Sermon: Precious & Magnificent Moments – Where is the Promise of His Appearing
Speaker: Pastor Val Watkins
Scripture Text: II Peter 3:1-10
Duration: 20:11
Size: 9.23 MB
Precious & Magnificent Moments
Where is the Promise of His Appearing
II Peter 3:1-10
In chapter 3 Peter returns in part to the theme of chapter 1, namely, that God has given his people precious and very great promises, so that if we hold them in front of us and trust them, we will have power to resist temptation and remain in the way of righteousness.
I. The Denial of the Second Coming
If the promise of Christ’s second coming and the new world of joy and righteousness is going to fill us with hope and power for godliness, we have to really believe it’s going to happen.
He says in verses 1 and 2 that he wants the believers to have a sincere and lively memory of what the prophets predicted and what Jesus commanded.
Then in verses 3 and 4 he introduces the false teachers again. They themselves are part of prophetic fulfillment, and their presence shows that the last days had arrived.
II. God Creates and Upholds by His Word
The first thing the false teachers ignore is that the world was made by God and that its order hangs on his word.
In the past he did it with water. In the future it will be with fire at the coming of Jesus Christ.
III. A Day Is as a Thousand Years
Here Peter is answering the criticism that Christ has delayed so long that we can’t really believe he is coming back.
When Jesus comes back and stands on this earth to make it his own, he will say, “It just seems like yesterday that I was here.”
IV. The Lord’s Merciful Forbearance
Therefore, we should count the delay of Christ’s coming as an act of mercy and patience until all the sheep are gathered into the fold and not one is lost.
The delay is meant to lead to repentance, not to unbelief.
Next Week
What Sort of Persons Ought You to Be?
II Peter 3:10-14