Why? There are several reasons.
(1) Often when preachers select one verse they will take it out of context.
That is, in order to properly interpret scriptures we need to know:
• What comes before the verse
• What comes after the verse
• Why it was written
• To whom it was written
These are only a few things we have to consider, so we may interpret scripture correctly.
(2) Another reason most Bible preachers do not like to select just one verse for a text is because they like to load people’s spiritual “plates” down with as much spiritual food as they can get on them.
However, many verses are so rich that it takes a whole sermon to deal with them.
Such is the case in 2 Peter 2:9, our text for this message.
We read, “THE LORD KNOWETH HOW to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.”
Look at the words, “The Lord KNOWETH HOW...”
WHY DOES IT SEEM STRANGE TO READ THIS? Because we know that the Lord KNOWS HOW TO DO ANYTHING and EVERYTHING!
Illus: The song writer had it right years ago when he said, “My God can do anything, anything, anything...”
We know God can do ANYTHING!
All you have to do is look at this beautiful planet we live on each day, and any intelligent person can only conclude THAT GOD CAN DO ANYTHING!
Scientists have debated for centuries about how this all came into existence.
Listen, if they really wanted to know, all they would have to do is turn their Bibles to Genesis 1:1, which tells us, “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth”
Illus: God knew how to take the water and mountains, weigh them in His hands, and place them exactly where they should be so that the earth is precisely balanced as it rotates on its axis.
Look at Isaiah 40:12. We read, “Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?”
Notice that the word “hand” is singular, it did not take two hands, only one of his hands, to measure the oceans, lakes, ponds, and all the creeks. He did the same thing with the mountains.
The Word of God is absolutely correct, GOD KNOWETH HOW TO DO ANYTHING.
However, we need to ask ourselves something. If this is such an obvious fact, why does the Word of God have to proclaim this?
It is because we all say that we agree that the LORD KNOWS HOW TO DO EVERYTHING, BUT EVERYONE DOES NOT REALLY BELIEVE IT!
There are people in this congregation, yes, even Christians, who do not really believe that God knows how to do everything and anything!
WHY DO I SAY THAT?
As soon as they face the turmoil of life, you would never know that they were children of God. Why? They worry, and take things into their own hands the same way lost people do.
THE BIBLE TELLS US THE LORD KNOWS HOW!
This verse teaches us TWO things He knows how to do.
I. GOD KNOWS HOW TO DELIVER HIS SAINTS
Look at 2 Peter 2:9 again. We read, “The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations...”
This verse of scripture is written in the Bible especially for Christians, so that we might know that He knows - “...how to DELIVER THE GODLY OUT OF TEMPTATIONS...”
Look at several things in this clause.
Look at the word “deliver.”
It is just another word among thousands of words. But, when we find ourselves entrapped by something, it becomes the most important word in our vocabulary. For example,
• When the soldier falls into the hands of an enemy and becomes a prisoner of war, the word “DELIVER” becomes the most important word in his vocabulary.
• When a man suffers financial loss and begins to lose everything he has ever worked for, the word “DELIVERANCE” becomes the most important word in his vocabulary.
• When we lose our health and go from doctor to doctor, we are trying to find a doctor that can DELIVER us from the disease that has attacked our bodies.
Also, to Christians, the word “DELIVERANCE” is one of the most important words in our vocabulary. Why?
(1) We are TRAPPED IN A FLESHLY BODY that desires to sin.
We need a God who can DELIVER us from the temptation of sin. But another reason we need someone to deliver us is:
(2) We are TRAPPED IN A WORLD that is full of all kinds of “temptations”, and we need deliverance.
He not only delivers us from sin at salvation; He also is able to deliver us from the many sins that try to entice us each day.
Some have the mistaken idea that the Lord delivers us from sin at salvation, and then leaves us on our own to overcome sin after salvation.
But there is not one ounce of truth to that. The same devil we had to contend with before salvation, when we could not save ourselves, is the same devil we have to contend with after salvation.
GOD IS THE DELIVERER!
Peter said He, “...knoweth how to DELIVER THE GODLY OUT OF TEMPTATIONS...”
But notice something else -- “THE LORD DELIVERS THE GODLY!”
Perhaps someone is asking, “WHY DOESN’T HE DELIVER THE UNGODLY?”
He could, but they simply do not want to be delivered. They love sin. They can not get enough of it.
• They want to spend as much time as they can in sin
• They want to spend as much money as they can on sin
THEY LOVE SIN - the last thing they want is to be DELIVERED FROM SIN!
As Christians, we are trapped in a fleshly body with fleshly desires to sin.
As Christians we are trapped in a world that is constantly trying to lure us into sin. What is the answer?
The Bible tells us that the Lord, “...knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations...”
Look how God delivered Lot out of the evil environment he got himself into.
We read in 2 Peter 2:7-8, “And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)”
The word translated “vexed,” is from the Greek, “kateponeo,” which means: “To afflict, to oppress with evil, to torment.”
Illus: We all have heard of P.O.W. CAMPS where soldiers were taken when captured, and were tormented and often tortured to try to get them to conform to what the captors wanted.
Many people give the wrong impression about Lot. True, he was wrong to choose to go to that wicked place, but once he got there, he came to realize what a mess he had made of his life. HE WAS MISERABLE!
HOW DO WE KNOW THAT?
• Because the Bible tells us that Lot was, “vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked...”
• Also the evil people around him “...vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)”
He had gotten himself and his family in a mess.
HOW COULD HE GET HIMSELF OUT?
Look at “delivered,” again, in verse 7. We read, “And (God) delivered just Lot...”
God can do ANYTHING, but He especially wants you and I to know that He can deliver us from the temptations of this world.
• Some have to work WITH WICKED PEOPLE on their JOBS. God can deliver you from that wickedness!
• Some have to go to school with WICKED STUDENTS, and every day you are surrounded by sin, but God wants you young people to know He can deliver the godly.
• Some live in homes with WICKED FAMILY MEMBERS. There is hate, fights, cursing, lying, and cheating, but God wants you to know He can deliver you from the temptation to be like them.
The Word of God says that THE LORD, “...KNOWETH HOW TO DELIVER THE GODLY OUT OF TEMPTATIONS...”
Also, this small verse of scripture tells us something else that is important to know.
II. GOD KNOWS HOW TO DELIVER THE SINNERS
Yes, He knows how to deliver them from sin, but some will not come to Him, so we see in verse 9, “The Lord knoweth how...to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.”
Look at the word “reserve.”
Illus: Most lost people rebel against what this Bible teaches. They think they are getting away with it. That is, many have done some pretty rotten things, and years have gone by and ...
• The police have not arrested them
• Their dearest friend does not know what they have done
• Their family has no idea what they have done
It looks like they have COMMITTED the perfect sin and gotten away with it.
BUT I CAN ASSURE YOU ON THE BASIS OF GOD’S WORD, THEY HAVE NOT “GOTTEN AWAY” WITH ANYTHING!
God has seen and heard all the wickedness they have done, and we can be assured there is coming a “PAYDAY SOMEDAY!”
Look at the word, “reserve.”
WHAT DOES IT MEAN HERE?
Illus: Often we go to funerals, or weddings, and we see signs on certain pews that say, “Reserved.” WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? That simply means that a section of seats is set aside for a designated group of people.
But notice the way the word is used in this text. God has SET ASIDE a time to deal with these evil people.
The Word of God says He has RESERVED “...the unjust unto the day of judgment….”
Again, I remind you that this verse of scripture talks about the Lord WHO KNOWS HOW TO DO THIS.
Look at that word, “delivered,” in verse 4.
• In verses that precede this verse we see that God did not spare even angels that sinned, “...but cast them down to hell, and DELIVERED them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.”
Listen, Peter says the mighty angels in heaven that chose to sin could not get away with it. WHY SHOULD LOST MEN THINK THEY CAN SIN, AND GET AWAY WITH IT?
In other words, how foolish man is to think that he can sin and get away with it, when even the angels could not! The Bible says they were DELIVERED INTO “CHAINS OF DARKNESS to be reserved unto judgment.”
• Also, look at 2 Peter 2:5. We read, “And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly.”
• Noah’s generation could not get away with it! Why do we think our generation will get away with it?
Look at 2 Peter 2:6. We read, “And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly.”
• Sodom and Gomorrha could not get away with their sin, why do we think we can?
The lost world is riding high today. They think they are on a roll and no one can stop them. But listen, the Lord is going to kick the bottom out of this thing one day, and they are going to find they have a RESERVATION with God. They will have to stand before God and give account of every wicked thing they have ever SAID or DONE!
BUT NOTICE ONE MORE WORD.
What have the UNGODLY been RESERVED for?
They have an appointment with God and they are going to be JUDGED and PUNISHED, if they do not repent of their sins and turn to the Lord Jesus for salvation!
Conclusion:
Illus: We all remember the O.J. Simpson trial. He was accused of brutally killing two people. He had become wealthy playing professional football, and was loved by millions as a sports announcer. But once he was accused of these two murders, this whole nation sat almost daily in front of television sets, and by radios, as piece after piece of evidence stacked up against him. Approximately 90% of the American people saw the evidence, and their feelings began to change toward Mr. Simpson. With his millions, he hired what the journalists called the “Dream team.” When the day came for his verdict to be announced, they announced that he was not guilty!
WAS HE REALLY GUILTY?
One thing is sure. Most of us know that if that same damaging evidence were found against any man in this congregation, he would be on death row today, waiting to be executed.
If he was not guilty, a terrible injustice has been dealt to him. If he is guilty, he has not gotten away with anything. He has to live with that sin eating away at him each day. Not only has he lost his millions, HE STILL HAS TO STAND BEFORE GOD!
God has “reserved,” a time for the wicked to be JUDGED and PUNISHED.
THAT SAME THING APPLIES TO EVERY LOST MAN IN THIS CONGREGATION! God loves you. He gave his Son to die in your place. And He will save you today if you will come to Him for salvation.
I. GOD KNOWS HOW TO DELIVER THE SAINTS
II. GOD KNOWS HOW TO DELIVER THE SINNERS
