So I know we have a number of students in the room right now. Many of you who one of the things you spend much of your time doing is learning, learning topics like math and English and science, learning your Bible and learning the history of your church, learning the history of your nation and other things. And what will happen sometimes as you're learning, perhaps you're learning something new and hard. Maybe you're learning how to add big numbers, those three and four and five digit numbers. And I know there's some here who have taught how to do that. And when you first start out, there's so many numbers and there's so many steps and it's so difficult. And then as you practice it and you do it over and over again, you have this realization. This isn't really that hard. I'm just doing the same thing over and over again. It's the same steps each time, and if I just follow the steps, if I know the foundational ideas or principles in this work, adding here, the subject is not really so hard. I'm teaching a student physics this year, and physics has a reputation as being a very hard, course in science, and yet one of the beauties of physics is that you can do a lot of physics if you learn three laws. They're called Newton's laws, and you can do ever so much if you master these three laws. And now you're saying, Pastor, what does this have to do with the text in front of us? As we open 2 Peter chapter 3, we are really entering into a topic that many find very complex. full of confusion and even discouragement. A study of what the Lord says will happen at the end when Christ returns. And I fully intend to dig deeply into many of these words over the following weeks. But before we go too deep, I really want to lay out and say there's some very clear foundational ideas or facts or pieces of revelation. If you want to call them principles or laws, that works for me, too. But there's some certain bright, shining ideas that need to be in your head and that you must believe concerning the second coming of Christ and the judgment that he will bring. These are things that are sort of the non-negotiables of our understanding of the second coming, those things for which to deny is to deny Christ himself and those things which should give us great hope and encouragement in these days. And so I want to do a survey really of this chapter, noting a few things that Peter is very adamant about. that we must be clear on when it comes to how we understand the second coming of Christ Jesus, how we understand what it means to say Christ is coming again. So to that point, the first thing I would note is that Peter teaches us here that we are in the last days. This will hopefully be the only thing I say that some of you might find new or unusual. Perhaps we're all familiar with this idea. But to turn to that, consider verse four. They will say, where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation. For they deliberately overlook this fact that the heavens existed long ago. The earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God. Let me go back to verse three, that's going to help us. Knowing this, first of all, the scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. And so Peter said here, here's this thing about the last days, this thing you need to know. First of all, in the last day, scoffers will come. And if you're reading. before and after this verse, it becomes clear that Peter is not saying someday far away scoffers will come. He's just spent the previous chapter decrying those who teach falsely. He's saying he said in chapter two, scoffers, false teachers, they're already here. And then he's saying here in verses three through five, Here, these scoffers, they're present amongst us. This is typical of the last days. This is a sign that tells us that we are in what he regards as the last days. And as we hear him saying, knowing this, first of all, the scoffers will come and say, where is the promises is coming. I hope you open your eyes and look both at our own modern context and in the history of the church. And you realize there have been many scoffers who have come and said, where is Christ coming? Certainly those outside of the church, but even those within the church who have denied the the actual and literal and physical return of our Christ Jesus, our Savior and Lord. If you are familiar with the debates that raged and split the church over modernism, you will remember that one of the key points that was debated there and that liberalism denied was the physical and bodily returning of Christ Jesus as King. That is within the memory of some of you here. And so as we hear Peter speak, we should recognize here that he's warning us and saying this idea of last days, it's not down the road. It's here. It's now. And this is something that we see taught elsewhere in scripture. First Peter four, verse seven, for example, what does he say here? The end of all things is at hand. He doesn't say it's long away. It is here. It is now. It is close. We consider Second Timothy chapter three, verse one. But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty for people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, continuing on. And he describes what is the context in which Timothy is ministering in the context in which Paul has had to minister. Consider also the book of Hebrews. Book of Hebrews, chapter one, verse one. Long ago at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets. But in these last days, he has spoken to us by his son, whom he appointed to the heir of all things, through whom he also created the world. What I want us to understand is when you see that language of last days in the New Testament, is routinely talking about the state in which we find ourselves. That is, the author of Hebrews says that idea of last days is brought in by Christ's resurrection and ascension. And we have entered this time where he has gone to reign where and where principally and keely. The things that we know of that he has to accomplish prior to his return have been completed. I've used this image with you before, but I'll use it again. If we think about in the days of Noah, right, there is this moment when Noah finished the ark and the animals were all inside the ark, but God had not yet brought Noah and his family into the ark. It could have been a short time. It wasn't a long time. But if you think about it, what's happened is everything that needs to be done for the flood to come has been accomplished. And there's this moment of pause as the last few pieces are put in place. That is the days we find ourselves in, not days where we're waiting for something we know that Christ still needs to accomplish. But everything that we can look at and say it has been done, which is why Peter talks about the coming is coming soon. Now, thinking about these last days, I think this is important because one of the key aspects of these last days is that in the last days, there will be sharp opposition to Christ's kingdom and the truth. You see this much in second Peter, chapter two, which we've covered in detail in the previous Lord's days, where we see the opposition and the internal war going on in the church for Christ, the gospel and the truth. We see it also in verse 3 of 2 Peter 3, knowing this, first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own desires. These are those who are seeking to lead astray even those who profess faith in Christ to believe that Christ is not coming. We should remember. that Christ does not see a disconnect or a conflict between on the one hand that his kingdom is overwhelmingly successful, that it is growing by leaps and bounds and covering the whole earth. And at the same time, his kingdom is suffering persecution, that is suffering sharp opposition. And I would remind us, given the reality that Christ won his kingdom at the cross, should we really be surprised? that in the moment of sharpest opposition and suffering is exactly where Christ went and gained his kingdom and gained his people and gained the victory over sin and death. And so we as his people following in his footsteps should expect the same thing. I say this because I do not want us to be discouraged when we face opposition, when we face persecution, when we see Christ's church being persecuted around the world. These things do not mean that Christ is not reigning, do not mean that his kingdom is failing. They are the nature of being in this last days where Christ is finishing up and driving his kingdom to the ends of the earth. I would remind us how the church in the book of Acts thinks about these things. Acts chapter four, I'll go to verse 23. This is after Peter and John have been released after being held on trial by the Sanhedrin. When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and elders had said to them. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father, David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit, why did the Gentiles rage and the people's plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his anointed. For truly in this city, they were gathered together against your holy servant, Jesus, who he anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the people of Israel. to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon the threats and grant your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness while you stretch out your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed in the name of your holy servant, Jesus. This is, I think, striking when we consider what's being said here. Peter and John have been brought before the Sanhedrin. They've been imprisoned. I believe they've been beaten and punished for their witness of Christ Jesus. They're doing this downstream, of course, of the crucifixion of their Lord. And as they are released, they come and they pray a prayer that begins with what? God's absolute sovereignty. What's going on here, God, was your plan. And we're confident in that. Then they continue to talk about the reign and rule of God's son, Christ Jesus. Why did they pick this song, song two, very much on purpose? Why did the Gentiles rage the people's plot in vain against the Lord and against his anointed? They recognize that Christ is on the throne here. And this is the working out of that. And then what do they pray for? We would expect them to pray for relief from what they suffer, to pray for the persecution to end. But they do not. Rather, they pray that the Lord would grant to them to speak your word with all boldness. Listen to the language again. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness. while you stretch out your hand. They describe this thing that the Lord is doing. They're watching this happen as you're in this time where you're doing these wonders. And as we're facing this persecution, Lord, act so that we would speak with boldness. And so we need to understand that we are in what the New Testament understands to be the last days. These are days where we are to expect scoffing and false teaching within. Persecution without and that we are to not be discouraged because this is what it means for Christ to be ascended. This is what it means for Christ to be in this moment where he is pushing his gospel and his kingdom to the ends of the earth. That far from persecution, meaning the church is failing. Persecution frequently means the church is doing exactly what Christ intended. You think how Stephen dies because he was bearing witness to the truth. And you would think that that persecution and the flight of the church out of Jerusalem would hinder the gospel. But what do we read there? That they go out to all the neighboring villages and regions, speaking of the good news wherever they go. So it even said persecution, which came because of the testimony, drives the testimony even further out to new people. But secondly, I want to reiterate, and this must be said clearly, and we have to believe this, Christ is coming again. Christ, the risen and ascended Lord is coming again. To deny the triumphant return of Christ in the flesh is heresy. And I say that because there are those who would claim to be reformed who will say he has already come. They're not many. They're on the fringes, but they exist. And I want you warned ahead of time. If in any way someone says either Christ has already returned or that he is not returning in the flesh, you've denied a key principle of our gospel hope. If Christ is not going to come to judge and to raise the dead, where is our hope? This is why I think Peter calls such not just false teachers, but scoffers. They deny and cut down this basic. It is the heart of our hope that Christ is going to come save us. Scoffers will come in the last day with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the father's fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation. I want us to understand that not only does Peter teach that Christ is returning, but that this was Christ himself and Christ at his ascension teaches very much the same thing. Acts chapter one. So when they'd come together, they asked him, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom of it to Israel? He said to them, it is not for you to know times or seasons. The father is fixed by his own authority, but you'll receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and Samaria to the end of the earth. When he said these things as they were looking on, he was lifted up in a cloud, took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes and said, men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus who has taken up from you into heaven will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven. He went up in the flesh. He will return to us in the flesh. It will be a glorious and public return, and yet it will be that return or to think of the book of Revelation. The middle sections of Revelation get challenging, the beginning and the end are quite, quite straightforward, quite clear. Revelation chapter 22, verse 12. Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are those who wash their robes, so they may have the right to the tree of life, that they may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs of sorcerers and the sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star. The spirit and the bride say come and let the one who hears say come and let the one who is thirsty come. Let the one who desires to take the water of life without price. I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book. If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. If anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city which are described in this book. He who testifies to these things says, surely I'm coming soon. Amen. Amen. Come Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. The power of those words is stunning. And I want you to hear them because Christ says he is coming again. He is coming to reign. He is coming to judge. He is coming to heal. He's coming to condemn those who deny him and oppose him to eternal death and coming to take all of his own, all, as he says there, who washed their garments into eternal life. And we cannot negotiate on that point one inch. To continue, I would note that Peter speaks plainly here, when Christ comes, there'll be universal judgment. Verse five, they deliberately overlooked this fact, the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God. And that by means of these, the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word, the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. Verse 10 as well. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief and then the heavens will pass away with a roar and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved. And the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. If you're following the logic of second Peter, second Peter has been arguing. Our hope as Christians is in part because Christ is coming to judge the wicked. You will not forever suffer under the power of evil, but Christ will come and set these things right. And here, Peter drives this home. He goes to the one example of universal judgment that we have in all of history. And that is when the Lord floods the earth in the days of Noah is the one time where we see God judge all of mankind simultaneously over all the earth. So that there is none who do not pass through his judgment. Most are consumed by his judgment and eight pass through his judgment by the Lord's provision. We must remember that the judgment that is coming will reach all. There is none that will escape. And the picture I would have you keep in your mind is that when this judgment comes, there will be many for whom it comes by surprise, just as in the days of Noah. They have not made peace with their Lord. They have not sought Christ. They have not entered the ark that was provided Christ Jesus and there without. And there will be those who are within the ark who will, as we sing in the Psalm this morning, earlier this morning, the judgment will come and they will only see it because they are protected. One last point I want to make And I'm doing this because as we dig into these things, I want us not to lose sight of some of the big picture that Peter's getting at. The last point I want to get to is this, that Peter is telling us that we need to be prepared for Christ to come today or to come next week or to come many generations from now. The hammering point he makes is that in the Lord's eyes, these things are very near. And yet to us, it's unclear if that nearness is today and tomorrow, if that nearness is in the next number of years or if that nearness is a long time away. From Peter's perspective, as he says, do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promises, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish. that all should reach repentance. The day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar. As Peter says these words, he's telling his audience in that day, you need to live prepared for the coming of Christ. Your eyes need to be oriented on that event, and the nearness of that event should change how you think and how you behave. And yet the reality is Peter wrote those words within the first century since Christ came. Those words were written nearly 2000 years ago, and yet Christ has not come. And we'll get into why and all that stuff later, but here I want us to focus on what Peter's focusing on very clearly in the big picture. We've got to be ready for both. I think of Jesus's parable of the virgins waiting for the bridegroom and they've got the oil, right? And there's 10 virgins and five of them brought extra oil and five of them didn't. And on the one hand, some of them were ready for the bridegroom to be delayed. And so they brought extra oil. And then when the other virgins realized they'd run out of oil, they went to go buy more so they could be ready. And they missed that the bridegroom was coming very, very soon so that they were absent when he was there. And so this, I think, gets us something we can run into, that because Christ is much delayed from our perspective, his return, we come and believe, oh, because it hasn't happened in the 2,000 years yet, it's not coming anytime soon. Peter would have us say it could be long away, It could be very soon, and my calling as a Christian is to be ready for either one. Our confession concludes with these words. As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded that there will shall be a day of judgment, both to deter all men from sin and for the greater consolation of the godly in their adversity. So he will have that day unknown to men. They may shake off all carnal security and be always watchful. because they know not at what hour the Lord will come, and may be ever prepared to say, come, Lord Jesus, come quickly, amen. And there's many ways we could conclude this subject. I would indeed conclude the way our confession does. Because you do not know what hour the Lord will come, you need to be prepared to say, come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. And my challenge to you today is this. Can you come and say, I am longing for Jesus to come today. That would be the best thing that I could think of that would happen to me. That my eager desire is that he would come because that for me means salvation and redemption and glory. And he's my savior. I long to see him. I long to be like the disciples who have seen their savior face to face and heard him speak with his own words and see him act with his own hands. And we should ask ourselves routinely, if Christ was to come back now, would that be a joyful thing for me as a wonderful test of our faith? Because the believer, no matter where he finds himself has to say, if Jesus comes today, he has come to save me and to help me and to rescue me. But if those words strike terror in your heart, if you say, I don't want him to come, I don't want him to see what I'm doing. I don't know that I'm right with him. I don't know that he would welcome me and say, blessed and enter into my kingdom. The call there is to make yourself ready. How? By appealing to him, by seeking from him, by turning from your sins and turning in faith to Christ Jesus. It is to come and hear the very invitation that we heard in Revelation. Come and wash your garments. He's made available everything you need for salvation. And he doesn't say stay far away. He doesn't say go earn what you need to enter. And he says, Come to me and I will save you. Come you who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest. And so we live in light of the second coming in a lot of ways. But the principle one is we focus on being right with our Lord so that his coming for us is not as the unfaithful servant. You were an unfaithful servant. The master comes and leaves him in charge of his household and the service says, ah, Master's gonna be a long, long time. I can live it up. I can beat the underservants. I can make myself fat, and I can drink and be drunk, and it won't matter, because he's never gonna know. And the master comes in a time unlooked for. We are to live knowing that Christ, from man's perspective, will come in a time unlooked for, and live eager to see him come back, because he is our Lord and Savior in his return, is the confirmation and fulfillment of our hope and salvation. Let us pray. Father, we do pray that you would hasten your coming day. We pray that you might send Christ Jesus back as you've promised you will one day do. Lord, we pray that you would make us to be watchful, that we would live day by day with the reality of Christ soon coming, looming over our lives, causing us to walk carefully and watchfully in this world, and also as a great beacon of hope to us as we live in the face of great opposition and danger. Lord, we see those around us, whether family members or friends, co-workers, neighbors, and we mourn because many are desperately unprepared for his return. Lord, in the interim, as you have given us to wait, we pray that you would set his gospel on our lips and that you would make men receptive to hear and to be saved, that they might join their voices with ours in saying, come Lord Jesus. And we pray in his name.