Without Repentance People Perish
March 4, 2019
Commentary
That which men regard as a long time is only as one day to God (v. 8). It has been said that with God there is no time-past, present or future – but one eternal now. Man may think that God’s long silence means that He is not going to act while He views time as though it were a moment. Even though he may delay we can be sure that he does not forget. Peter reminds us that the Lord is not slack concerning his promise (v.9). He does not delay His coming because he is weak but because he wants to give man plenty of opportunity to repent and to turn from their wickedness. It is God’s desire for all men to repent of their sin and turn to Him (I Tim 2:4). This means that those who teach limited atonement (that Christ died for only the elect) may be sincere but they are sincerely wrong.
“The day of the Lord” (v. 10) no doubt refers to the coming of the Lord with His saints to establish his Kingdom on earth (Matt. 24:27-31). At the end of that time the heavens shall pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. Some speculate that this burning is caused by internal heat which could very well begin with a nuclear explosion which has the potential of a chain reaction of nuclear stockpiles around the world. Everything will be destroyed (v. 11). So you should serve and honor God by the way you live. You should look forward to the day when God judges everyone, and you should anticipate it coming soon (v. 12). On that day the heavens will be destroyed by fire, and everything else will melt in the heat. But God has promised us a new heaven and a new earth, where justice will rule (v. 13). We should really be looking forward to that!
Application
“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” Luke 13:5. I am so glad that I know this truth, and because I have obeyed it I will spend all eternity with my Lord.
2 Peter 3:8– 13 (NET)
8 Now, dear friends, do not let this one thing escape your notice, that a single day is like a thousand years with the Lord and a thousand years are like a single day. 9 The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some regard slowness, but is being patient toward you, because he does not wish for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief; when it comes, the heavens will disappear with a horrific noise, and the celestial bodies will melt away in a blaze, and the earth and every deed done on it will be laid bare. 11 Since all these things are to melt away in this manner, what sort of people must you be, conducting your lives in holiness and godliness, 12 while waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God? Because of this day, the heavens will be burned up and dissolve, and the celestial bodies will melt away in a blaze! 13 But, according to his promise, we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness truly resides.