THE NEW TESTAMENT
BIBLE STORY2 Peter 3 - Christ's Coming
2 Epistle from Peter Chapter 3 CHAPTER THREE Peter was writing this epistle in part to stir up their remembrance. He wanted them to be mindful of the prophets of old and the commandments of the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. Peter was inspired to tell them that in the LAST DAYS, scoffers would come, who would want to just follow their own lustful ways, certainly not want to live by the words of the Bible, as Jesus taught we should (Mat.4:4). They would scoff at the teaching of the second visible body return of Jesus to this earth. They would look at past history and say all is going along as ever before on the planet, people living and dying, people at war with each other, famine, earthquakes, deceases of all kinds ... just the wheel turning as ever before right from the beginning of life on earth. Peter says these people are WILLINGLY IGNORANT, they have their head in the sand so to speak. They will not simply look around and see the wonders of creation demand it all has a creator. They want to be ignorant about Genesis chapter one, the earth standing in water, then in and out of water, as God directed in that beginning chapter of His Bible. Even with all the evidence of modern science, the earth was at one time not covered with water and then at some time in history it was covered with water. There was a world at one time containing all the "dinosaur" creatures, and then they all of a sudden disappeared. Modern science admits this was so, but these scoffers just do not want to see a being called "God" in any of this. The earth today is kept in its function for us human beings to inhabit, we have laws that science must admit are there, like gravity, but the scoffers will still scoff at anything having to do with an Almighty Being that made it all, and keeps it all in place to enact His plan for mankind and the physical earth. This planet will keep revolving and keep being inhabitable unto the day of the Lord that will bring a universal fire in final judgment, that will burn up all ungodly person and usher in a new heaven and a new earth, as the last chapters of the book of Revelation expound. Peter wanted his readers not to be ignorant of how the time plan of all this, is working out. God is VERY PATIENT, His time is not our time, a DAY to the Lord can be as a THOUSAND years in human time, and a THOUSAND YEARS as a DAY to God. The Almighty One is NOT on OUR time table. To us a thousand years is a long time, to God it is but a day, and if the Lord wants to make a short time to our thinking, into a long time, He can do so (verses 1-8). Verse 8 has in times past been used to try and prove God is working on a 7,000 years plan. That idea is not new, some, many centuries go proclaimed this teaching. Bishop Usher tried to prove that creations of Genesis one, was in 4004 B.C. If that could be proved to be correct (which by the way cannot be proved), then we are OVER the 6,000 years of man, and the 7th one thousand years should have already come to earth, and Jesus should already have returned. The words of verse 8, DO NOT prove such a 7,000 years plan is what God is working on. All that verse teaches is that GOD'S TIME OF DOING THINGS IS NOT OUR TIME! The Eternal can shorten or lengthen the events of what He plans to work out on this earth with human beings. Jesus gave parables that tell us the same thing. If you read them carefully some people will be surprised at the coming of Christ when He does come, and others will be sleeping, thinking it is far away. Yes, certain prophetic events must come to pass (if the nations of the world do not repent, and there is no evidence they ever will on their own steam) before Jesus returns to earth, but you see God the Father, can if He wills, make certain events lengthen out before the next event of prophecy is to manifest itself. Then will all that said, it still remains that God is NOT SLACK, concerning His promises, as men count slackness, because men look through human eyes, and forget about verse 8 that we have just read ... time with God is not our time. God is PATIENT, and that patience or LONGSUFFERING is often way too long for many of us humans. How many have lived in this past 20th century hoping to see the end of this age and the return of Jesus? Many thousands I'm sure. How many in my generation (I'm recently, in 2007, aged 65; in September I reached what some call the golden age - well I do get a few dollars of here and there for being classified now as a "senior") want to live and see Jesus return in power and glory. If my generation lives for another 20 to 40 years, maybe it will happen. But there is NO GUARANTEE that will be the case. When I think of the last 40 years, it's hard to imagine where they all went - went by quickly indeed, and the older I get the quicker the years seem to go by. Now here's ONE BIG reason why God is L O N G S U F F E R I N G to mankind is that He wants to give the benefit of the doubt to then. Maybe if He gives His children a longer time to work in spreading the Gospel, more will come to repentance and to a saving faith. God can give some extra time, if it's His desire, He is after all the Almighty, and all things are in His hands. He can shorted the days or lengthen the days as He wills. We do not tell God what to do and when to do it. It is HE that will decided when all that is written in the prophets is to take place, and it will be He who has the final word for the "go ahead" for Jesus to leave heaven and to return again to earth. God is LOVE. He does not want to see ANY person PERISH. He wishes that ALL would come to REPENTANCE, He would like that, but it does not mean ALL WILL repent. Desiring all to repent is not the same as all people being willing to repent. Mankind was created with FREE agency, God cannot and will not FORCE people to repent, they must make that choice. God sets before mankind GOOD and EVIL, He wants them to choose the good, but each individual of mankind must decide for themselves which way they will choose (see Duet.30:19). And each individual must remain FAITHFUL in that choice TO THE END (see Ezekiel 18:21-32). (verse 9). Peter reminds us in verses 10-13 that the DAY OF THE LORD, will come on the earth like a thief in the night - UNEXPECTEDLY - most on earth will not be in the frame of mind to expect the Day of God to come. Paul gave us a little more about the attitude of mind that most will have at that time. He said that indeed the Day of the Lord comes as a thief in the night. The world will at that time be saying "Peace and safety" then SUDDEN destruction will come! (see 1 Thes.5:1-6). The "Day of the Lord" is spoken about in many passages of the Bible - Old and New Testaments. In the book of Revelation it is called "...the GREAT DAY of His wrath..." (Rev.6:17). Before that time period there is to come the GREAT TRIBULATION. In Revelation 6 that is the 5th seal - the killing of many of the saints of God. Jesus spoke about THE tribulation in Mat.24:21 - a tribulation like no other in the entire history of mankind. Luke records Jesus' words on this in Luke 21:20-24. It will be the time when all that is written shall come to pass, and those in Jerusalem better flee to the hills, for it will be a time of anguish for the Jewish people once more. Jeremiah informs us that it is "Jacob's trouble" (Jer.30:7). Now Jacob had 12 SONS - Judah (the Jews) being only ONE of the twelve. The other sons finally ended up travelling into Europe and have become most of the nations of Western Europe, the British commonwealth and the United States of America. The best Website to prove all that is: www.britus.org In a nut shell then: The coming BEAST power of Revelation, now rising in Europe, will conquer and control the WESTERN world, it will have its particular strange "Christianity" - its Babylon Mystery religion (which it already has) - all will have to worship this "beast" and its form of Christianity, which is as far as the east is from the west, in relation to God's true religion of the Bible. The Lord's people and probably many in the now fundamental Protestant denominations (who will see the true correct religion of God, through the teaching and example of the true Church of God) will not bow down to worship this Beast power or its form of religion. Many will then be killed for holding to the faith once delivered to the saints. After this has taken place, the Beast power will DECLARE PEACE, those willing to worship the Beast system will, for a short time, indeed HAVE PEACE, that is what Paul was referring to in 1 Thes.5. THEN will come the DAY OF THE LORD, or the Great Day of His Wrath (Rev.6:17). Most on earth will not expect it. As a thief in the night it will come on the earth. There will be HEAVENLY SIGNS (Jesus also and Joel the prophet spoke about that - Mat.24:29; Joel 2:30-31). Peter put them as "heavens pass away with great noise, the elements melt with fervent heat, the earth burnt up....the heavens on fire ... and elements shall melt with fervent heat." All that is then to take place is recorded in the book of Revelation from chapter 7 to 20. Certainly nothing in mankind's history will be like the events of the DAY OF THE LORD! I have covered in much detail the prophecy of these end time events in MANY studies on this Website. But after and beyond all of that GREAT Tribulation and the Day of the Lord, there is promised a new heaven and new earth, a NEW AGE to COME, as the apostle Paul once termed it. All will not be lost, the earth and some of mankind, will remain. Peter is using a "general" statement in this passage of verses 10-13. Many other passages in other prophetic books of the Bible, show not all is lost or destroyed. Jesus did say (Mat.24 again) that if the days were not shortened then all flesh would be obliterated from planet earth, but the days will be shortened. Jesus will come and usher in a new age, a new heaven and a new earth during the 1,000 year period mentioned in Revelation 20, and as told by the holy prophets of old in many passages such as Isaiah 11 and Zechariah 14. Peter is NOT here in these verses talking about the passages of Revelation 21 and 22. A new heaven and a new earth that will come at the END of the 1,000 year period. Many have thought Peter was referring to those passages of Revelation. There may be a DUAL aspect of what Peter is stating here, but the main thought is the prophetic DAY OF THE LORD, as in many other passages of the Bible. Peter's context has been that many would scoff in the last days concerning the teaching that Jesus Christ is to return to earth again. He is telling his readers that God is patient, God is not stack concerning that prophetic event of Christ coming back to set up the Kingdom of God on earth. Then he proceeds to relate how the Day of the Lord will come (as a thief - surprising most) and the heavenly signs to announce it, then the restoration - a new age, a new heaven and a new earth under Christ who has indeed come as promised. If the you have not yet studied my in-depth study called "Armageddon and the New Age" then I encourage you to do so. There is so much that has been promised from God concerning the age to come, the Kingdom of God on earth, that my study of it, is only the tip of the iceberg. You can continue the study by reading all the prophetic books of the Bible, and noting especially the context where the phrase "day of the Lord" is used. As we look for all these things to come to pass, as we know those promises are sure, then we are to be DILIGENT, having peace, without spot, and blameless. We can only do all of that, by being in a humble repentant attitude of mind, continually wanting to serve God, obeying Him, living His WAY of life, living by His every word, and just love Him with all our heart, mind, and life (verse 14). John the Baptist's parents were counted as "blameless" before God. Not because they were sinless, only ONE has ever been sinless (Jesus Christ) - they were counted as blameless because they did what I've just stated above and because they had a humble repentant attitude of mind. Peter again states that the LONGSUFFERING of the Lord is SALVATION. So if all things promised do not come to pass in our life time, if Jesus does not return before we physically fall asleep in death, then we need to remember that it may be that the Lord is continuing to be longsuffering with the people on earth, that MANY more might find salvation and be a part of the FIRST resurrection. Peter mentions Paul taught the very same thing ... God is longsuffering! He also points out to us that some of Paul's writings are quite deep "theologically speaking" and may be hard to understand at first. They who are unlearned and unstable (not meaning a little mental, or psycho) but unlearned and unstable in getting to know how to study the Scriptures, in a way that puts them all together to obtain the results of the truth of the matter on any particular Bible subject. Such persons end up TWISTING the Scriptures, come to the WRONG understanding of things written in the Bible, and it all leads in the end to their destruction, and if when God gives them the light to see and obtain the truth, they still will not accept it, then it will mean, sadly, their final destruction in the second death, as told us in Revelation 20. I want you to notice what Peter is saying in context about the writings of Paul, the epistles of Paul, these unlearned people wrest Paul's writings as they do OTHER SCRIPTURES (verse 16)!! By the time Peter was writing this epistle, all true Christians and ministers, HAD COME TO SEE THAT THE WRITINGS OF PAUL WERE NOT JUST HIS IDEAS, HIS "THEOLOGY," BUT WERE ACCEPTED AS **SCRIPTURE** - the New Testament was being INSPIRED to be written, and the apostles KNEW what letters were INSPIRED. The New Testament was BEING FORMED during the FIRST century A.D. The idea that it was the Roman Catholic church that formulated the cannon of New Testament Scripture in the 2nd to 4th century, is totally blown to shreds by this verse here in the second epistle of Peter. An old book (1984) but a book I recommend you read is "The Original Bible Restored" by Ernest Martin. Maybe your local Library will have it, or Internet Websites like Amazon.com or Barnes and Noble.com carry it somewhere on their file selling bookstores. Maybe one day I may upload the entire book to this Website. Peter gives us all a warning in verse 17. We may know these things he has written about, we may know them very well, maybe we've studied them for years, but that does not mean we cannot FALL AWAY from righteousness back into the error of the wicked, or be LED ASTRAY by the errors of the wicked, or those "unlearned" in the Scriptures. We are to be on guard all the time that we do NOT FALL from our STEADFASTNESS! Paul also taught the same, and so did Jesus, for He said, "Those that endure to the END shall be saved." One way to make sure you endure in steadfastness is to GROW IN GRACE AND KNOWLEDGE of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ...." (verse 18). You need to love to love the truth of the matter. You need to hunger and thirst after righteousness. You need to study the Scriptures, read the Bible from cover to cover. You need to meditate upon God's word, and PRAY to the Lord for guidance. Pray to the Lord that you will not be one of the "unlearned" in the Scriptures, and be led away by the errors of the wicked. And so we have done the full circle again, which brings us back to making sure you GROW in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be GLORY both NOW and FOREVER. Amen! ................ Written October 2007 |
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