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2 Peter 3:10-13
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.
11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives
12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.
13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.
The Bible says that when the Lord comes back, everything will be destroyed. Let us imagine for a minute, You've got your new car, you've polished it, waxed it. When you get a new car, you really care about that car. You park all alone so it won't get scratched. Imagine you have your new clothes on. You're careful how you hold your pen. Maybe you've just bought a new house, and you're investing in landscaping.
The Bible says that everything will be burned with fire. A house can burn down in 10 minutes. You look down, and everything on earth is gone. Your college diploma you worked for 9 years for. Your whole town, everybody you know will be destroyed with fire. If that's where it's all going, what kind of lives should we live?
Ever go to the beach and make a sand castle? Moats and everything. The first high tide comes in and just wipes it out. You think, "I won't work so hard next time". It's just not that much fun when you know it's all going to be destroyed in a few minutes. Maybe you've been saving up for retirement. It's all gone. Everything. Know what's the only thing that will be left? You, and God
What kind of people should we be, now that we know it's all going to be destroyed?
1. Grow as You Go
2 Peter 1:5-11
5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;
7 and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.
8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But if anyone does not have them, he is nearsighted and blind, and has forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.
10 Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall,
11 and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In the kingdom of God, we need to lift those up who have been around for a long time. Only one of the four soils in the parable of the sower remains. That's old school. This passage tells us we need to continue to grow, in increasing measure, to make it. How much are we growing spiritually? There are some disciples that are always fired-up. We don't have to ask--it's obvious. We know who the fired-up disciples are? They're the ones who are changing.
a. Goodness : Are we a good-hearted person? Are we inclined to do right? Sometimes people play the "devil's advocate." What is that? It's too easy for some of us. How about just being a good person, having a good heart about things
b. Knowledge : This is an interesting one. Are we growing in our Bible knowledge? Are we serious about growing in your knowledge?
c. Self-control : We're all afraid about diet. That's self-control. It's demoralizing to keep even a simple conviction like that. Food rules us. It's so humiliating to be controlled by food. We just feel bad. Don't need somebody to tell us.
Getting up in the morning. They're moaning now. One scripture in the bathroom, praying at lunch--how many of us do that? How do we feel about ourself? We feel terrible, self-convicted. Let us find that brother or sister who gets up early, though, and they're fired up.
Television. "waste of time" shows. Sitting in front of it long time, staying up late to watch, but we do need 15 extra minutes with the Lord.
One of the reasons we don't change is that we discourage others from challenging us. Do we avoid challenges, or cherish them? Let's grow in self-control.
d. Perseverance : Nobody wants to grow in that. "Lord, let me suffer longer". When we go through hard times, man that makes us strong! After the Lord picks us up, we can look at others and say, "Don't worry about a thing"
e. Brotherly kindness : Are we the kind of person that everybody wants to be around? Some of us are just not that encouraging to be around. Church is a great environment for fellowship. Let us practice in the fellowship. Let us decide to grow. If we keep on growing, we'll make it. That's true of all of these points This point is called "Grow as You Go." Could be called "Grow Or Go".
2 Peter 3:17-18
17 Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.
18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.
We can fall from our position. The way we avoid it is to grow as we go.
2. When You're Down, Don't Doubt the Deliverer
2 Peter 2:4-10
4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment;
5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others;
6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men
8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)--
9 if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.
10 This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings;
This passage says that God even strikes the angels down when they get out of line. Don't doubt the deliverer. Lot was troubled in his soul, just like we are today. He saw it all. God saved him and burned up the world around him. Why do we doubt the deliverer? We can't speed God's coming if we doubt the deliverer. The deliverer is keep on saving souls. We can hear many stories of people getting saved around us. But how are we? Do we doubt the deliverer?
It's all going to go up in a blaze of fire. Let's be sure to grow, or one day we'll go. Are we speeding the coming of the Lord?
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