| November 21, 1999 | Promises of Judgment | 2 Peter 3:3-13
Grace to you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
It seems it used to be the case that when flying on a commercial jetliner, there was a seatbelt light and "no smoking" light which went out shortly after take-off. That was the signal that it was ok to get up and walk around and also to start smoking. Those lights used to go off before the jet would even finish its climb to the cruising altitude.
More recently this seems to have changed. Northwest Airlines was the pioneer, I believe, in keeping the no smoking light lit the whole trip. The use of the seatbelt light has also changed. Now the airlines generally request that you keep your seatbelt on at all times. Why this change? What they found was that if they ran into unexpected air turbulence, it was better if your seatbelt was buckled. They determined it was not in the best interests of your body if you went flying around the cabin, bouncing off the ceiling and the walls. Now, how often are those conditions encountered? Not very often, but it is better to be prepared than to be caught off guard. It is better to be prepared for trouble, because it can pop up when you don't expect it.
Our Lord wants us to be prepared for His return and the Judgment. He wants us, in effect, to keep our seatbelts on so that the bumpiness of the judgment does not find us wandering away from the safety of our seat. Our safety is provided entirely by the one who is our rock and refuge, our Lord Jesus Christ. Only if we seek shelter in Him will we be safe.
We can easily find ourselves unprepared if we get caught up in the thinking of the world, the non-Christian thinking, the deceptions of the devil, and the distractions of darkness. So, the letter from Peter which we have before us begins Chapter 3 by encouraging the readers to think wholesome thoughts. Peter is writing a second time to stimulate his readers to wholesome thinking. We ought to be thinking thoughts which are healthy for us, which build us up spiritually. I would encourage all of you to do this. Make an evaluation of your thinking. What kinds of thoughts do you spend time thinking? What is the food you feed your brain? Where are the raw materials coming from which go into your head?
Peter then encourages us to feed our minds from the words of the prophets and apostles. In other words, "read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest" God's Word. Let us be diligent on leading our minds to be clear-headed in thinking wholesome thoughts by feeding them on the pure milk of God's Word.
The Word of the Lord is given to us by Peter, then, to warn us of a specific way in which our thoughts might be lead to be impure, unhealthy and unwholesome. "First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come." Scoffers will put down Christian thinking. They will encourage unwholesome thinking.
This is a specific stern warning to be aware of those who want to lead you away from the truth. We simply must expect it. We must anticipate it because we are here in God's Word so warned. If the sheriff tells you that there is a murderer loose in your neighborhood, you don't go out late at night as you would otherwise. You heed the warning. So the Lord warns us here of the scoffers.
What is the characteristic of these scoffers? It says that they will be "following their own evil desires." They will seek after their own desires. What other desires might we follow besides our own? God's of course. How well do we find that our desires match God's desires? Not so well. This is a result of our sinful nature. We have our own will that wants to lead us to go contrary to God's will. Thanks be to God that Christ's will was to go to the cross for us!
One area in which scoffers have had great success in our nation is the teaching of evolution. This teaching, which is best classified as a philosophy and religion, is taught in most public institutions, including schools, museums, and zoos. You find it widely accepted and publicized in broadcasting and print journalism. Because it is taught to children who are in a vulnerable position where they are actually punished for challenging what they are taught, they often blindly accept it. Because it is taught in the passive form of TV, it is often swallowed whole, without even considering whether it is true. This is a situation where clear, wholesome thinking is lacking. We so easily give our minds over to be captive to the thinking of scoffers.
It is interesting to consider the thoughts of those who think clearly about evolution and yet hold to that teaching. Why do they hold to it? I just heard of the testimony of several who clearly call evolution a "faith." One said he believes in evolution because he doesn't want to believe in a creator. Another said he prefers evolution since, if there is a creator, then he must be morally responsible to him and he doesn't want to do that. He wants to live his life according to his own desires. Jeffrey Dalhmer, the famed killer confessed that he used to believe in evolution and as a result though he could do whatever he wanted. Dalhmer was then drawn to Christ while in prison. How much do these thoughts sound like scoffers who follow their own desires?
Part of the great lie that is passed along with evolution is the idea that death is natural. Dying is just part of life. This type of teaching is proclaimed by the materials which our local hospice hands out. Indeed, death is a requirement for evolution to work. We, however, know otherwise: death is a result of sin. Death is not normal.
Death is a tragic and convicting end to this life. Just as there are those who deny the significance of death, there are those who will deny the judgment to come. We confess that Christ will return to judge the living and the dead. We have Scripture like that before us that says that this world will come to a tragic end. Still, there are those scoffers who deny it will happen. This Peter warns us about. He writes: "They will say, 'Where is this ~coming~ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.'"
Well, just how often do you think about the judgment? Unfortunately, we fail to keep this end of the world in mind. We fail to remember that there will be eternal punishment to come for those who remain in their sins. We forget that the world we see around us, all the created things we have come to love and know will be burned up with fire.
Perhaps we forget because there are so many scoffers leading us to doubt the coming judgment along with them. It seems like things are going along fairly steady. Haven't seen a judgment come for almost 2000 years since Christ ascended to heaven. Maybe He it isn't coming?
The text goes on to warn against thinking that the judgment day will not occur because it seems to us that the Lord is taking too long. First, the text teaches us to realize that God is not being slow from His point of view. To Him, all time is an instant. He exists beyond time. He never waits for anything. God is an eternal "now."
Secondly, the text teaches us to understand that the Lord is not being negligent about His promise to come again and to judge the world. He has not forgotten His duty, or become too busy, or uninterested. Rather, what we see is the Lord acting according to His desire: that all men come to a knowledge of salvation. He does not want anyone to perish. He wants everyone to come to repentance, that is turning away from their sins and toward their salvation in Christ.
Christ our Lord has secured salvation for each of us. Through the death of our Lord upon the cross He earned for each of us the right to pass through judgment unscathed. This comes through our sins being washed away by the blood of Jesus. His sacrifice buys us freedom. He wants to now give this free gift to all people. He makes the offer to all, but many turn it down. To give them more time, He waits patiently.
Now, despite the patience of the Lord, we ought not think that He will never come. Instead, He will come like a thief. The day of the Lord will be a surprise. There are those, of course, who will tell you that they know when the Lord is coming. If it were the case that someone knew, it could not be a surprise. The thief who announces his arrival is not going to be a thief for long. Instead, no one will know that day or hour. Those who tell you that they know that the Lord will return as we turn the calendar over to the new year of 2000 are dead wrong. They do not know, for no one can know. He comes like a thief.
Our text teaches us that God really is the measure of all things. Indeed, it is His promise which is driving the hope and expectation of the coming judgment. It is not human impressions which determine it. Man is not the measure. Just because some think the Lord is late does not mean He is not going to do what He said. Our opinion of what God does or does not do is unimportant. What is important is what God says and does. He says He will return to judge the living and the dead. He will do it. It matters not one tiny bit what any man thinks about it.
Since God makes His promise and will fulfill it, how do we respond? Should we fear that judgment because of the abundance of sins in our lives? Ought we tremble because of our original sin, which leads our very nature to be corrupt and opposed to God? This is what the non-Christian world thinks. This fear of the judgment leads them to imagine that it will never occur. This leads them to postulate other religions such as evolution which remove God from the picture and thereby they don't have to think about a judgment for their sins.
We, on the other hand have a joyous, wonderfully optimistic future awaiting us. This is the case because of what Christ did in the past for us. We focus on the promise, keeping our thinking on the words of the prophets and apostles, which keeps it wholesome. Then, "in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness." That is the happy future that awaits us - a newly created home. A home where righteousness lives, not sin. You and I cannot imagine a world without sin for it is too wonderful for us to conceive right now. We are looking forward to this. We wait for it expectantly.
In summary, we ought to expect those to appear who will scoff at the claims of Christianity. They live lives following their own sinful desires and they will even deny the coming judgment. The judgment will come. Though it might seem slow to some, it will come as a thief because the Lord has given us a certain promise. In confidence we look expectantly to what will follow the judgment, our new home, which will be full of righteousness. Let us await this wonderful conclusion, brought to you by the mercy of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.