BE DILIGENT! 2 Peter 3:11–18

All true Christians believe that Jesus Christ is coming again. They may differ in their views of when certain promised events will occur, but they all agree that He is returning as He promised. Furthermore, all Christians agree that this faith in future glory ought to motivate the church. This does not mean that we should stop studying prophecy, or that every opposing viewpoint is correct, which is an impossibility. But it does mean that, whatever views we hold, they ought to make a difference in our lives.

I. Be Diligent to Live Godly Lives (2 Peter 3:11–14)

11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. 14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;

A. We do not know the day or the hour of our Lord’s return.

We must constantly be ready. The believer who starts to neglect the “blessed hope” will gradually develop a cold heart, a worldly attitude, and an unfaithful life. If they are not careful, they may even become like the scoffers and laugh at the promise of Christ’s coming.

An expectant attitude ought to make a difference in our personal conduct. Because we have “escaped the corruption that is in the world”, we must live differently from the people in the world. To them, we should behave like “foreigners.” Why? Because this world is not our home! We are “strangers and pilgrims” headed for a better world, the eternal city of God. Christians should be different, not odd. When you are different, you attract people; when you are odd, you repel them.

B. An expectant attitude will make a difference when we meet Jesus Christ.

If we are diligent to watch for His return, and to live holy and godly lives, then we will not be afraid or ashamed. We will meet Him “without spot and blameless.” Jesus Christ is “a Lamb without blemish and without spot”, and we should be careful to follow His example. Peter had warned his readers against the defilement that the apostates bring. The separated Christian will not permit themselves to be “spotted and blemished” by the false teachers! they want to meet their Lord wearing pure garments.

How do we maintain this eager expectancy that leads to holy living? By keeping “His promise” before our hearts. The promise of His coming is the light that shines in this dark world. Not only should this expectant attitude make a difference in our conduct, but it should also make a difference in our witness.

II. Be Diligent to Win the Lost (2 Peter 3:15–16)

15 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, 16 as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.

A. The Jewish nation was God’s great testimony to Law, but the church is His witness for grace.

For centuries, if a Gentile wanted to be saved, he had to come by way of Israel. This same attitude persisted even in the early church. Paul made it clear that both Jews and Gentiles stand condemned before God and that both must be saved by faith in Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ, saved Jews and Gentiles belong to the one body, the church.

Peter made reference to Paul’s writings, because it is Paul, more than any other New Testament writer, who explained God’s plan for mankind during this present age. Paul explained the relationship between Israel and the church. He pointed out that God used the nation Israel to prepare the way for the coming of the Saviour. But Israel rejected its King and asked to have Him crucified. Did this destroy God’s plan? Of course not! Today, Israel is set aside nationally, but God is doing a wonderful new thing: He is saving Jews and Gentiles, and making them one in Christ in the church!

B. Unlearned and unstable people have a difficult time understanding Paul’s teachings.

Even some learned and stable people who have spiritual discernment can find themselves floundering in great passages! Some Bible students, in their attempt to “harmonize” seeming contradictions (Law and grace, Israel and the church, faith and works) twist the Scriptures and try to make them teach what is really not there.

Most heresies are the perversion of some fundamental doctrine of the Bible. False teachers take verses out of context, twist the Scriptures, and manufacture doctrines that are contrary to the Word of God. Peter probably had the false teachers in mind, but the warning is good for all of us. We must accept the teaching of the Scriptures and not try to make them say what we want them to say.

What happens to people who blindly twist the Scriptures? They do it “unto their own destruction.” Peter was not writing about Christians who have a difficult time interpreting the Word of God, because nobody understands all of the Bible perfectly. He was describing the false teachers who “tortured” the Word of God in order to prove their false doctrines.

III. Be Diligent to Grow Spiritually (2 Peter 3:17–18)

17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

A. “Beware” means “be constantly guarding yourself.”

True Christians cannot fall from salvation and be lost, but they can fall from their own “steadfastness.” What was this steadfastness? Being “established in the present truth”. The stability of the Christian comes from their faith in the Word of God, their knowledge of that Word, and their ability to use that Word in the practical decisions of life.

One of the great tragedies of evangelism is bringing “spiritual babies” into the world and then failing to feed them, nurture them, and help them develop. New believers need to be taught the basic doctrines of the Word of God; otherwise, they will be in danger of being “led away with the error of the lawless.”

B. We must grow “in grace” and must also grow in knowledge.

We were saved by grace, but grace does not end there! We must also be strengthened by grace. God’s grace can enable us to endure suffering. His grace also helps us to give when giving is difficult and to sing when singing is difficult. Our God is “the God of all grace”. There is grace for every situation and every challenge of life. “But by the grace of God I am what I am” wrote Paul, and that should be our testimony as well. Growing in grace often means experiencing trials and even suffering. We never really experience the grace of God until we are at the end of our own resources. To grow in grace means to become more like the Lord Jesus Christ, from whom we receive all the grace that we need.

How easy it is to grow in knowledge but not in grace! All of us know far more of the Bible than we really live. Knowledge without grace is a terrible weapon, and grace without knowledge can be very shallow. But when we combine grace and knowledge, we have a marvelous tool for building our lives and for building the church. We are challenged to grow, not just in knowledge of the Bible, as good as that is, but “in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” It is one thing to “know the Bible,” and quite another thing to know the Son of God. The better we know Christ through the Word, the more we grow in grace; the more we grow in grace, the better we understand the Word of God.

What is the result of spiritual growth? Glory to God! “To Him be glory both now and forever.” It glorifies Jesus Christ when we keep ourselves separated from sin and error. It glorifies Him when we grow in grace and knowledge, for then we become more like Him. The apostates are here! They are busy! They are seducing immature Christians! We must be guarding, growing, and glorifying the Lord, making the most of every opportunity to win the lost and strengthen the saved.