1st and 2nd Peter
Tested by Fire: Lesson 7
3:1-18 Be Ready for the Day of the Lord
Peter wants us to “recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets.” Where do we find those words today?
Old Testament
He also wants us to recall “the command given by our Lord and Savior though your apostles.” What is this command and where do we find it today?
The new command is the Gospel found in the New Testament.
Peter tells us that people will scoff at the idea of Christ coming back. “He hasn’t come yet, so he will not ever come,” was their reasoning. In addition to the second coming, what teachings of the Bible and promises of God do people scoff at today?
Creation, the Flood, predictive prophecy, miracles, virgin birth, resurrection, forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus.
When will the scoffers come?
The scoffers come in the “last days.” This is the New Testament period, from Christ’s first coming until his second and final coming.
Agree or Disagree
Everyone knows that God created the heavens and the earth by his word but some choose not to believe it.
Psalm 19:1-3
1 For the director of music. A psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. 3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.
2 Peter 3:5
5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water.
Romans 1:18-20
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
Disagree! God has made it clear that the world was created. Some people may not know how it happened. Some may never have heard how God created the heavens and the earth. Yet, no one has an excuse for believing that God did not do it.
What catastrophic event do you think Professor Sponholz, of Martin Luther College, says probably contributed to the dinosaurs going extinct?
The Flood at Noah’s time.
Why would some (probably most) scientists reject any hypothesis based on the Bible even if it explains the evidence well? For example—We find millions of fossils buried in layers of rock that were laid down by water, but most will reject the idea of a world wide flood on the Earth. Yet, some scientists will talk of a world wide flood on Mars.
They are blinded by unbelief. If it is in the Bible, they will not believe it and will look for another explanation.
Read 3:8-13
God created the world. God flooded the world. God will bring fire on the last day. But it is taking a long time, at least to us.
What is Peter’s point in saying that “with the Lord a day is like a thousand year, and a thousand years are like a day.”?
God is timeless. He is eternal. We cannot say he is too slow or too fast at keeping his promises since he keeps them in his time, not ours.
Verse 9 is a wonderful verse to remember. The Lord “is patient with you.” Who is included in the “you”? Who is excluded?
Everyone is included. No one is excluded. God really wants everyone to believe. Jesus has already paid for the sins of everyone in the world.
How does verse 9 encourage you to spread the Gospel?
Whoever I tell about Jesus is someone God wants to come to repentance and believe.
Describe a thief.
Unexpected, sneaky, cruel
How is the day of the Lord coming like a thief?
No one will know exactly when it will happen.
What will happen on the day of the Lord…
1. To the earth?
Destroyed by fire.
2. To the heavens?
Disappear
3. To people?
Matthew 25:31-34, 41, 46
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world…. 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels…. 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
People will be judged. Unbelievers will be sent to hell. Believers will go to heaven. (Matthew 25)
When false prophets have predicted the date for the end of the world, what do their followers often do? What should we do since we know the Lord is coming?
Followers of false prophets often stock up on supplies and retreat from the world. They go into hiding.
Christians should prepare themselves with God’s Word, and prepare others by telling them the good news of Jesus.
In verse 11, Peter is not motivating Christians to live godly lives out of fear of being destroyed. What is Peter’s point in verse 11?
Earthly things are temporary. Do not get attached to them. Focus on God’s Word and his ways.
In his first letter, Peter gave us hope that we have a better home waiting for us. He returns to that theme of hope (even though he does not use the word) in verse 13.
“A new heaven and a new earth.”
Isaiah 65:17-19
17 “Behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. 18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. 19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more.
Revelation 21:1-4
1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Why does Peter describe the new heaven and new earth as the “home of righteousness”?
There will be nothing unrighteous in heaven—no sin.
Read 3:14-18
Why will you be found spotless and blameless on the last day?
My sins were all washed away by the blood of Jesus Christ, the Passover Lamb.
The Scriptures for the Jews was the Old Testament. What has the Lord also included as Scripture in verses 15-16?
The letters of Paul are specifically included. The letters of Peter and the Gospels and the whole New Testament are also included as Scripture.
Agree or Disagree
The Bible is clear. (Base your answer on verse 16 and the three Psalm passages below.)
Psalm 119:18
18 Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.
Psalm 119:105
105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
Psalm 119:130
130 The unfolding of your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.
“[Scripture] presents, in language that can be understood by all, whatever men must know to be saved. This is often called objective clarity” (Christian Dogmatics, I:320).
Yet, we do grow in our knowledge of Scripture and it becomes more clear to us. (2 Peter 3:18)
“Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18
This is Peter’s conclusion to his second letter. Through the study of 1st and 2nd Peter, we have grown in faith. I pray that we all continue to grow so that when we are tested by fire, we will not fall.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Peter 1:3-5
