The Day Of The Lord, Part 1 Series

The Day of the Lord, Part 1

2 Peter Sermon Series, Part 4

2 Peter 3:1-10

Introduction

- Purpose: Peter gives guidance and reassurance to the growing church

-- As a disciple maker his desire is to see others grow in knowledge of Christ

-- Promise he stands on: the Gospel we/they are preaching is Jesus!

-- Re: The Gospel is our measuring stick; and it is what saves (not us)

- In our message last week, we talked about the dangers of false teachers

-- We discussed how useless they are to drawing people to God

-- We also looked at the need to avoid them; to be faithful to God’s word

- This morning we will start to examine the final chapter of 2 Peter

-- Two-part message - conclude next week – focus is on the day of the Lord

-- Or in other words, the return of Christ to rescue His bride

-- Lots to cover today – ask for you to pray for me to deliver it well!

- Read 2 Peter 3:1-10 / Pray for guidance, revelation, and faithfulness

- This topic has fascinated many – even in the 1st century

-- But know this: fascination is not what God is after from you and I

-- What God wants from us is understanding -- which leads to submitting to Him

-- And that submission leads into being prepared for a great day!

-- What day is that?

Point 1 – The day of Jesus’ return!

- FACT: Jesus’ return is going to be the most pivotal moment in history

-- Second only to His birth, His return will be the closing out of the current age

- However, as Peter encourages us, we must have our minds stimulated in truth

-- Discipleship Moment: “Laziness, will not do for the Christian …”

-- APP: We are called to be watchful, alert, focused on this promise (v1-2)

- To do this, we must first remember the words of the prophets, and

-- Second, must we remember the commandments of Jesus

-- Obvious: What do these have in common? They both point to the Bible!

- APP: Don’t miss what Peter does here, in discipleship it’s about God

-- His word is what guides us, and in it, we find all the answers to life’s mysteries

-- Peter says to stimulate your mind with wholesome thinking, remember God

-- GR: eilikrine dianoian; clear, uncontaminated, and intentional mind

- APP: Our thoughts should be regularly sifted (we have control over our mind)

-- How? We are to sift out the trash of the world with the truth of the Word

-- Why? Because scripture is clear; it is authoritative; it is our foundation

- Peter tells us to remember … but to remember you have to study!

-- There is a necessity implied here: IF we don’t study, we cannot KNOW!

-- And in our knowledge, we are to discern those scoffers will come (v3)

- Setup: When Jesus first came, it was a key (appointed) moment in time

• Gal 4:4, “But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law.”

• 1 Peter 1:20, “God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake.”

• Heb 1:2, “And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe.”

- REALITY: Right now - we are living in the final stages of history

-- We live in the age of grace, a time of God’s favor and patience with us

-- Patience in what? To give us opportunity to know Jesus and be rescued / saved

- This time (today) is commonly referred to as:

• The last days: 2 Tim 3:1, “You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times.”

• John called it the last hour: 1 John 2:18, “Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come.”

- IMP: Know this, his patience does not extend forever (as we understand time)

-- GR: eschate hora; the last hour; the midnight hour, the time of the world’s end

-- Peter says that time is running out; we must heed the warning here

- We’ve discussed this before: When is this momentous time to occur?

-- The answer is that no man knows; only God knows the exact moment

-- But speaking of time, v8 tells us quite simply how time is measured