do take make it come sooner…
  • We can PREACH the GOSPEL to everyone we KNOW…
  • Maybe someone we share with – will be the LAST person to believe – then the RAPTURE!
• 2^nd – All things continue…
  • Since the fathers fell asleep – all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!
  • The argument – if you look BACK in time – to when our fore FATHER died…
  • All the back to the BEGINNING – NOTHING has ever CHANGED!
  • There is a scientific word for this view – uniformitarianism…
  • The universe has been around for BILLIONS of years – it will continue for BILLIONS more…
  • Nothing has CHANGED – nothing ever will ever CHANGE – life goes on!
  • My father always talked about the return of Jesus – he hoped to see the RAPTURE…
  • But he passed away – and the world went on…
  • It would be EASY to think – the same will happen to me – just like my father!
  • We tend to think Jesus will NOT come back in our lifetime – it has NOT happened yet…
  • But we are in the LAST days – the RAPTURE could happen next week – today – right now…
  • Are we READY – if the RAPTURE was today – what would Jesus find us doing…
  • This is a VERY important message – both as an ENCOURAGEMENT and WARNING…
  • Jesus is coming – VERY soon – that means HEAVEN is not far away…
  • We may NOT know the day and the hour – but we must be prepared!
  • I John 3:3 – “Everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself…”

• 4^th – What scoffers forget… vs. 5-7
  • 1^st – Willfully forget… vs. 5
    • For this they willfully forget!
    • Willfully FORGET [λανθάνω] – chose to HIDE or keep SECRET…
    • It is not that SCOFFERS do not know the TRUTH – it is that they do not WANT the TRUTH…
    • They know Jesus is COMING – but they DENY what they know – because of their SIN!
    • Romans 1:28 – “As they did not like to retain God in their knowledge – God gave them over to a debased mind.”
    • Suppose you stole a THOUSAND pesos from a friend – and he saw you do it…
    • Then the next day you saw him – you would feel extremely embarrassed…
    • Unless you went to him and repented – you would likely try and avoid him!
    • That is what happens to those who do NOT come to God in repentance…
    • God SAW their SIN – therefore they are extremely EMBARRASSED to be around Him…
    • They try and AVOID Him – some try and DENY Jesus will ever RETURN…
    • Because by DENYING – they can fool themselves into DENYING the judgment of their sin!
  • 2^nd – The Word of God… vs. 5
    • By the word of God the heavens were of old!
      • SCOFFERS forget – that by the Word of God the heavens were of old…
      • Genesis 1:1 – “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
      • Who CREATED the earth – Jesus – the WORD of God – Genesis 1:3
      • Colossians 1:16 – “By Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth – visible and invisible.”
      • Hebrews 1:2 – “Through whom also He made the worlds.”
      • John 1:3 – “Jesus created everything there is. Nothing exists that he did not make.”
    • What about EVOLUTION…
      • There are only TWO possibilities for the origin of life – DESIGN or ACCIDENT…
      • Because SCOFFERS choose to deny the CREATOR – they believe life is all an ACCIDENT!
      • We are familiar with FACEBOOK – it is a PROGRAM that uses 62 MILLION lines of CODE…
      • If one WORD in the code is misspelled – then the whole PROGRAM can crash!
      • But suppose I tried to convince you all that CODE – was the result of an ACCIDENT…
      • They RANDOMLY formed – every WORD in the right place – so we can use FACEBOOK!
      • Psalms 14:1 – “The fool has said in his heart – There is no God.”
      • In contrast human DNA is made up of over THREE billion lines of CODE [base pairs]
      • How much more foolish to think we are an ACCIDENT – deny the God who created us!
    • FOOLS who claim to be the wise…
      • Romans 1:22 – “Professing to be wise – they became fools [μωρός].”
      • More often than not today – higher EDUCATION is turning out FOOLS [morons]
      • Because they are not teaching the Bible – about the consequences of sin…
      • Instead the students are told there is no right or wrong – it is all relative…
      • There is no sin – as long as you think it is ok – it is good!
      • Judges 21:25 – “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
      • Do not mistake INFORMATION for WISDOM – schools might give LOTS of INFORMATION…
      • But the INFORMATION of men – if we listen – can blind us to our NEED for Jesus…
      • That is not WISDOM – it is FOOLISH – because it keeps us from God!
  • 3^rd – The FLOOD… vs. 5-6
    • The earth standing out of water – and in water!
      • On day THREE of creation God separated the WATERS – Genesis 1:6-8
      • Just as there was WATER on the earth – there was WATER above it…
      • A layer of WATER above the atmosphere – that would have shielded – heated earth…
      • The sun would have heated the WATER – making the earth ONE climate…
      • And would have protected men from ultraviolet rays – long lives!
    • By which the world that then existed perished – being flooded with water!
      • Much of the world we know today was created by the CATASTROPHE of the FLOOD…
      • It is POSSIBLE the mountains were not as HIGH before the FLOOD…
      • And before the FLOOD there were no continents or oceans…
      • It would still take an enormous amount of WATER to cover the whole earth!
      • Genesis 7:11 – “On that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up – and the windows of heaven were opened…”
      • It was not just RAIN – FOUNTAINS of the deep – huge water underground aquifers…
      • And the WINDOWS of Heaven opened – the layer of WATER above the clouds…
      • This collapsed pouring all the WATER down onto the earth!
    • The evidence of the FLOOD…
      • The evidence of the flood – the judgment of God is all around – FOSSILS – OCEANS…
      • Fossils do not form under normal conditions – it takes WATER – pressure – and mud…
      • We have fossils of whales on top of mountains – how do you suppose that happened!
      • Our world is a one giant testimony to the judgment of God…
      • Yet most ignore the evidence – they are just like the people in the days of NOAH!
      • Luke 17:27 – “They ate – they drank – they married… until the day that Noah entered the ark – and the flood came and destroyed them all.”
      • So many people today are just going about their daily lives – OBLIVIOUS…
      • They assume they have all the TIME in the world – tomorrow will be just like today…
      • They do realize that Jesus is coming SOON – the JUDGMENT is right around the corner!
  • 4^th – The FIRE… vs. 7
    • The heavens and earth which are now preserved by the same Word!
      • The same WORD – Jesus – who created the world in SIX days…
      • Is the same WORD who allowed – by His WORD – for the world to be JUDGED by WATER…
      • Is the same WORD who holds the world together today!
    • Are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men!
      • He holds it all together – reserved for the FIRE – Colossians 1:16
      • For the DESTRUCTION [ἀπώλεια] – of those who do not FEAR [ἀσεβής] God! 
      • If you hold TWO positively magnets together – they REPEL each other…
      • Within every ATOM there are REPELLING forces that should cause it to fall apart…
      • Scientists today struggle to explain what holds an ATOM together!
      • But what science does NOT know – the Bible answers for us…
      • Jesus literally HOLDS the whole universe together – atom by atom…
      • And when He lets go – the whole universe would just explode in a fiery blaze!
      • II Peter 3:10 – “The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night – in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise – and the elements will melt with fervent heat – both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.”

God has shown amazing PATIENCE – because He desires for MANY to be saved!

5^th – Not SLOW… vs. 8-9

1^st – The TIMING… vs. 8

Beloved – do not forget this one thing…

With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day!

Since Jesus JUDGED the world with the FLOOD – in the days of Noah…

And we KNOW He will JUDGE the world again in the FIRE [after the tribulation]

Since it has NOT happened yet – when will all this take place!

BELOVED [ἀγαπητός] – we must NOT [imperative] FORGET [λανθάνω] one thing…

A day with the Lord is like a thousand years – and a thousand years is like a day!

Paul thought Jesus might come back in his lifetime – Philippians 4:5

James thought Jesus might come back in his lifetime – James 5:8

John thought Jesus might come back in his lifetime – Revelation 22:20

But the Lords TIMING is not our TIMING – He is not in a RUSH…

We think that WAITING on the Lord means a couple of HOURS – maybe WEEKS…

Following Jesus means being PATIENT – willing to wait on His TIMING!

Psalm 27:14 – “Wait – I say – on the LORD!”

The prophecy of TWO days…

Hosea 6:2 – “After two days He will revive us. On the third day He will raise us up.”

The nation of Israel was destroyed in 70 A.D. – the destruction of the Temple…

For 2000 years [TWO days] they were lost – until the nation was reborn in 1948…

When Jesus returns Israel will be lifted up on the THIRD day [1000 years]

Perhaps speaking of the ultimate restoration of Israel in the Millennial Kingdom!

2^nd – The REASON… vs. 9

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise – as some count slackness!

Lord [κύριος] – the MASTER – the one in CHARGE…

Is not SLACK [βραδύνω] – to be DELAYED [present] – to be SLOW…

Concerning His PROMISE – as some men count being SLOW – the SCOFFERS…

The context being the RETURN of Jesus – which concludes with the JUDGMENT…

And ultimately the DESTRUCTION of the earth by FIRE!

But is longsuffering toward us…

Not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance!

LONGSUFFERING [μακροθυμέω] – compound word – LONG [μακρο] ANGER [θυμέω]

God is not SLOW to COME back – He is SLOW to get ANGRY and JUDGE…

His PURPOSE in WAITING is so that men would NOT perish [eternal destruction]

Instead WILLING that ALL men would COME [χωρέω] – to have ROOM – to REPENT…

Peter is NOT saying that ALL men will be saved…

He is saying by not JUDGING already – God gave us TIME to REPENT and be saved!

If Jesus had come back 30 years ago – how many of us would be in heaven!

Just because Jesus has NOT come yet – does NOT mean that He is not coming…