Well, this morning I want to expand on a theme that I talked about last week, or at least was included in last week's sermon, Daniel 12. There's a very practical importance to the study of eschatology, the study of last things or the end times. A proper understanding of what God has revealed about what is going to happen in the future should result in us living in wisdom because we now will know where the priorities should be placed within our lives. What's important, what's not important, how we should live. Biblical prophecy is not only a roadmap to the future, in many ways it is a light that helps us make sense of the present. In a sense, it's a light that analogous to taking a cross-country trip with a flashlight so you can see where you're going. Without an understanding of what the future's going to hold, what God has said is going to come, it'd be like trying to make that cross-country trip on a moonless night without a flashlight. You'd be stumbling all over the place because you don't know where you're going. Today I want to give you a bright prophetic flashlight to shine on your path of life. Turn over to 2 Peter chapter 3, 2 Peter chapter 3. This is by far my favorite passage in dealing with eschatology, with in time events. Because Peter is so practical in his application of the truths of which he's revealing what God has said is coming in the future. He deals realistically with the mockers that will be part of the last days. As well as pointing out a warning of the Lord's judgment that is coming. And then the practical application of living in the light of the realities of what is coming in the culmination of the ages. Extremely practical. Now the Apostle Peter is writing about 66 or 67 AD. It's about a year before he is going to become a martyr during the reign of Nero. He is writing to Jewish and Gentile believers that are scattered around the Roman Empire. Now in his first letter, he sought to prepare them for persecution that was coming. you recognize it. It began in Rome, it was spreading, he warned them of what was going to be happening. In this second letter, Peter is concerned that these same folks are going to grow in maturity in order to combat the false teachers that were already present and were coming in the future. In chapter one he issues a call to maturity and holiness by explaining how they were to grow in Christ and the ground of belief in the scriptures which came as men were moved by the Holy Spirit to write them down. So the first is a call to holiness. In chapter 2, he begins combating the false teachers, giving a warning about their character, how you'd identify them through their characteristics, as well as a warning to them of the danger they're in and the future destruction that's going to come upon them and those that would follow them. In the last chapter, which we're going to be looking at today, Peter turns his attention to the coming day of the Lord. He gives a warning about mockers that will be part of the last days. He describes destruction of the present heavens and the earth. The coming of a new heaven and earth. And then a very practical application in light of those truths. How should you then live? That begins the chapter by pointing out he's not going to tell them anything new. I don't know if you like sermons like that. I'm not telling you anything different. I'm going to tell you what I've been telling you for a long time. Well actually, That's all we do here. We don't do anything different than that. Peter says this is now beloved the second letter I am writing to you in which I'm stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets that commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles. You see one of the marks of a biblical church as compared to cults, apostate Christian groups, aberrant sects is the fact we do not come up with any new doctrine. All we're ever telling you is what has gone on before us. The faith once delivered to the saints. It's been said before, it'll be said again. That's all we're doing. We go back to the Bible because it's the only source of doctrine that we have. We don't We're not interested in the musings of men and their speculations. That's how cults are formed. They become followers of men rather than followers of God. So Peter is saying that from the beginning, I'm not telling you anything new and I'm saying the same thing to you. I'm not going to tell you anything new. I'm just going to tell you what's here. And it's an old message and it's a continuing message because it's the truth. Now, Peter is doing this partly because life gets busy. we get focused on other things and so we need reminders and so he's reminding them and that's what I'm doing is I'm reminding you some you may have studied second Peter last time I did it here was 2009 so if you're here in 2009 we've gone over this chapter before if you weren't here well maybe it is new to you or maybe you study yourself but all I'm going to do is remind you here's what's in the passage here's what the truth is here's what God has said Because life does get busy, we get focused on other things. Sometimes so much we forget about where we're supposed to be going. We're so focused on the immediate. But we need to keep in mind, where are we headed? Where does this journey end? Am I prepared for that? Now the first warning he gives here is about false teachers. Now these false teachers are evil because they pervert God's Word with falsehoods about God, His plan, and His will. The mockers of the last day are evil because they actually defy God's Word. Look at verse 3. Know this, first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mockings, following after their own lusts and saying, where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation. Now these are foolish mockers because they are rejecting not only God's revelation of himself in the scriptures, but they're also rejecting the physical evidence in front of their eyes that God has told them that's already there. Their foolishness begins with the rejection of the prophecies of the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus Christ. Prophets such as Isaiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, Zechariah, Joel, Zechariah. They all speak of the coming of the Lord in judgment of the wicked and then establishing his kingdom for his people. It's a common theme in the Old Testament. Jesus speaks about the same things in Matthew 16, 19, 25, and also Mark 14. There is a coming judgment and then God's going to set up His kingdom. The apostles wrote about in their writings, both Paul and John. Now in this passage, don't take the reference to creation here to mean that is what these mockers believe. The reference here is, even if they believe in a creator being, is not to the same God as revealed in the scriptures. Philippians 3.18, Paul calls these people enemies of the cross for a good reason. They don't follow the God of the Bible. They have a different God, if they have a God at all. Now Peter describes a particular philosophy they hold to as believing all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation. That is the foundation of evolutionary thinking. That's evolutionary philosophy. That everything continues now the same way it always has. The idea is usually phrased in the science books as the present is the key to the past. Now as someone who's been extensively trained in science, that's what my undergraduate degree is in, I can tell you that statement is not true. That's a falsehood. The present is not the key to the past. Because so many areas of science we find that rates have greatly varied in time. That includes not only things such as the rate of disposition of geologic materials, or the effect of variable weather patterns on local and regional climates, But even the breakdown of radioactive material is affected by heat and pressure. It's not always constant. So it's not true. You have to be more discerning than that. But there's a bigger issue here and one more easily recognized because these mockers are also forgetful of the evidence right in front of their eyes. They don't see it. Actually, King James says they willingly ignore it. Look at verse 5. For when they maintain this, maintain this idea that the present is the key to the past, everything's continuing as it was from creation, God has not done anything beforehand. When they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God, the heavens existed long ago, the earth was formed out of water and by water, through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water. That is a reference to Genesis chapter one through eight. Now they're not ignorant because there's a lack of evidence. They're ignorant and they're mockery because they refuse to acknowledge the evidence and they choose to forget what they already know. Again, the King James, actually I like the translation there, they are willingly ignorant. This matches Paul's statement in Romans 1.18. These are those who suppress the truth in unrighteousness. They don't want it. Now what are they ignorant of? What does the text say? It's the flood of Noah. All things have not continued since creation. God has judged the world and he did so with a worldwide flood during the days of Noah. And the evidence is everywhere. Now scripture is absolute in this proclamation about this worldwide flood. The flood account itself is covered in Genesis chapters 7 and 8, the reason for it in Genesis 6. The water came from the fountains of the deep and the floodgates of the skies were opened. That's Genesis 7-11. The water rose until it was 15 cubits, that's about 22 feet, above the highest mountains. And you can't stack water. Okay? It's going to flow downward. Gravity affects it. It stayed 22 feet above the highest mountains for 150 days. It's not staying up there. That's not a local flood. The flood is cited as a historical event by Isaiah, Isaiah 54, 9. The writer of Hebrews, chapter 11, verse 7. Here in 2 Peter. And most importantly by Jesus himself in Matthew 24, 37 and forward. In addition, flood mythologies around the world abound. And most of them have these key elements of 8 people escaping by a boat or some other method. Now the evidence from geology is overwhelming. I happen to like geology. So I have a few things here for you. The first is going to be fossil graveyards that occur around the world. Here's the next picture. Here's just some of them that come from it. These are all over the place. This was from a place that I could pronounce. Many of them are in foreign languages that I can't pronounce, whatever that is. But this is Mason Creek shale layer. This is over near Chicago. In that particular shale layer, 100,000 plus specimens, 400 plus species, including ferns, insects, scorpions, tetrapods, jellyfish, mollusks, crustaceans, and fish. So that's multiple climate zones or life zones. It's not just one little area. This is something much bigger than any local flood could provide. Then there's cross-strata fossilized trees that occur in many places around the world. There's a couple pictures of them. I hope you can, I don't have a pointer. I hope you can see the thing that cuts through there. Those are tree trunks and you have layers of deposition going up it. This demonstrates a very fast, rapid deposition of each layer. Why? Because if these layers are supposedly thousands of years in the making, how did the tree trunk not rot or erode away in the meantime? It was buried rapidly, period. There are other things, misplaced geological formation. Here's the Hart Mountain Thrust in Wyoming. I think I got those out of order. Can you go to the next slide? Is that the one? No, go back. I guess I left it out. Okay. The Heart Mountain in Wyoming is an interesting geologic formation because you have on top a rock that's supposed to be older than the rock under it. Now how'd you do that? Well supposedly it got transported hundreds and hundreds of miles over this younger rock but there's no slide layer, there's no evidence of any friction or anything else. It's just, there it is. It's supposed to be older. Then there are inter-bedding of rock formations, supposedly vastly different ages. This is in the Grand Canyon and the upper area, the Redwall, Mississippian, is a sandstone. The mauve, the whitish, is a limestone. And in between, you see they intersect like that. You've got limestone, sandstone, limestone, sandstone. But these are supposed to be 170 million years apart. And in between them is supposed to be the Temple Butte Formation, which isn't there here, in this area. How did you do that? You can't, unless it's laid down rapidly. Okay? There is nothing in evolution that the present, the key, the past can begin to explain this stuff. Then there are huge plateaus of sediment, thousands of feet thick, covering hundreds of thousands of square miles. Colorado Plateau. Kaibab Plateau is part of that. It's over a quarter million square miles. 250,000 square miles is 3,000 to 4,000 feet thick. It covers a huge area. And if you think that's big, look at the next one. This is the Tibetan Plateau. It's three times the size, 750,000 square miles. And it too also is thousands of feet thick. I'm sorry, that is not a delta of a large river. You can't get a plateau unless you have a large amount of sediment being laid down very quickly. All these say is there is a worldwide flood. The evidence is all around us. It's overwhelming. Now if accepting the Genesis flood is difficult for you, then you need to start changing your thinking. Not about geology, but about God. God said He did it. And if He did, then what would be the evidence? So let God be God and start considering what evidence would you expect to see if there was a worldwide flood and you begin to start seeing things all around you that beforehand you would have missed because you were trained not to see it. Willingly ignorant. It's right there in front of them and they can't see it. So there's no lack of evidence. The mockers are willingly ignorant and there's a reason why and the text tells us. The flood is the record of God's judgment in the past. And they must ignore that, otherwise they know they are in danger of a judgment by God in the future. Verse 7, But the present heavens and earth, by his word, are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. If there's evidence that God sent in the past, then I'm going to have to believe what He says about the future is also true. So I must ignore the past. Peter states specifically the flood was used by God to judge the ungodly of that day. But another day is coming when the same thing is going to happen again, except it won't be by water. That was the promise given to Noah in the Noachian Covenant. That's what the rainbow is all about. It is our rainbow because it's God's rainbow. It doesn't belong to perverts, okay? It's our rainbow. Okay, and I do suggest when you see that say, oh wow, look at Genesis 9. You believe in the flood. And God's not going to destroy the world by water again. Are you ready? And here's the clincher. He's going to destroy it by fire. Are you ready for that? Are you ready to face God's judgment? The rainbow is a reminder. He has a promise. He's not going to destroy it again that way. He is going to destroy it with fire. because he is going to judge. So for these men, it's no wonder they mock because they must do so or they're going to face reality. God is still going to judge the wicked. Now while mockers reject the evidence in order to ignore the reality of a future judgment, God's long-suffering patience can actually be a struggle for us too. We are waiting for the Lord's return. And there's a lot of bad things that have happened in the 2,000 or so years since Christ's ascension. There's a lot of bad things happening now. And so we cry out, Lord, come quickly. How long, Lord? Why haven't you returned? And that, if we're not careful, can leave us who actually believe in Jesus subject to wondering, well, where is the promise of his return? He hasn't returned yet. I'm still longing. I was ready for him to return yesterday and today seems too late. I don't want to wait for tomorrow. I'm ready. You know what? It would be good even with all this effort if the boxes just sit here and never get delivered anywhere because the Lord came back and doesn't need them anymore. Wouldn't that be good? That's not to say we'd appreciate the effort, but what could be better than the Lord's return? But we're still waiting. We're waiting for him to return because we want to see an end to all this stuff that's happening now even though it's going to be bad for a while before his kingdom comes. But this is why Peter addresses the issue of God's patience in verses 8 and 9. Here's the character of God and this encourages us to hold fast even as we wait for this return. Peter begins with a reminder that the Lord's relationship to time, it's not the same as ours. God's not like us. We're made in His image. A reflection is badly tarnished. But God is not like us. He's holy. He's something other than us. And time is one of those factors. Verse 8, But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. In other words, God views time differently than we do. We are creatures of time. We come into being at a certain point in time. We live for a certain length of time and our existence on this earth is going to end at a point in time and then we'll go to eternity. We're creatures of time. We can only go forward in time and only at a constant rate. We cannot tell what is going to happen at the next point in time until we've entered that point of time and then it's too late to go back and change the point in time that we just passed. As much as we'd like to. We all have those. It's like, if I could only go back five minutes. But we can't. We're creatures of time. It surrounds us. We're caged by it. We can't escape it. But the Lord is not bound by time. The thought here in verse 8 is the same as Psalm 90 verse 4 from which the statement comes. Peter's simply showing the transcendent nature of God in relationship to time. The Lord can accomplish in one day to what us would seem like that would take a thousand years. Or he can delay and take his time to accomplish in a thousand years that which we wish had happened in one day. Time is relative for the Lord. He does things in his own timing. He existed prior to time. In fact, he created time. He will exist after time is done away with. Wrap your mind around that one. There's a point when time will end. Huh? but he exists after time concludes. The past, the present, the future all belong to God. He's the first and last. He's the beginning and the end. He declares in Isaiah 46, eight, for I am God, there is no other. I am God, there is no one like me. Declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things which have not been done. Saying, my purpose will be established and I will accomplish all my good pleasure. That's the nature of our God. And that last part is just the point Peter's making here. Do not be dismayed, do not be discouraged that the Lord has not returned yet. He will keep his promise in his timing, not our timing. But we can rest assured God is going to establish his purpose and that God is going to accomplish his will even if from our perspective it seems to be slow about coming. He knows what he's doing, and he knows when it should happen. He goes on in verse 9 to explain God's patience, something that we should be all thankful for, but is also very incredible to us. The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you. Not wishing that any perish, but for all to come to repentance. Remember he's writing to Jewish and Gentile Christians. So he's saying his patience even with you, but his purpose is for repentance of those who are not part of the Christian family yet. So it's not that the Lord is slow about his promises, it's just he is patient with mankind. The actual word here for patience, macrosphemia, actually speaks more of forbearance. It means to suffer long, to be patient when under provocation by people. That's more than just patient. That is, we would use the term, long-suffering. He's essentially saying, don't think God's flow is about what he is doing. He's just being patient with you. That's it. Your very existence in the present is only because God is patient. Otherwise, judgment would have come either before you existed or before you were saved. And then what? So aren't you glad for His patience now? How foolish are the mockers of our day who rail against God. And they say stupid things. I heard a guy on a radio once said, if God exists, then he should prove it. Let him strike me dead now. Well, that's stupid on a lot of levels. The first is, does he really think that his minuscule foolish mocking is somehow going to wear out the patience of God? My word. And at the same time, such mockers should be careful. We have enough evidence in Scripture, there are times when God decides, okay, you're gone. Alright? Korah, Herod, and others, all the examples, like, your time's up. Because you don't know when it's going to end. But the Lord's desire is not to strike people dead. We would like him to strike people dead, but that's not him. He is so different than that. Ezekiel 33 verse 11 records God's declaration about this very issue. He states this, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked would turn from his way and live. Peter explains the same thing here. He says, God is not willing that any should perish, but all come to repentance. The word willing here, bulimai, means to desire, to intend, to want. That speaks of God's moral will, not His sovereign will. This is what God would like to happen, but He has allowed other factors to determine the outcome. It is not God's will that people sin, and yet they do. Why? Because God has allowed people to choose against Him. God does not desire for men to perish and be tormented in hell. In fact, Jesus said that hell was not made for people. It was made for the devil and his angels. So then why do people go there? Because their sinful desires are such that they choose that rather than being in heaven with God. They reject God. They reject what He's done for them. That's part of their sinfulness. They don't want to serve God. They want to serve self. Part of the eternal destruction that occurs in hell is you are shut out from the presence of God. Men, women, they go to hell because they reject God and they choose to go their own path. They choose the wide gate, the wide road. Where does it lead? Destruction. They don't want to go through the narrow gate. They don't want to go that narrow road that leads to eternal life. They want what they want. Paul stated it to the Athenians this way in Acts 1730 of God's desire. God is now declaring that all men everywhere repent. Actually it's a command voice. He's commanding everybody to repent. But God has also allowed man to choose to do otherwise and man in his sinfulness does not repent resulting in his damnation. Every person who has ever come to faith in Christ did so because it was God's desire for them to repent and turn from their sin in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ. It starts with Him, not us. It is God's love for us that gives hope, doesn't it? Lavia memorizes John 3.16, but verse 17 is also important. We like that part. Verse 17. We like that part, too. The rest of the passage, well, it's going to deal with the other issue. Man doesn't want the light, he wants the darkness. But our hope is only bound in God, isn't it? It's bound in his character, who he is and what he's done for us. We would not turn to him except he acted first. We love because he first loved us. So every true believer here today is a testimony of the Lord's patience because our very salvation has depended upon God's forbearance. Romans 3.25 talks about our salvation being purchased by Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. And then it goes on to say this, quote, this was to demonstrate his righteousness because in the forbearance of God, he passed over the sins previously committed. God was forbearing with you. He's still forbearing with us, isn't he? He is patient. He put up with us even while provoking Him. Even while at enmity with Him, He demonstrated His love toward us. And while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5, 8. That's the nature of our God. That is His patience. And that we need to be very grateful for. But don't take it for granted. Praise Him because of His blessing to you. And praise Him because of His continued blessing to others. even as we patiently wait for his return and wish it was yesterday. There's a story that comes out of the Alaskan gold rush. Seems there was a prospecting party. They had pushed deep into the interior and they came across a miner's cabin. As they came to it, they found it was quiet as a grave. Entering the little shack, they found the skeletons of two men and a very large quantity of gold and a letter. The letter explained that these two men had been very successful in finding gold. In fact, every day it seemed they found more and more and more. And they became so intent on gathering gold that they forgot about how early winter comes in those northern latitudes. And a day came when there was a tempest that raged. Raged for four days and when it was over they had no hope of getting out. Their little store of food was soon exhausted and they lay down and died in the midst of all their gold. Their folly was not in finding the gold. Their folly was neglecting to provide against the inevitable winter. We can imagine these two. So excited. We've got more today. We've got more. We've got more. And all the things we're going to do with the wealth we now have. Until they woke up one morning and it was white outside and all hope of survival was cut off. They neglected the coming winter. And in a real sense they demonstrated they were immature. They lacked discernment about the signs of the approaching winter. or they lack the good sense to prepare something even as they saw the signs. Their immaturity led to their deaths. Well, there's another season that's approaching. It is a time that will be unlike anything any of us have ever experienced. A time that will be unlike anything that has ever occurred on this earth. And Peter is very emphatic in the next section of that chapter, of this chapter, of the fact the Lord is coming back. Foolish people, they can mock, they can scoff, they can sneer, but the Lord's coming back regardless of them and then they're going to have to face Him. Peter explains the suddenness of the Lord's return and then what's going to occur after that in verses 10 through 13. Look at verse 10. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat. The earth and its works will be burned up." Now, this is an expansion of verse 7. But an emphasis here is on the suddenness. Like a thief. Paul used the same phrase in 1 Thessalonians 5, 2. But the thought actually traces back to Jesus' statement in Matthew 24, 42-44. Now the idea here is that the Lord's return occurs suddenly. like a thief who strikes in the night. It is sudden. It is fast. It happens quickly. It happens without warning. There are signs, even with thieves, break-ins around the neighborhood. You could be next. There's warnings enough, but there's not a warning. It's, yeah, I'm coming to your house tonight. So there's not the preparation. And because of the Lord's patience, which has delayed his return, we lose the expectation and the complacency starts replacing that instead of the anticipatory excitement about him returning. We just become complacent. We mentally assent. He's coming someday, but not now, not today. There's a story of a preacher in Scotland named Shane who once said to his friends, do you think that Christ will come tonight? I should have practiced that in a Scottish brogue, but... One after another they said, I think not. When they all given the answer, he suddenly repeated this verse, the son of man will return at an hour when you think not. Ouch. But do we not live that way? Is he going to come back today? We're so busy with other things, so many things we're planning, it's like, well, I think not. Something else must happen. I don't have enough warning. Really? He says he's gonna come like a thief when you think not. You see, scriptures teach the imminent return of Christ. That means we should live in anticipation he could come back at any day, at any time, because nothing has to happen before his return. In James 5.9 it describes it as he is standing right at the door. He's ready. He doesn't have to do anything. He just has to walk through. Are we ready for that? He could come back today. He could come back before I finish the sermon. No Christian has anything planned that could be better than that. Christ will return suddenly at a time when you don't think it will happen, because it's going to come like a thief in the night. Are you ready for his return? That's Peter's emphasis here. Well, what's going to happen then? Well, verse 10, Peter jumps from the beginning of the day of the Lord, that is marked by Jesus' return, and then he jumps all the way to the end, the culmination of the ages. He skips everything in the middle. So, you're not gonna go to Peter to argue about the rapture, or a millennial position, or any of that stuff. He goes, the Lord's returning! Heavens and earth are burning up! He just jumps to the end. I like that. I do. Why? Because Peter is so pragmatic about it. Let's just cut to the chase. That's what he does. Culmination of the ages. The heavens will pass away with a roar. The elements will be destroyed with intense heat. The earth and its works will be burned up. Verse 12, Peter repeats a third time this warning about God's future judgment. But here he says, "...the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, the elements will melt with intense heat." That's emphatic. Any question about it? Well, apparently there must be because Jehovah's Witnesses and other cults, they think this earth is going to last forever. Last time I had that conversation with the JW, I said, you're welcome to it. You can have this. God's promised me a new heaven and a new earth. You can have this one, but by the way, it's gonna burn and melt, so it won't be exactly the same as what you currently think it is. Jesus said in Matthew 24, 34, heaven and earth will pass away, will pass away, but my words shall not pass away. It's a guarantee. This isn't forever. Again, he didn't say could, may, might. It will pass away. Revelation 21 verse 1 states, I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven, the first earth passed away. There is no longer any sea. Now Peter states that the heavens will pass away, it says, with a roar. Verse 10. The heavens will be destroyed with, by burning. Verse 12. The term for the heavens to pass away here, parachamai, is the same as used to refer to people that pass away. They're no longer present. They're no longer with us. The time of their life on earth is passed by. And so the time of the existence of the present heavens and earth is going to end. They will be destroyed by fire. And when the day of the Lord comes, it culminates when what we know about the heavens currently and the earth currently is going to be destroyed and not exist. Not as we know them. Same thing with the earth and its works. That is, all the earth produces. It's also going to be destroyed. In fact, literally here it's burned up. It's consumed by fire. He describes that the elements will be destroyed with intense heat in verse 10. And in verse 12 he adds, they will melt. The elements will melt. The day of the Lord culminates in the true True global warming. So they have a point. There'll be global warming. But it's not the one they're looking for. Okay? It's gonna be really hot. It's all gonna melt. Okay? It's destroyed by heat with temperatures so hard they become liquid. Nuclear physics has demonstrated the reality of the situation. The earth is ready for consumption by fire. Now Peter's language then is clear. The day of the Lord is going to be a time of judgment. It is that judgment the mockers want to ignore and that's why they refuse to believe what the scriptures say. They refuse to believe the evidence that's in front of their eyes. They are desperate to reject that fact that God is going to judge again as he has in the past. But that is also the reason for Peter's strong warning here. The day of the Lord is going to come. Don't be complacent because of the Lord's great patience. Get ready for Him. He's coming back. Be prepared now. Now Peter poses the question in verses 11 and 12. And here's the practical aspect of all of this. And really this is the practical aspect of all eschatology. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, the elements will melt with intense heat. If the things of this world are going to burn, what effect should that have on the way you live your life in the present? What kind of character should you have or should you be developing? How important is the pursuit of material possessions? Because in the end, what difference does it really make if you get the big house? You get the expensive furnishings. You have the luxury cars. You got the big bank account. You got all the latest fancy electronic gadgets. You got the fancy china. Whatever it is that you like in possessions, so what? It's gonna burn. What eternal benefit is gained from positions of power or prestige by working your way up the corporate ladder? Or becoming important in society? Gain a political position? Become important in your social group? All corporations, all societies, all governments are going to end when the earth is destroyed. Is trying to earn fame worth the effort? Do the honors, the accolades given by men have really any eternal value? Even if you make yourself a name so important, you got a spot in the history books. You made it into the Guinness Book of World Records. Who knows what edition because someone else beat you later on and you weren't in that edition. Guess what's going to happen to all those books? They're going to burn. Okay? Will the honor given to you by ungodly people have any sway with God? You see, Peter's statements are based on the truth of who Jesus Christ is and the assurance that his promises are going to be fulfilled. Not only the promise of his return, but the promise of the good things that will occur then as well. Yes, the present heavens and the earth will be destroyed, but guess what's coming after? And here's the encouragement for us. But according to his promise we are looking for new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells. Wow! That's going to be so much better than this current earth, isn't it? In which righteousness dwells. Peter's call to maturity is very pragmatic. It is the only logical and practical response. The reality is that all things on this earth are temporary at best, for it all is, that is, all that we now know is going to burn up, but we should be preparing ourself for which comes after is a new heavens and new earth. Some things can be very different. I'm not even sure how to imagine a place where only righteousness dwells. I think that might mean that the second law of thermodynamics is cut short and my cars don't rust anymore. Wouldn't that be great? Maybe the house doesn't get dust anymore, right? You do know, you don't have to do anything in your house for it to become a mess. It's just automatic. If you have little kids, it becomes faster automatic. Verse 14, Peter answers his earlier question of what sort of people we ought to be in view of the coming destruction of the earth. He says, "...therefore, beloved, since you look for these things..." The new heavens, the new earth, and recognizing the present is going to be destroyed. "...be diligent to be found in him in peace, spotless, and blameless." Because we're looking forward to what is going to come, this existence where righteousness dwells, then we're preparing for that in the present. Developing these characteristics in our lives. Someone who's at peace. That's not absence of conflicts. That's being in harmony with God. Being spotless. That is being unstained by sinful pursuits of the world. Being blameless. There is no guilt. Doesn't it just make sense to prepare for the future of eternal life rather than giving so much of your attention to the here and now stuff that really in the end doesn't make much of a difference? Now yes, you're still gonna have to work in order to earn your bread, right? We understand that. But shouldn't it mean that the way we earn our living, where we end our living, what kind of company we'd work for, what kind of business we'd do should be affected by this? Do you really want to be working for a company that lies and cheats and steals from people? Do you want to be doing that yourself? Do you want to be focused on fame and your glory instead of God's glory? See, it starts changing us around. Our purpose in life changes so the way we live becomes differently. When I worked for the county of Los Angeles, since I was going to seminary, I was taking a job way under what I was qualified for. In fact, I trained my supervisors. But I'll tell you this, I didn't work for my supervisor. I didn't do my work just because I was gonna pay the exact same amount after five years as a person who just got hired. I didn't slack off. Instead, I did my work for one and one person only, and that's the Lord Jesus Christ, because that's who I work for no matter what I'm doing. Whatever chore I'm doing, I work for the Lord Jesus Christ. Why? Because I know where I'm going. I know who my boss is. See, if I am understanding what's happening in the future and where I'll end up, I prepare now by living toward that now. I'm a citizen of heaven. And if you are, you should live that way. Not as just a citizen of this world or this nation. My allegiance is to him, secondary to anything else. And I live according to that. So Peter's call here is to be careful, thoughtful, to live in peace, to live blameless, to live spotless. Because life is short, it is going to be past soon. And only what is done for Christ is going to last. Now, Peter's called in, develop a godly character in preparation for the coming of new heavens and earth. But this, verses 15 and 18, he also calls for continued development of an understanding of what God is doing in the present. So it's not being so heavenly minded that you're no earthly good. It's being so heavenly minded that you're doing good on earth by understanding what God is doing in the here and now. Verse 15. Just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you, and 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." You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ." You see, Christian maturity requires understanding. Understanding of the truth, including the Lord's patience and long-suffering. He restrains himself. He does not haste to revenge the wrongs he suffers at the hands of men. And we are to consider that as in regard to our own benefit and for those around us. Every day the Lord delays is another day that somebody who's not saved now can get saved. The Scriptures teach us understanding, and Peter affirms here, that Paul's letters, his epistles, are also part of Scripture, verse 16. And that Peter says, I'm only saying the same thing Paul has. We're not saying anything different. Peter also recognizes some of Paul's writings are hard to understand, but hard is not impossible. It's just difficult. It means diligent study and the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit. Christian maturity also requires understanding in order to be careful of false teachers. That goes back to a theme he had earlier in his letter. Again, a warning about false teachers whom he describes here as distorting the scriptures because they are untaught and unstable. Distort here, striblao is an interesting word. It means to torture someone by twisting them. That's ugh. So figuratively it means to pervert, to torture, to twist, to distort language to a false sense or meaning. Anybody notice that's what's going on constantly around us? Our language is distorted and twisted so you don't even know what they're talking about anymore. Okay? They do that to our language because they can then do that to the scriptures. And we don't know what it's talking about. Christian maturity requires we be careful of such unprincipled men or we could be carried away by the error of that false teaching. You see, we do stand in danger of having our thoughts twisted from the truth and falling into the same error by uneducated, deluded men who operate outside of godly principles. They're all around us. We need to be diligent ourselves. So the foundation of all Christian maturity is understanding Jesus Christ. Back in chapter 1, Peter had said that God had already given the Christian everything he or she needs concerning life and Godliness through the true knowledge of Jesus Christ. Do you want to grow as a Christian? Then the starting point is knowing the Lord Jesus Christ. Growing in your knowledge of Him. Who He is, what He is like, what He desires from you. And that's why Peter can conclude here in verse 18 with the same theme. He calls us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus and Savior Jesus Christ. And it's the only reasonable thing to do and view what the future holds for this present world and the coming of the new heavens and new earth. More importantly, is the only way to fulfill the purposes of all things, which is how Peter ends the letter. To Him, that is to Jesus Christ, be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. I pray each one here will heed that message. Edgar Gast wrote a little poem that I think is fitting to this. Out of this life I shall never take things of silver and gold I make. All that I cherish and hoard away after I leave on earth must stay. Though I have toiled for a painting rare to hang on my wall, I must leave it there. Though I call it mine and boast its worth, I must give it up when I quit this earth. All that I gather and all that I keep, I must leave behind when I fall asleep. I wonder often what I shall own in that other life when I pass alone. What shall they find and what shall they see in the soul that answers the call for me? Shall the great judge learn when my task is through that the spirit had gathered some riches too? Or shall at the last it be mine to find that all I'd worked for I'd left behind? And to that I'd add this. And all that you leave will just be a pyre which will then melt in God's consuming fire. Father, thank you for the truth of what Peter has said here. Something so pragmatic to live by. Then in light of where all of history is headed, because you've already told us where it will end from the very beginning, that we live in light of that to be the kinds of people that you want us to be. Living for your glory, not our own. Living with eternity in view instead of just the next moment. In Jesus' name, amen.