MAKE EVERY EFFORT

 

MAKE EVERY EFFORT

II Peter 3:14 And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to live a pure and blameless life. And be at peace with God. NLT

We live in a time of expectation. We expect the Lord to come soon. We expect Satan to be taken captive to harass us no more. We expect there to be a time in which we can actually live the Word of God without failing. We expect that all believers will soon be able to live humbly and honorably with each other in love and peace. We know these things are going to happen, and we wait in anticipation of it. Until that day comes, we must do the best that we can.

We must make every effort to live pure and blameless lives. Every effort means every effort. We must do our best to stay pure and blameless before God. We know what we are to do; now it is up to us to do it. We must put forth the effort to be pure and blameless. We must do the things that will enable us to stay pure and not do the things that make us impure. We must not neglect disciplining our souls so that when we are tempted we will have the desire to say no to it.

God will not keep us pure and blameless without our doing our part. Godliness is not a given; we must purposely strive to obtain it. We must take seriously our need to be saturated by God’s Word and to be in our prayer closets. We must take seriously our need to desire to please God and not ourselves or others. If you are not putting in the effort, you will never live a pure and blameless life before God. We need to be as concerned about our souls as we are everything else that is a part of our living.

The reward of our effort is peace with God. Those who are pure in heart and blameless in living are not guilt laden. They do not have shame because they sin against God. They are able to rest in the security of God’s love and grace. They are indeed blessd.

HOLY LIVING

 

HOLY LIVING

II Peter 3:11 Since everything around us is going to melt away, what holy, godly lives you should be living! NLT

First, it is a fact that God is going to bring this world we live in to a close with fire. He doesn’t tell us just how that fire will come. It is interesting to me that there is enough fire power in the nuclear weapons now being stored around the world to literally destroy the earth as we know it. All it would take would be for the wrong person to hit a button and the destruction would begin.

In light of the certain and unpredictable coming fire from God to destroy the earth, we ought to take life seriously and live in readiness for it. God commands us to live godly, holy lives. If we are saved by the blood of Christ, we are expected to move forward by God’s grace into holiness of heart and living. There is no way that we can justify not becoming a holy people.

Holy people react strongly against sin that wants to invade their lives. They do all they can to protect their souls from sin’s temptations. They keep their souls strong by faithfully and consistently exercising spiritual disciplines. Holy people respond to others out of godly love and strive to always live at peace with others. Holy people value the things that make them stronger in faith.

If we are not living as a holy people before God and He comes for us, we will answer to God for it. God is holy and will not tolerate unholy living by those who claim to be His own. Holiness is His measuring stick. Are you ready for the Lord’s coming? No one knows when the Lord is coming back, all we know is the certainty of it and the importance of our being ready for it. If you are holy, as He is holy, you will be ready.

THE DAY OF THE LORD

 

THE DAY OF THE LORD

II Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and everything in them will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything in it will be exposed to judgment. NLT

The day of the Lord is set in heaven. No one knows when that day will come except God. When that day comes, it will catch everyone by surprise, like a thief in the night. Why doesn't the Lord want us to know when it will be? He knows the heart of man. He knows that if we knew, we would wait until the very last minute to get right with Him. The world would be void of the good that could be done if His people were living instead of waiting. Our sinful nature is such that we will not concern ourselves with living in and for Him until we absolutely have to. He also knows that life is so fragile, and if man were to wait, many who could be saved will be lost for eternity because death came upon them before that day and they weren't ready to die. In His great love for us, God in mercy hides the day the Lord is coming from us.

When the Lord does come, there will be no mistaking it. The Lord is going to change everything we know to be real. All creation will be affected by it. There will be a sound that will reverberate throughout all of creation followed by a purging fire. All the earth will be exposed, and judgment will come. It will be a time that will cause all men to tremble with fear, except for those who are ready for it. For those who are saved, it will be the greatest moment in all of history. It will be a day of celebration beyond words. It will be the day in which we will see the Lord!

Judgment Day is coming, whether we are ready for it or not. We may be here physically for it, or we may be in the grave waiting for it. Either way, it's coming. If we are not in Christ on the day of its arrival, it will be too late. The Lord gives us ample time and opportunity to be saved and if we pass them up, there will be no mercy shown.

Are you ready for Judgment Day? If you die before it comes, it will be your judgment day. Now is the day of salvation. He who waits for another day, may never see another day to get ready. Live each moment of each day as if it were your judgment day. It very well could be.

TIME TO REPENT

 

TIME TO REPENT

II Peter 3:8-9 But you must not forget, dear friends, that a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent. NLT

God is not confined by time or space. We measure our existence by time, but God is eternal and time is meaningless when we think about Him. It is impossible for us to comprehend timeless existence now, but someday we will. We must always remember that the Lord is always true to His Word and everything He says will come to pass. We simply have to not waver in our confidence in what He says. We believe it because He said it and that is the end of the story.

The Lord has not come back for His Church yet, but He will. He is busy working in the world to redeem all who will be saved. God has a deep passion for the soul of man and He is not willing to let anyone go to hell without their having an opportunity to be saved. He knows there will be many, many souls who will reject Him and not be saved, but there are also many who will still come to Him. He will come again when He knows that His redeeming work on earth is done.

Since the Lord is still waiting to come back for us, it ought to inspire us to be actively telling all who we can that there is still time to repent. We don’t know who is ready to be saved. We are obligated to reach out to as many people as we can while we can that some might be saved. It is not for us to determine who can or cannot be saved, or even who is saved. Our responsibility is to take Christ and His Word into the world. We are to be messengers for Him and leave the rest up to Him.

Each day that the Lord tarries draws us closer to His return. Let us be faithful to Him and faithful in our witness for Him that all who would be saved will be saved and not perish.

ONE DAY, THOUSAND YEARS

 

ONE DAY, THOUSAND YEARS

II Peter 3:8-9 But you must not forget, dear friends, that a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent. NLT

What God says He will do, He will do. It may not be according to our timetable, but He will do it. God is not bound by our timetable, with Him there is no timeline. A day with the Lord is as a thousand years to us. The point is that we can't put God in a time box. He accomplishes His plan and fulfills His promises at the right time, no matter how long it may take.

We try to pinpoint the Lord down. Many have given diligent study to the coming of the Lord, but no one will ever be able to figure it out. The Lord is coming again, that much is absolutely certain. When He comes is unknown to us and will always remain that way until He actually comes.

Peter tells us why the Lord has not already come, He is giving man every opportunity He can to be saved. He loves us and doesn't want any of us to go to hell. He has a tremendous amount of patience and love and will not come before the time He has set in heaven.

From all appearances it would seem like He has to come now. The world is bad and doing nothing but getting worse. Nature seems to be all out of whack. Wickedness is everywhere. The Church is losing her identity as light in the world; we are falling asleep. Yet, there are those who are to be saved.

I believe that if the Church were to catch the vision for the lost and reach out to them like we should be doing, we can hasten the day of His return. We have a mandate to be witnesses for Christ in anticipation of His return. Our message is like that of Jonah to the Ninevites , "Repent! For the Day of Judgment is at hand."

CONSUMED BY FIRE

 

CONSUMED BY FIRE

II Peter 3:7 And God has also commanded that the heavens and the earth will be consumed by fire on the day of judgment, when ungodly people will perish. NLT

God has commanded it; He will destroy the heavens and earth by fire. When He judges mankind, He will purify all that is by fire. The only ones who will survive God's judgment will be the godly in heart.

This should cause us to pause and think for a moment. Today man has the ability to destroy the world with fire. There are enough countries in the world who have nuclear weapons that can literally destroy life as we know it. Just to know that man could do it should cause us to realize that the coming of the Lord has to be very near. God promises us that He will do it, not man.

Knowing this should cause us to consider our readiness for Christ's coming. We have been lulled to sleep by our modern-day comforts, but it's time for us to wake up before it's too late. Far too many are not looking for the Lord's return and thus are careless about how they live their lives. Few pursue godliness. There seems to be a contentment with the minimal involvement in the life of faith. God does not hold a prominent place in the heart of most.

Don't mess around with your standing before God. Take your faith seriously or you may very well be left behind when Jesus comes. He commands holiness in our hearts. He commands our submission to Him and obedience. How about it? If Jesus comes today, would you be ready?

ENTANGLED BY SIN

 

ENTANGLED BY SIN

II Peter 2:20-21 And when people escape from the wicked ways of the world by learning about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up with sin and become its slave again, they are worse off than before. It would be better if they had never known the right way to live than to know it and then reject the holy commandments that were given to them. NLT

I can't help but be taken aback when I read passages of Scripture like this. No matter how one may interpret it, Peter gives us a very stern warning about what it is like for those who turn their backs on Jesus. I believe it's a warning that we must take seriously.

When people escape from the wicked ways of the world, they can only do it through Christ. No one is able to separate himself from the world without Christ's help. We must learn all that we need to know about Jesus and embrace Him as our Savior. I believe Peter is referring to more than just a head knowledge of Christ here. Just knowing about Christ does not set us free from the world.

When people let sin entangle them again, they are worse off than they were before. This is true because in essence they are spitting in the face of Christ and rejecting what He has done for them. They are telling the Lord that what He did for them doesn't matter, that they don't regard Him as worth keeping.

When people do not embrace Jesus as Lord as well as their Savior, they are easily led into sin. It takes more than forgiveness to keep a person in Christ; it takes commitment as well. We cannot give the Lord part of us; we must give Him all of us. We are easily lured into sin because of its powerful draw. We are weak and vulnerable and without Jesus being our Lord, we are very likely to fall into sin.

Don't put yourself in a position where it is even possible for you to be led back into sin. Give Jesus all of your heart, mind and soul. Let Him be Lord over everything you are. Determine in your heart that you will not let sin defeat you. Instead, defeat Satan by letting Jesus be Lord of you.

When we are living in Christ and working out our salvation, there is no way that we will forsake Him and once again become entangled by sin. When we experience the realness of Christ and His holiness, we will only want Him. It’s when we neglect Him and take our eyes off of Him that we run into trouble.