Faith and Family: Mercy and Judgment

The Day is Coming

Satan is released

To lurk among the nations

And raise an army

The Day is Coming

Enemies approach

To wage war against the saints

And to quench the light

The Day is Coming

Heavens torn open

Hail, fire, and sulfur pour down

To defend God’s name

The Day is Coming

His priests are rescued

The time of judgment has come

As the dead are raised

The Day is Coming

Until the doom’s day

Peace and Grace are first offered

Through Jesus the Son

But the Day is Coming

Unless we turn back

And our sins are cleansed with blood

Our death is certain

The Day is coming

Just a little while longer

Until it is here

Indeed, the day of Christ’s return is coming. Amen? Amen. On that day he will return to defeat his enemies and to bring the world as we know it to an end. Today we will be reading through 2 Peter 3, verses 3 through the end of the chapter. So if you have your Bibles, please turn there with me.

As way of reminder, we are nearing the end of our sermon series titled The Church: Faith and Family, and we’re covering what we believe here as the church according to what has been revealed in the word of our God.

And this is our third Sunday examining the return of Jesus.

So far we’ve covered about half of the statement, which reads:

We believe Jesus will return in power and glory to reign.

It has been declared in scripture that no man knows the hour of his return, only the Father.

On that day, Jesus will gather his people to himself and they will be changed.

-If you want to learn more about those, I would encourage you to go back and listen to the sermons that Marcus taught. But today we will be looking at the next line in our statement, which is this:

He will crush his enemies and the order of creation will be destroyed in fire.

(repeat) Let’s pray and then we can dive in to examine the scriptures.

(Pray)

2 Peter, chapter 3. For context, I will begin in verse 1

2 Peter 3 ESV

This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 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, 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. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 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. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

God’s Mercy Toward Enemies

I’ve broken down this chapter into two themes: God’s mercy and his judgment. Firstly, God’s mercy.

Enemies of God claim,

“Where is God in all of this?”

2 Peter 3:3–4 ESV

knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. 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.”

Enemies of God (and thus of of God’s people) justify their actions by saying “Where is your God in all of this?” – Have you ever heard the quote, “The world is your oyster?” This ideology follows the same sentiment. If there is no God there is no retribution. So therefore you should enjoy life while you can in any way you can. People who buy in to this ideology often bribe in order to reap reward for themselves. They forfeit family in order to be recognized by others to gain power or influence. They are complete devotees to themselves, not concerned for the life of those they deem unworthy. To them, there is no one to enforce justice or to defend the poor or innocent. Rather, the world is ripe for the taking, and if you have the power to take it, then you should do so.

And looking around at our world, it becomes easier and easier to see how that will happen at the very end of time. When you live in a society that rejects God, the society turns away from godly and righteous things. Crime increases, hatred, selfishness, corruption. And these people act as if there are no consequences. They think that because God hasn’t poured out his wrath on them yet, that they can live scot-free. And so they ask the question of the believer, “Where is your God in all of this?” Life just goes on. God isn’t real because if he was, he would have stepped in for you by now.

That’s hard, isn’t it? When someone else looks at your life and they make judgment against you because you are praying to a God you can’t see and hoping that he will answer your prayers and you aren’t seeing the results.

And sometimes for you, it might seem as if God isn’t taking action. He doesn’t step in to stop every evil from happening. He doesn’t stop your best friend’s cancer. He doesn’t protect your daughters or sons. He doesn’t save people who you have been working with for years even though you’ve shared the gospel with them time and time again. Sometimes God doesn’t take action, even when his own people are persecuted and put to the sword and living on the streets or in prisons and are starving, like they are in many places around the world. Where is the Lord then?? Is he unfaithful?? Does he neglect his promise to you? (Pause) No. (Pause) No.

While the enemy uses the question “Where is God now” to mock and deride, the Christian has the perfect answer.

God makes it clear that the reason he hasn’t taken action for retribution yet is because of his great patience. The Lord is patient, first offering a branch of peace toward his enemies rather than destroying them. For God has been made clearly known to all mankind, such that no one is without excuse. And those who live in rebellion against him and who hate his name shall be brought low on the last day. But until then, God’s offer is that of mercy before judgment.

2 Peter 3:5–7 ESV

For they deliberately overlook this fact, that 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.

God has the power over all of creation. And the people who mock God by saying “Where are you now?” are insulting the one who holds the power. Behold, he is holding it back from eradicating the insolent, even now. But God is patient. No word of man can make him move his hand.

2 Peter 3:8–9 ESV

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

Do you see the heart of the Lord? His desire that all should reach repentance? God is patient toward humanity. Even when the people and things of this world are turned against you. And when you join yourself to following Christ, when you take on the mantle of being called Christian and you follow after the Lord with your life, you are called to take on the same forbearance. Though your soul longs to be in a world where Christ reigns, you are still here in this world for a reason.

It is a tough world to be in.

But if you endure hardship here and now, it is not because the Lord does not love you. It is because his love is great, even toward those who do not yet love him. There are many in this lifetime who are stricken with illness or sorrows that they shall carry with them to the grave. The suffering from such evils are great. Sometimes our pain here in this world is so great that w call out to the Lord to end our life to quench our suffering, much like the words of Jonah “It is better for me to die than to live”. But it is nothing compared to the suffering a soul who rejects the Lord. That person shall suffer for eternity. God has a plan and a purpose for you even now, that even though you suffer you may still proclaim the year of the king’s favor, the good news of Jesus Christ when all other lights in your life have gone out. A Christians departing words should always be those of hope and not despair.

In the words of Paul:

Romans 8:18

Romans 8:18 ESV

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

There is a future glory and hope that awaits us beyond our present circumstances.

We know that without God’s grace, we would be in the camp of the enemy, utterly destroyed by the wrath of God. Hailstones and brimstone would be our just judgment for living in rebellion against the Lord as king, and eternal life in the fiery pit of sulfur where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. It is not a happy end, but bitter. Understanding the coming judgment for God’s enemies should spur us further in our efforts to reach their souls that they may be spared from the coming judgment.

But until that time, you are to be a torch of Christ that reaches out into the darkness. The time we live in is a period of grace that the Lord has given. Just as God made a way for the Israelites to escape death by walking through the Red sea on dry ground, the Lord has made a way through Jesus Christ to escape the enemies of God that his people might have new life. And just as the waters closed behind the Israelites and drowned the Egyptian army, so too the path of Christ will come to a close and the enemies of God will be swallowed up in judgment. The time will end and the way will be shut.

And that brings us to the second part:

God’s Judgment Toward Enemies

The Bible gives us some idea of what that last time will be like, when the final curtain has been drawn.

You can read it for yourself in Ezekiel 38-39. But to summarize, God’s enemies will be drawn up against his people with the intent to destroy them. All nations will be rallied against the Lord God. Their number shall be many, like a cloud covering the land. They shall fall upon the innocent with swords and violence, to seize spoil and to carry off plunder, to take ownership of belongings, of property, of anything that God’s people may have earned for themselves. The greed of others shall be one of their greatest drives.

We read in Revelation:

Revelation 20:7–8 ESV

And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea.

At the last day, before Christ returns, it shall seem as if all hope has been lost and God’s people have reached a point of despair: where no man practices righteousness, but all are evil and wicked. The enemies of God will surround those who remain to make war against them and to eliminate them for all time. But that is the time the Lord shall return. That is the time your faith shall be made sight.

One of the most vivid pictures for me of this is carried in the work of Tolkien in the Lord of the Rings series. He places his protagonists in situations where by normal circumstances, all hope should have fled. Whether it’s holding off hope when surrounded by armies of thousands, or pushing onward through a volcanic wasteland filled with enemies, the protagonists remain faithful to their mission and keep pressing on. Why? Because in the words of Tolkien,

“But in the end it's only a passing thing, this shadow; even darkness must pass. A new day will come.” (endquote)

A new day shall come.

The characters are able to look beyond their present circumstances to a future hope, a future glory. That glory will come at the return of Christ.

How does the saying go, “He who laughs last lasts longest?” The Lord will be the last one standing. He will return for his people. And on that final day, the Lord himself will say “Enough is Enough! The time of patience and of waiting is over. Those who are to be saved from this world have been saved. There shall be no more.”

God’s enemies will be crushed.

Micah 7:10 ESV

Then my enemy will see, and shame will cover her who said to me, “Where is the Lord your God?” My eyes will look upon her; now she will be trampled down like the mire of the streets.

Ezekiel 38:22–23 ESV

With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will rain upon him and his hordes and the many peoples who are with him torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur. So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

Revelation 20:9–10 ESV

And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

The destruction for God’s enemy shall come, and it shall be final. It shall be complete.

For the believer,

Christ’s final return reminds us of the power of Christ and of his faithfulness to us. When our souls are distraught and beyond any other comfort, He will rescue us from the enemy, if not in our lifetime then at the final day of judgment. He will return to bring about the healing, the new dawn, the new day.

For the enemy of God, their time shall end in fire. Not just on the final day of Armageddon, but for eternity.

And the destruction shall be complete: taking all the people and affecting the entire earth.

Why the earth, you say?

The world was born in water, and it shall end in fire. God’s justice shall be satisfied and there shall be no more conflict in the world or in creation, which was corrupted by the sin of man.

Romans 8:20–22 ESV

For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.

Sin affects all of creation. So creation itself shall be put to the fire.

2 Peter 3:10 ESV

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.

Did you know that some fires are helpful for forests? Trees have bark that protect the inner wood. When a forest fire comes the outer bark burns away, and the tree remains alive. A pine tree needs fire to help its cones release its seeds. After a fire passes through, flowers which require the heat of a fire spring out of the ground. Fire kills pests and keeps the forest healthy. Vegetation that is burned by fire provides a rich source of nutrients that nourish remaining trees. After the fire passes over, the land recovers and the forest is healthier than before.

So it shall be with our earth. The fire of the Lord’s wrath shall purge all of the wickedness that remains on the earth, so that the good life that remains shall grow all the more better. Our old creation has been made from water, but it shall be remade though fire. Just as steel is forged using both fire and water, so shall the new heavens and earth be made sturdy and lasting after the age of our world is done.

The fire of God will come, to those on the receiving end as an evil as they are burned away, but to the rest of God’s eternal creation as a necessary change in the landscape for further growth and renewal. What that new creation will look like, I do not yet know. But one day it will come.

Living in Light of God’s Mercy and Judgment

2 Peter 3:11–13 ESV

Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

“What sort of people ought you to be?”

Peter poses the question in verse 11. He answers his question with the rest of the chapter, exhorting the church and encouraging them.

“Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. And count the patience of our Lord as salvation … ...take care that you are not carried away with the error of lawless people and lose your own stability. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”

Look at the key emphasis on the action here: be diligent, count, take care, grow. These are all instructions.

For the believer, I see two opportunities:

Two Opportunities:

-opportunity to reach the lost

-opportunity to be found steadfast in the faith

These are two sides to the same coin.

The opportunity for reaching the lost comes with counting the patience of the Lord as salvation.

Remember, God’s message is a message of mercy before judgment. It’s why when Jesus came he suffered unto death, taking on the sins of those who believe in him so that he might make the just payment for God’s wrath instead of us. This offer of mercy stands for all of those who believe in the name of Jesus and who place their hope and trust in him to deliver them from their sins. Only because God is patient toward us have we been able to see God’s salvation for ourselves, having been drawn out of the darkness of the world and attracted to his marvelous light.

It is our steadfastness and faithfulness that help us to be bright lights in a time of darkness.

Philippians 2:14–16 ESV

Do all things without grumbling or disputing, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.

Christ has commanded us to be lights in the world for his name’s sake. He has given us work to do here and now, even while he has been away. He has entrusted us with a mission and a task, to be bearers of his image in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation.

And one day Christ will return. Are you ready for that day? Will he find you to be a faithful servant at work or will he find you slacking?

He will either commend you for your service and say “Well done, good and faithful servant!” or he will return and find a slacker, and say to them “Be gone from me, you worker of lawlessness”.

Knowing this, let us strive to be stable, firm in the salvation which has been granted to us, abounding in steadfast love and hope, growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord. May our souls be at peace before God and not conflicted over sin and addiction but rejoice in the freedom of Christ which has the power to break every evil we may face.

Conclusion

My goal this morning was to impress upon you the immanence of Christ’s return and to prepare yourselves for it. God is a God of Mercy, but he is also a God of just Judgment. May we not pass our days by in idle complacency, but may we be spurred ever onward to boldly proclaim Christ to those who are on the path of destruction. Let us be found at peace before the Lord on the day of his return so that we may hear the words “Well done, good and faithful servant.” Let us pray.