The Kind of People God Wants Us to Be

I have the privilege of batting clean up on our series in 2 Peter. Peter addresses concerns that are as relevant today as they were in the 1^st century.

• - People still object to the Bible as the written, authoritative Word of God, (2) people still question whether God will judge every person, (3) and people still doubt that Jesus is returning a second time.

• They have reasons why each of these truths, in their opinion, are difficult to believe.

• I discussed two of these objections with people in the last two weeks. These issues are alive and well in Lafayette Indiana.

Peter not only tells us about the world’s objections and the reasons that they are wrong --- he tells us how to live.

This is one of the wonderful aspects of the Bible. It provides solutions and not just problems.

• - We have no reason to back down in presenting our worldview because we have the best one – the one that explains all the others. We can live boldly and confidently.

• - In fact, we can defend our faith, avoid falling into the trap of false teaching, and experience Christian growth.

While some verses in 2 Peter are difficult, they are good and helpful for dealing with life.

• - If it is true that our biblical beliefs are accurate, that we can live confidently, and that we should experience spiritual growth then, would you agree with me that there is often a gap between what we say we believe and how consistently we apply those beliefs in our daily lives?

I know that is true for me. It is so much easier to say that one of my main jobs as a husband is to love my wife like Christ loves the church, than it is to do those words – consistently and with joy.

• I agree that parents are expected to raise their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. It is not easy to put it into practice 24/7/365 for 18 straight years.

• I believe that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. We are celebrating communion this morning. What more evidence could we possibly need than what this table reminds us of?

• Yet, it is easier to say those words than to live them out practically.

Dealing with this gap between our beliefs and our behavior is the subject of the message this morning. I invite you to turn in your Bibles to 2 Peter 3:10. That is on page _______ of the back section of the Bible under the chair in front of you.

• If you do not own a Bible, then write your name in that one and take it home.

The title of this message is The Kind of People God Wants us to be. It is part of the series entitled Growing in Grace. We are going to see this morning 3 responses to man’s eternal destiny. Please follow along as I read beginning in v. 10. This is the Word of the Lord.

What kind of people does God want us to be? First,

I. Be Sober because of God’s Final Judgment

2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

Last week, Pastor Viars ended the message focusing on God’s patience. People say that the world keeps moving along. There is no judgment from the Lord. There is no return of Jesus. You Christians made up the whole thing.

• We learned last week that the Lord is not being slow in fulfilling his promise. Rather the Lord is patient desiring that all come to repentance.

• As long as a person draws breathe and the Lord does not return in judgment, an opportunity remains.

• God’s patience is a blessing.

At the same time, notice v. 17. Be on your guard. We used the word sober in the outline. It emphasizes wisdom, clear headedness, the ability to see right from wrong in the moment. Don’t be fooled and fall away.

• Don’t start thinking, “You know what … they are right!” God hasn’t kept his promises because there is no God and there are no promises to keep.

• The whole thing is a crafty story made up to deceive weak minded people.

• You would be following unprincipled people at that point.

Peter says, “don’t go there.” Be wise and clear headed. Do not be fooled. God’s patience explains his delay. When the Lord comes, opportunities are gone … In fact, he reminds us of what the Bible teaches regarding the final judgement that comes with second coming of Jesus. He starts with …

A. Its timing

The text says “like a thief.” Thieves do not announce their crimes in advance. They break into stores when they are closed and they enter homes when no one is there.

• This is Indiana. We have more guns than people. A thief announcing his presence on October 22 at 11:00 pm would either find the police waiting or every member of the family fully armed ready to pump his guts full of lead.

• Like a thief explains its suddenness.

The Lord is patient not wanting anyone to perish. He is so patient, in fact, that people wonder if it will ever happen.

• But the Lord’s final judgment comes when people do not anticipate it. There will be no more opportunity.

Friends, this is so important. Sometimes believers get so wound up about a current event. Russia developed a helicopter, or there is another conflict, or the world is getting more wicked.

• Pray for those things and do something if you so desire. I cannot imagine living in the Gaza strip right now. The events are terrible. There are opportunities to help.

• But, church family, we are only one day closer to the return of Jesus than we were yesterday. Whether some other conflict begins today or not, should the Lord tarry his coming, we will only be one day closer to Jesus’ final judgment.

Why is this true? Because he told us that his coming will occur like a thief – at a time when no one is expecting it.

The Lord’s final judgment will catch people by surprise. There will not be time to prepare or change. We also see …

B. Its intensity

The phrases are intense. The actual events more so. The text says,

• - The heavens pass away with a roar

• - The elements will be destroyed

• - The earth will be burned up

This is destruction at an incomprehensible level.

• - There is a lot of talk about the global warming these days. Some have suggested that a 2 degree Celsius rise in the overall temperature of the earth (regardless of whether humans have anything to do with it) will have devastating consequences to the way our world works.

• I don’t want to minimize the impact that climate change could have on our population, landscape, oceans, or where and how we grow food.

However, I want us to see that what the Bible describes here is not climate change. We are not talking about where we grow corn or rice or beans. We are not talking about whether 50 miles of coastland will be under water.

• - The Bible is talking about lighting up the place. He is talking about looking in a telescope and the universe looks different. He is talking about changing the periodic table (any many about went into convulsions for me bringing up Chemistry).

• - What we know about our world would need to be rewritten.

This destruction is as intense as it gets.

C. Its result

The result is the loss of opportunity for repentance. I finished reading Revelation during my personal Bible time last week and I was once again reminded of the speed and devastation of the final judgment.

• - The earth, sky, and universe as we know it passes away.

• - It is replaced by a new heaven and a new earth.

If you are here this morning and you do not know that you know that you know that you are on your way to heaven through a saving relationship with Jesus, then there is no more important preparation for Christ’s return that you can make.

• - Since final judgment comes as a thief, you never know how long you have. Jesus may return or our life might be cut short. We never know how long we have to live.

The gospel message is very simple. The Bible teaches that you are a sinner. You have violated God’s commands. It does not mean that you are as bad as you could be or worse than another person. It means you have violated God’s standards.

• - He sent his son to live a sinless life, to die on the cross to satisfy the Father’s wrath against sin, to be buried, and to rise on the third day.

• - You must confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord (master, in control) and that believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead.

I invite you to trust Christ as your personal savior right here and now. If you have questions, then please contact one of your pastors and we will arrange a time to meet with you.

Friends, God’s final judgment is certain. The day of the Lord is coming and it comes when people are unsuspecting and unprepared. Thus, be clear headed about this reality and do not let anyone deceive you or convince you otherwise.

A second proper response to man’s eternal destiny is to …

II. Be Looking for Ways to Make Your Eschatology Practical

Since the Bible is God’s Word, we care what it says. We want to know the details about the end times (eschatology is the study of last events) not only because we are curious but because we want to know our Bibles.

But knowledge alone is not sufficient. As I mentioned in the introduction, our behavior is not always as good as our belief system. The Lord wants our belief in the end times to make a difference in how we live. Notice vv. 11-12

2 Peter 3:11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness

Peter wrote to believers. He said, I hear the objections too. I know that unbelievers are saying it will take too long. I get it. Don’t be fooled into their line of thinking. God’s final judgment is coming.

• - When it comes it will be devastating. He adds very practical ways to live out your faith knowing what you know about the coming judgment. Here are 5 of them ….

A. Holy conduct

This is a way of life. It is the outward behavior. It is possible to conclude based on the severity of the judgment in v. 10 that you should live it up. Eat, drink, be merry for tomorrow we die. But the Lord wants his followers to think differently.

He wants our lives to match what we believe.

• - Husbands … if you believe that God wants you to love your wife as Christ loves the church, then your actions ought to communicate it. Our wives ought to look back over their years with us and say that we have been good to them, that they were blessed by choosing to do life with us, and that they thank the Lord that he gave us to them.

• To the degree that is not true, pick one area … one way that you could love your wife as Christ loves the church and do something about it.

• To the degree that you are not living out your role for Jesus … pick one area and start changing it today.

• To the degree that you are not living out your role for Jesus … it is time to change. It is time to develop some humility, some submission, and an appreciation for your parents.

Some of you might be thinking … I sure hope my wife heard that … I sure hope my husband heard that … I sure hope my children heard it.

• - Please, church family, let it be to you. Let the Word and Spirit convict your heart and spirit. Let it be something between you and God right now.

The Lord wants us to see the final judgment as a motivator to how we live productively for Jesus. Our conduct must be holy.

In a few minutes we are going to take communion together. We read 1 Corinthians 11. It says, “as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” This ordinance communicates something. By taking it we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

• - It looks back to the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord.

• - It looks forward to his return.

B. Godliness

This is similar to holy conduct, but if there is a difference, it includes the heart attitude toward God. At various times we are tempted to be angry at God or at least distant from him.

• - The Lord encourages us to want to be close to the Lord.

• - You want to pray without ceasing because you want to converse with your savior about all the day’s activities.

We must be characterized by our outward lifestyle that properly reflects our beliefs and attitudes toward the Lord. Third …

C. Balanced outlook

2 Peter 3:12-13 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

These words, if we think about them practically, are both bitter and sweet. On the one hand, this is great news. There is a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

• - No more battles of the flesh, the world, or from Satan and his host.

• - No more sin in me or around me.

The end of Revelation describes the glories still to come when Jesus comes to make all things right. No more tears, death, or dying. No more sun for Christ provides all the light we need. No more difficult work for the curse of sin has been destroyed.

We look forward to Christ’s return and all the blessings that we then enjoy.

But there is another side. I suspect we all have family, co-workers, neighbors, or friends who do not know Christ. At the final judgment Christ separates his followers from those who do not believe. There is no rescue.

Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10 For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, 8 dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, 10 when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed—for our testimony to you was believed.

That is a hard reality. Those who reject the gospel pay the penalty of eternal destruction. We know that judgement is coming and we are trying to do all we can to warn the unbelieving.

We hope that you are trying to evangelize those around you personally. However, we also have church outreaches. We have some structures to help you and your family members proclaim the gospel.

• - Trunk or Treat coming up on Saturday is an opportunity to speak to our neighbors. We know that some will come only for the candy.

• But others might have spiritual needs. They will know at least one church that cares about them.

• Our prayer is that the Lord would use the gift to awaken their hearts to the coming judgement.

• The goal is to present the gospel as many times as we can in 6 nights.

Thank you for serving. I know we have lots of people registered to help in various ways. Thank you for making service a part of your character.

• - If you have not signed up to serve, then this is one way that you are able to take a balanced approach to the Lord’s final judgment. Express thanks for your rescue and concern for those who are not.

• - I am going to enjoy heaven and I am putting into my schedule opportunities to take as many people with me as the Lord allows.

D. Diligent preparation

2 Peter 3:14 Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless

This verse describes the condition in which we should be found at the return of Jesus. Be diligent to be found by him in peace.

• - This likely refers to a settled and confident state of mind in the promises and relationship with Jesus.

Some people’s souls are so noisy. They are wound tight about this, that, or the other. Believers in Jesus have peace with God. Through prayer they can experience the peace of God that surpasses understanding.

Our annual theme has been Hope for Everyday Life. We started in 1 Peter which Peter wrote in the midst of extreme suffering and hardship. Too much attention on the wrong things can certainly create a lot of anxiety. However, we do not have to buy into that.

• - We can diligently focus on the peace we have with God through Christ. We can focus on the resources for sin and suffering he graciously provides.

The categories of spotless and blameless are not radically different from the phrase “holy conduct and godliness” that we saw in v. 11.

• - Others might not agree with us or our beliefs, but they see our diligent effort to live faithful to Christ and blameless before people.

E. Humble appreciation

2 Peter 3:15-16 and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16 as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.

We all can be thankful that the Lord’s patience resulted in our salvation. For example, what if the Lord ended his patience before we understood our need for Christ?

• - We are recipients of God’s patience.

• - We are also recipients of his Word. We know that not everything is easy to understand, but it is here for our growth.

You see, believing that Jesus returns and brings judgment has practical implications for what kind of people we should be.

The certainty of final judgment encourages us to be clear headed, able to understand what is happening and not easily fooled. It also provides us with motivation to live faithful to Jesus. Finally, it encourages us to …

III. Be Committed to a Consistent Pattern of Growing

2 Peter 3:18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

A. A focus on growing

This book ends essentially where it began. Peter tells us that we have everything we need to live a godly life.

• - He was honest that there will be people who discredit the Bible, say there is no coming judgment, and believe that Jesus is not returning.

• - We do not have to be intimidated. We can stand firm in our faith. We know that Jesus’ coming will be like a thief and when that comes, devastation occurs.

• - That is why we focus on growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

We go back to the beginning when Peter wrote:

2 Peter 1:5-8 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Church family, we all need to learn more about our savior’s grace don’t we? As we learn about his grace, we need to share that grace with others.

• - The more that I believe God is gracious to me despite my sin, faults, and failures … the more I need to share that grace with others.

We also need the knowledge of Christ. That is true in the sense of knowing about Christ, knowing the mind of Christ (especially as we make the momentary decisions of life), and experiencing (knowing practically) the blessings of Christ.

B. A longing for His glory

If we put this passage into practice than our behavior will be excellent. If married, we will be a joyful spouse. If we have a job, we will be a diligent worker. If we are child, then we will be easy to parent. If we are a friend, we will be easy to be with.

But none of that is designed to make us look good – for us to get glory.

• - Jesus’ return to give blessing to those he saved and judgment to those who disobeyed the gospel and our corresponding behavior is designed to give him glory today and forever more.

If people compliment us, then we can acknowledge their kindness while also giving glory with our words and in our heart to Jesus – the one to whom it all belongs.