The Patience of Christ

The Second Letter (1-2)

Peter is stirring up their minds

You should remember the words of the prophets

You should remember the commandment of the Lord spoken by your apostles

Know that mockers will come (3-7)

This will happen in the last days

Mockers will follow after their own lusts

Mockers will doubt the return of Christ

They are ignorant of church history

The church fathers have all “fallen asleep” [died]

It has “escaped their notice” that God intervenes in his world

They are willfully ignorant of God as creator (Gen 1-2)

They are willfully ignorant of the history of God’s people; (Gen 6)

They are willfully ignorant of the future judgment (Heb 1:1-3; Heb 9:27-28)

Do not be ignorant of the truth (8-10)

The Lord is not bound by time like we are

One day is like a thousand years

A thousand years are like one day

Contrast the patience of God with the impatience of man

The Lord is not slow about his promise

Jesus is patient with you

Jesus does not wish for any to perish

Jesus wishes for all to come to repentance

The day of the Lord will come like a thief

The heavens will pass away with a roar

The elements will be destoryed with intense heat

The earth and its works will be burned up; disclosed; exposed

Ezekiel 18:32 - “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,” declares the Lord GOD. “Therefore, repent and live.”

Tom Schreiner: “We should understand 2 Peter 3:9 in the same way as Ezekiel 18:32. It refers to God’s desire that everyone without exception be saved. It follows, then, that Peter spoke of the desired rather than the decreed will of God. God has not ordained that all will be saved since many will perish forever…Neither dimension of the biblical text should be denied. God really and truly desires that every person repent and turn to Him. We should not retreat to God’s decreed will to nullify and negate what the text says. Nor should we use this verse to cancel out God’s ordained will…God’s patience and His love are not illusions, but neither do they remove his sovereignty.”