Looking For the Coming of Jesus
Book of 2 Peter
3:1-18
There are some
doctrines of the Bible that are disputed by Bible scholars, but the
return of Jesus Christ is not one of them.
The return of Jesus
Christ is mentioned more than 300 times in the Scriptures.
There are even whole
chapters devoted to the Second Coming of our Lord.
Jesus Christ Himself
that He would return, and He will return the exact same way He left
this world!
Act 1:6 When they
therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt
thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
Act 1:7 And he said
unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which
the Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8 But ye
shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and
ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea,
and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Act 1:9 And when he
had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a
cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10 And while
they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men
stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11 Which also
said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this
same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in
like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
You see this is what
the Second Coming is all about, restoring again the kingdom of
Israel.
The Church will
already be in Heaven before this takes place!
So how does Peter
describe these things?
*****2Pe 3:1 This
second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir
up your pure minds by way of remembrance:
2Pe 3:2 That ye may
be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy
prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and
Saviour:
2Pe 3:3 Knowing
this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking
after their own lusts,
2Pe 3:4 And saying,
Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell
asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the
creation.
The return of Jesus
Christ will be an actual physical event that takes place after the
Holy Spirit has taken the Church to Heaven.
Remember the Holy
Ghost could not come until Jesus returned to Heaven!
Joh_16:7
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go
away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but
if I depart, I will send him unto you.
This thing works in
reverse, the Lord will not return until the Comforter takes the
Church home!
2Th_2:7 For the
mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will
let, until he be taken out of the way.
Before the Lord
touches down upon this earth, He will meet His church in the clouds!
1Th 4:13 But I
would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which
are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
1Th 4:14 For if we
believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep
in Jesus will God bring with him.
1Th 4:15 For this
we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and
remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are
asleep.
1Th 4:16 For the
Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice
of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we
which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in
the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with
the Lord.
1Th 4:18 Wherefore
comfort one another with these words.
We of the Church can
say that this will be the greatest day we have to look forward to, of
course besides the day we invited the Lord into our hearts!
Peter says we need
to remember these things!
We are called to be
rememberers!
The Second Coming of
Christ to this earth, is all about the Jews!
Isa 62:6 I have set
watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their
peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not
silence,
Isa 62:7 And give
him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise
in the earth.
There are a lot of
great things going on in Israel, but Jerusalem is not yet become the
praise of this earth!
We must stir up our
minds to the truth of God.
As I have gotten
older it seems that my memory suffers in day to day things and this
bothers me more than I ever realized.
We must stir up our
minds to remember those things that are just too important to forget!
Our minds are so
complicated that doctors have not yet been able to understand the
workings of them.
The power of memory
maybe the most amazing part of our mental equipment!
Our memory uses the
power of recollection to recall things as far back as when we were
toddlers and these things are precious.
Most everyone of us
can recall that day we got saved and if not the exact day then the
month. Something we will never forget.
Well there is
something else that we need to implant in our memories.
The Lord Jesus is
coming back first to get His Church and then to make a Second
Appearance upon this earth!
We must be mindful
of all the prophecies of the Old Testament because they are the voice
of God!
When we see those
words "thus saith the Lord" then our minds need to perk up
and the doors of memory need to remain open because to read the
prophets is to see the words of truth!
A man once asked,
"what is truth"? Truth is the things that conform to
reality. Things that have already been and things that will be.
The absolute truths
are in the Words of God!
Joh 17:17 Sanctify
them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
We cannot grow in
the grace of God, if we do not grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ
and then keep these things in active memory!
Why are these things
so important?
Because we are in
the last days!
Scoffers are all
those who mock the truth of God!
These are people who
speak the loudest. They are so full of malice and pride, they have
reached a point where they will not be silenced, and they will not
even listen to anything described as the truth!
Rom 1:28 And even
as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them
over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not
convenient;
Rom 1:29 Being
filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness,
covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit,
malignity; whisperers,
Rom 1:30
Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of
evil things, disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 Without
understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection,
implacable, unmerciful:
Rom 1:32 Who
knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are
worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that
do them.
God knows those who
will never turn from their wicked ways, but we do not!
We must understand
the Christ Jesus demands our total dedication, the total commitment
of our mind, and our life to His teachings.
We are to have no
room in our minds to listen to scoffers or anyone else who denies the
truth of our being!
Scoffers walk like
they want to and do what they want to and will attempt to deny you
your way of life.
They want the right
to things they have not earned.
They want to right
to live in any way they choose.
They want the right
to dictate all these things to the world.
They say, "where
is the promise of His coming"?
It has been about
1975 years since Jesus first walked upon this earth but without being
date setters, it has not been 2000 years.
We will not know the
day nor the time, but we should know that we are in the last days!
What did Jesus
teach?
Mat 16:2 He
answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be
fair weather: for the sky is red.
Mat 16:3 And in the
morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and
lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can
ye not discern the signs of the times?
This is what the
Holy Spirit is teaching us. It does not matter how much time goes by,
we must keep our minds wrapped around the truth of the Bible.
We are certainly in
the last days because the scoffers are making their voice heard all
around this world!
They are willingly
ignorant of prophesies that have already been fulfilled, and the
promises of God that have been completed!
*****2Pe 3:5 For
this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the
heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in
the water:
2Pe 3:6 Whereby the
world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
For instance all
this talk about climate change. We as Christians do not doubt that
the climate is changing. We do disagree that man has a great
influence on those changes.
Every day we see
where cities and islands will soon be underwater when there are lands
and cities and pyramids and roads and many great things that are
under water now, that happened when there were no great power plants
and no automobiles everywhere.
It is God who is in
control of our climate and one of the best proofs is the fact that
God flooded this whole earth in the days of Noah.
The proof exists yet
all those clamoring about climate change ignore these truths because
it does not fit into their agenda.
We should ask
ourselves, just what do they want the world to do? Just what power
over the climate can we use to stop what they say is in our future?
I have not seen much
honest things that we can do as human beings to stop anything that is
in the hands of God!
For sure we need to
do a better job in taking care of our environment and in my opinion,
it should start with cleaning up the trash that is everywhere!
God destroyed all
humans and land animals in the time of Noah for the same things that
are going on right now in our world!
Mat 24:37 But as
the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:38 For as in
the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into
the ark,
Mat 24:39 And knew
not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the
coming of the Son of man be.
God destroyed Sodom
and Gomorrah for the exact same things that are going on in America
today!
Luk 17:28 Likewise
also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they
bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
Luk 17:29 But the
same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from
heaven, and destroyed them all.
Luk 17:30 Even thus
shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
These are all signs
of the Second Coming of the Lord, and we need to wrap our minds
around the truth and reject these things going on in our world!
God is still in
control of our world and maybe all these changes we see are just God
preparing to send His Son one more time back to this planet!
*****2Pe 3:7 But
the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept
in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and
perdition of ungodly men.
We need to wrap our
minds around the fact that it is the Lord who sits at the right hand
of God, the hand of power, and he has reserved the things necessary
to burn this planet into non-existence.
Yes this earth will
be restored as in the days of Adam because God made certain promises
to the Jews and He will keep those promises but in the end there will
be a totally new Earth and a totally New Heaven because those old
places were places of sin and sin will not be allowed in God's new
Creations.
Rev 21:5 And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he
said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
Now we can accept
the truth of God or we can reject the Word of God, but we cannot in
any way change the plan of God.
God will rid this
earth of ungodly men!
Ungodly meaning,
wicked men who reject the truth of God!
Thank God for His
patience because He really wants everyone to accept His truths and be
saved from His coming wrath.
*****2Pe 3:8 But,
beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the
Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
The truth is God
does not depend on some clock to tell Him it is time to do something.
In fact God's plan
is in place and nothing and no one can alter the time frame the Lord
chooses to abide by!
We must consider
that the Lord has allowed a time frame that everyone who will receive
Him will get that opportunity.
The Lord knows those
who will never receive Him.
What did God say to
Abraham before the destruction of Sodom?
Gen 18:23 And
Abraham drew near, and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous
with the wicked?
Gen 18:24
Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also
destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are
therein?
Gen 18:25 That be
far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the
wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far
from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?
Gen 18:26 And the
LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I
will spare all the place for their sakes.
Gen 18:27 And
Abraham answered and said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak
unto the Lord, which am but dust and ashes:
Gen 18:28
Peradventure there shall lack five of the fifty righteous: wilt thou
destroy all the city for lack of five? And he said, If I find there
forty and five, I will not destroy it.
Gen 18:29 And he
spake unto him yet again, and said, Peradventure there shall be forty
found there. And he said, I will not do it for forty's sake.
Gen 18:30 And he
said unto him, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak:
Peradventure there shall thirty be found there. And he said, I will
not do it, if I find thirty there.
Gen 18:31 And he
said, Behold now, I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord:
Peradventure there shall be twenty found there. And he said, I will
not destroy it for twenty's sake.
Gen 18:32 And he
said, Oh let not the Lord be angry, and I will speak yet but this
once: Peradventure ten shall be found there. And he said, I will not
destroy it for ten's sake.
Gen 18:33 And the
LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and
Abraham returned unto his place.
We can be sure when
the Lord returns to this earth, the church will have been taken to
Heaven and all those left behind have rejected the truth of God!
This day may not be
too far into the future.
Praise the Lord for
His patience!
We need to ignore
the mockers and realize the truth of what God says!
*****2Pe 3:9 The
Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count
slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any
should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2Pe 3:10 But the
day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the
heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein
shall be burned up.
Jesus made a promise
that He will return in His person and He will keep that promise!
It does not matter
how much time has passed God will do what God said He will do!
Time means nothing
to God He dwells in eternity!
We must not be
discouraged because of the time that has passed.
God does not want
anyone to perish. God wants everyone to get the opportunity to meet
our Savior!
The truth is, God is
slow to give into the punishment He has also promised.
God's love will not
allow Him to feel good about judgment, but judgment is a necessary
thing or God would not be God.
He could not explain
His actions to those of the day of Noah when they come before Him at
the White Throne Judgment.
He could not explain
His actions to those of the day of Sodom when they face Him at the
White Throne Judgment.
Judgment must come
because this is also a promise that cannot be broken.
God does not want
any of His created beings cut off from Him, but this will be
something they have chosen.
When you choose
judgment rather than salvation, then it is judgment that you will
receive.
God has promised to
allow us to choose!
God wants us all to
walk away from sin and walk in righteousness!
So the Lord will
return.
The Lord will stop
in the clouds and call out His Church:
1Th 4:16 For the
Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice
of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we
which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in
the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with
the Lord.
1Th 4:18 Wherefore
comfort one another with these words.
1Co 15:51 Behold, I
shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be
changed,
1Co 15:52 In a
moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the
trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and
we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on
immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when
this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal
shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the
saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Co 15:55 O death,
where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
It is only after
this event will the Lord return to plant His feet on Gethsemane.
He has already
announced His return so He will return unannounced just as that thief
who comes to rob you comes without your knowledge!
The evil world that
remains after the Church is in Heaven, will continue to go about its
evil and immoral business until all of a sudden, they will realize
the what God said was true and destruction and mayhem will be going
on all around them!
1Th 5:2 For
yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night.
1Th 5:3 For when
they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon
them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
1Th 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should
overtake you as a thief.
Rev 3:3 Remember
therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and
repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a
thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
You see it is
because we know all these things, that we need to be busy reaching
out to our family and friends and the lost!
*****2Pe 3:11
Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of
persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
2Pe 3:12 Looking
for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the
heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt
with fervent heat?
It is a fact that
these words have more meaning today than they ever have. The world is
hunting an excuse to all the catastrophes that are going on but are
rejecting the true answer.
The lost world still
believes that the stability of our world can be solved with science
and technology yet there are no answers to what is going on now
called climate change, except to blame man for bad practices.
There have been bad
practices pushed by the lusts of wealth and that same lusts for
wealth is the driving force behind what is called climate change.
In the end the
guilty nations will be expected to pay for the damage they are
accused of. My question is to whom will they pay? Surely not the UN.
The truth is our
world is changing around us just like it always has, and we need to
take notice because the Lord could return in the next moment.
What will those who
are alive see then and who will they blame it on?
The heavens will be
on fire!
The heavens will be
dissolved!
All the elements
that we see every day will melt in the extreme heat!
Who would want to be
here to witness these things before their eternal death?
They will leave this
inferno to go to and even hotter place called Hell, to even leave
that place to go to an even hotter place called the Burning Lake of
Fire.
Rev 20:11 And I saw
a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the
earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for
them.
Rev 20:12 And I saw
the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were
opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and
the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the
books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13 And the
sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered
up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man
according to their works.
Rev 20:14 And death
and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15 And
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the
lake of fire.
Why do those who see
the beginnings of these things think they can stop what God has said
is going to happen.
The Lord is going to
return to this earth!
What does that "Born
Again child of God expect in his or her future?
*****2Pe 3:13
Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a
new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
Why will the Church
miss out on these things? Because God promised we would not see His
wrath!
1Th_5:9 For God
hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord
Jesus Christ,
1Th_1:10 And to
wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even
Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
It is only those who
reject the "Gospel of Jesus Christ" who will witness the
wrath of God!
This is also a
promise! Do not let those false teachers deceive you!
Eph_5:6 Let no man
deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the
wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.
There will be and
entirely New Heaven and an entirely New Earth and the most precious
city will be an entirely New Jerusalem!
Rev 21:1 And I saw
a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
Rev 21:2 And I John
saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Rev 21:3 And I
heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of
God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his
people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
These are the
reasons we are foolish not to believe the absolute truth of God!
*****2Pe 3:14
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent
that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
Who are the beloved
of God? All those who have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son
of God!
1Jn_2:22 Who is a
liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist,
that denieth the Father and the Son.
We must diligently
prepare for the coming of the Lord by being busy in the work the Lord
has given us to do and this work will not prosper until we live a
life of righteousness ourselves!
We are to be at
peace with the promises of God!
We are to be without
spot, which means we need to live cleans lives according to the Word
of God.
We are to be
blameless, which means we are to innocent of any wrongdoing,
according to the Word of God! Also obeying the laws of man that do
not conflict with the Word of God!
Eph 4:3
Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Eph 1:7 In whom we
have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according
to the riches of his grace;
Php 2:15 That ye
may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in
the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as
lights in the world;
Php 2:16 Holding
forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that
I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.
We may suffer in
this world because we have given our life to the Lord, but that
suffering has an ending when the promises of God reach perfection!
*****2Pe 3:15 And
account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our
beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath
written unto you;
2Pe 3:16 As also in
all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some
things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and
unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own
destruction.
You see those that
see the wrath of God and face Him at the White Throne of Judgment,
will have reach that point because of their own actions.
The Lord came to
save but it requires our faith in Him and the work He has done for
our salvation!
Peter the Apostle to
the Jews and Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles had the same exact
message!
Heb_10:23 Let us
hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is
faithful that promised;)
And our faith must
show in the things the Lord has ask us all to do!
Jas_2:26 For as the
body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
These are all things
that we should know if we have left the "milk" of the Word
and are feasting on the "meat" of the Word of God!
*****2Pe 3:17 Ye
therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest
ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your
own stedfastness.
2Pe 3:18 But grow
in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
Again who are the
beloved?
We see another
warning of the false teachers that are filling the pulpits of today
because we have no excuse not to know the truth of all these things
today!
What is another part
of our job until the Lord takes us home? We are to offer to all
others the same "GRACE" the Lord has given to us and then
we are all to grow in that grace!
We are to grow in
the knowledge of our Lord and Savior! We do this in personal Bible
Study with the Holy Spirit and then truthful Preaching and truthful
Sunday Schools and in any other way we can gain the knowledge of the
truth, remembering we are to ask God Himself when we need that little
bit more of understanding!
Amen!
Let's pray!
