WAITING IN GOD'S GRACE 2 PETER 3:14-16

Introduction

An elderly woman was standing in the checkout line ready to pay for her merchandise: a quart of milk and a loaf of bread. She opened her purse. No money was there; neither was her checkbook. As she was about to ask the clerk to put her things back, suddenly a gentle voice said, “It looks like that is your lunch.” A gentleman was standing right behind her, smiling. “Don’t worry,” he continued. “Today I want to treat you. Take your things with you.” Then the man paid for her merchandise and his own. A week passed by, and the woman came back to the store. The checker knew about the incident and recognized her. She approached the woman and whispered, “Ma’am, maybe you’d be interested to know. That gentlemen’s check—it bounced!”

A grace that bounces ends up being no grace at all. True grace is free to the recipient. However, true grace must be paid for. Christ has done what is necessary for people to receive grace, yet it did not come without cost to Him.

Before heading into the text at hand, let us back up to be reminded where we have traveled in this short but very powerful book of 2 Peter. Peter is writing to believers who have begun to endure persecution. The Roman government was harassing and even killing people because they were followers of Christ.

As we near the end of this epistle, we notice these final verses are different in tone than the rest of the book. Peter is talking to the first believers and to us about the amazing grace of Jesus. What is grace? The grace of Jesus is His unmerited favor to us. This grace has its ultimate manifestation at the cross. While we were still bound in our sins Christ went to the cross as the great Sacrificial Lamb. He laid down His perfect humanity in death for us. He bore our sin, our punishment, our guilt, our immorality, our adultery, our fornication, our alcoholism, our drug use, and every other despicable thing that can ever be imagined. The perfect one, who knew no sin, took all our sin and paid our price so that we the guilty could be set free. [John 3:16]

Knowing that he would probably not live much longer, and even if he did, he wanted to make sure I heard what he had to say. He chose his words carefully and spoke with great purpose and holiness of heart. There were things he wanted me to hear because there were some things he wanted me to do. Because of my great love and admiration of my father, I determined to fulfill what he said to do.

That is exactly what Peter is doing here. It was A.D. 66 as Peter penned the words we are about to consider. In this series I have entitled, The Truth about Truth, we have observed how Peter exposes the deceptions of the false teachers. His purpose is to encourage and strengthen those who are facing both external persecution and increasing internal strife because of false doctrine being peddled by phony teachers. [read text]

Today we will observe three encouragements of how we can wait in the grace of Jesus Christ until He returns.

I. Grace Allows Us to Wait in Purity & Peace (3:14).

Peter acknowledges that things for the believers in Asia Minor are tough at present. However, better days are coming (13). There is coming a day when all the things that we struggle with at this moment will be in the past and no longer a problem in our present (14). Why do we need a new earth? It is because mankind and his sin has messed this one up. They will not be able to do that to the new one. The phrase “since you are waiting for these” if a reference to the new heavens and the new earth. It presupposes that we as God’s people are looking to the future with anticipation and hope.

Biblical Principle

Our lives should be filled with expectancy and hope as we look toward an assured future with Christ.

Because of that truth we are called to be diligent. It means “to be zealous or eager for.” What are we to be zealous for? We are to be zealous and eager for living lives that have neither spots nor blemishes.”

The phrase “without spot or blemish” should be taken together and not separated. In the Old Testament it spoke of the quality of the lamb to be sacrificed. In the New Testament they describe the character of Jesus Christ who is the perfect Lamb of God (1 Peter 1:19). These terms are also to be the characterization of those who follow Christ. This is not to suggest that believers live perfect lives because we do not. However, such a designation means that drives our decisions of behavior as well as belief is our eagerness to be like Christ.

We could state it this way. We are called to be a moral disinfectant where moral standards are low, constantly changing or nonexistent. This is what living in the grace of God will do for you. It allows you to walk with a holy God as you daily surrender to Him. The result is living a pure and blameless life. Such a life will be filled with peace. Peace is reward of a life well-lived in Christ.

John Henry Newman wrote these words concerning peace. He said,

“‘These things write we unto you, that your joy may be full.’ What is fulness of joy but peace? Joy is tumultuous only when it is not full; but peace is the privilege of those who are ‘filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.’ ‘Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Thee.’”

Biblical Principle

The more peace we have from God the less pollution we will tolerate in our walk with God. It is only when we have experienced the peace of God that we can have peace with God. Only then can we be spotless and blameless. The more of God’s Word that gets inside you the less room there is for the world. The more of Jesus that you allow in, the less room there is for you.

Action Point

Computer technicians have a term they use in their line of work. It is called GIGO: Garbage In, Garbage Out. It is the same with spiritual lives. If we fill our minds with the garbage of this world, garbage is what will come out in our lives. To lose the battle in our minds is to lose the battle in our bodies. Take your thoughts captive before they take you captive (2 Cor. 10:5).

While we wait for the return of Christ make sure to wait in purity and peace.

II. Grace Allows Us to Wait in Perseverance (3:15).

We are called upon to “count the patience of our Lord as salvation.” The word count in this verse, just as the word diligent in the previous verse, is in the form of a command. The term count means “to regard or carefully consider.” What is it that we are to think so carefully upon? It is that “the patience of our Lord” is salvation. We are to speak the fact that the patience of our Lord is salvation. This is a reason why Christ has not returned yet. Here we have a picture of the grace of Jesus Christ. The reason we have been allowed to be saved is because of God’s compassion for us. Yet, God’s grace also extends to those not yet saved. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise as some count slackness. He is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. In His patience, Christ is giving others the opportunity to repent and believe the gospel.

Be grateful that God is patient with you. Be thankful that God has not given you what you deserve. God the Father took what we do deserve and placed it upon the Lord Jesus Christ. He placed upon Jesus that which we deserve. It is grace and it is amazing. For it we should be grateful.

At this point Peter brings Paul into the situation. Believe it or not there are those who do not believe Peter is the author of 2 Peter. Here is one of the reasons why. In Galatians chapter two, for being a hypocrite. Peter was operating in one way with the Jews and another way with the Gentiles (Gal. 2:11-14). Some scholars believe that Peter did not write 2 Peter because they believe that Peter would not ever get over that rebuke by Paul. However, this flies in the face of grace. Peter calls Paul “agapetos” or “beloved.” Peter and Paul were brothers in Christ and had mutual admiration for each other.

Then Peter speaks of that fact that Paul was writing the same thing in the books he wrote because of the wisdom given to him by Christ. Taken together we can see the rationale of verses 14-15: “Since you are waiting for God to destroy this present world in anticipation of a new world, there are two things you ought to do. First, be diligent to live godly lives so that you will receive your eternal reward. Second, consider the Lord’s apparent delay as God’s patience with those around you as an opportunity for salvation. Both of these truths are taught by our beloved brother Paul as He was given wisdom by the Holy Spirit.”

While we wait for the return of Christ make sure to wait in perseverance as God uses you to motivate the spiritually lost to repent.

III. Grace Allows Us to Wait in Passion (3:16).

Peter continues in reference to Paul, “as he does in all his letters.” There are thirteen in all and there is no way we can know which ones he might be referring to or how many at that time were available. Then Peter says, “when he speaks of them of these matters.” Although we cannot know for sure which books are being referenced, I personally believe that this could be a specific reference to First and Second Thessalonians. These two books speak most specifically of the rapture and the return of Christ which would fit the context in Peter. Next Peter says, “There are some thing in them that are hard to understand.” Amen!

Folks, the Bible means what it means because the Bible has always meant what it has always meant. God’s Word does not change because God does not change. There are details that God has chosen to be kept a mystery concerning His Word. This Book is not a “what it means to me” book. This Book is a “this is what it means” period book.

People use the excuse that some things are hard in the Bible as an excuse not to study the Bible. Others use the hard things as an opportunity to “twist” the Word of God into saying something that it does not say. They do this by one of two means. First, they add to the Word of God and become legalists or second, they take away from the Word of God and they become libertarians. The result is a manmade truncated version . In other words, they twisted the Word of God to their own liking. The word twist originally carried the idea of taking a person and torturing him.

The Romans had a took called the “rack.” They would lay the victim’s body on this rack. Their hands and feet would be tied and they would stretch his body. They would stretch until there could be heard the sound of a “pop.” They would be a tendon. As they continued, there would be another “pop” and this would be a joint. They would dislocate your arms and legs. You would be in such a tortuous and painful situation that you would say almost anything to get relief. This is the heritage of the word Peter uses in this verse.

The worst thing a person can do with the Bible is to twist it to say what they want it to say. To twist and pull at the Bible is to try to make the Bible say what you want it to say, not what it truly says. Yet, the Bible warns that those who do this, do so to their own destruction. Folks, this is the very Word of God and must be treated as such. You must ask the Holy Spirit for His illumination so that our eyes will be opened to what He desires to teach us. To do it any other way is to be lead to destruction or be the instrument of another’s destruction.

How many of you grew up playing with a Stretch Armstrong toy? The only thing Stretch Armstrong could do was stretch. Oh, but what a stretcher he was. You could stretch that guy from one end of the house of the other and he would never pop. He would stretch and stretch. That is what spiritual growth is like. You are stretched and stretched until you think you are going to pop. God wants you to grow. To fail to grow up in Christ is to head to destruction. Submit to the Word of God or be destroyed by your refusal to do so. Wait for Christ’s return in passion for God and for His Word.

Conclusion

As we wait for Christ’s return we are to do so in purity leading to peace, perseverance and passion. As I think of the days in which we live and the anticipation of what is to come, I find myself thinking of the song by Phil Wickham entitled, This Is Amazing Grace. “This is amazing grace. This is unfailing love. That You would take my place. That You would bear my cross. You laid down Your life that I would be set free. Oh, Jesus, I sing for all that You’ve done for me.”

May we live in His grace as we wait in grace for His return. May we pursue holiness as we continue in His grace and may we seek to grow in Godliness as we seek to live by the authority of God’s Word until He returns.