___October 22, 2001
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November 18 Lesson
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No one knows when, but Christ is coming
___2 Peter 3:3-15
___3First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation." 5But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
___8But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
___10But 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.
___11Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12as 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. 13But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.
___14So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. 15Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, ...
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___By Wesley Shotwell
___We Americans tend to be a rather impatient people sometimes. I suppose that tendency stretches to other cultures as well, for human beings seem to have within them urgency for action. But American culture epitomizes impatience. We want faster computers, quicker commutes and instant answers to the most complex problems.
___We are like the guy who prayed a prayer for patience: "Dear God, please grant me patience. And I want it right now." Impatience strikes us not only in this world, but sometimes we get impatient for things to happen in God's world.
___When Jesus came to earth, he came announcing the coming of the kingdom of God. When he left he told us he was coming again. Now it is 2,000 years later and the kingdom of God has not come to perfect culmination, and the Lord is still yet to return. Some folks may be a bit impatient.
___What is taking so long?
___So, what is taking so long? If Jesus announced the arrival of the kingdom, where is it? We keep hearing about the Second Coming of Christ and talk about the signs of the times. So, what's taking so long?
___The old Scofield Reference Bible told us years ago the Second Coming was just around the bend. And Tim LaHaye has certainly made a splash with the "Left Behind" novels, and to my theological chagrin I fear many Christians have forgotten that those are fictional novels, not the Bible.
___In 1988, scientist Edgar Whisenaut wrote a widely distributed little booklet titled "88 Reasons Why the Rapture Could be in 1988," in which he predicted in no uncertain terms that Jesus would return in September of 1988. When that didn't work out, he revised his prediction to September 1989. He finally quit writing those books. I suppose he became impatient.
___What is taking so long?
___God is in control
___Of course, God is not beholden to us. God can do whatever God wants and wait as long as God wants to wait, our impatience not withstanding. It doesn't matter how many mathematical formulas we have devised out of the Book of Revelation, or how much we have prayed for Jesus to return. God does not act according to our whims and desires. We don't control God.
___Besides that, God doesn't tell time the way we do. God's time and our time are told on two different kinds of clocks. In verse 8, Peter says, "With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day." In one day God can do a thousand years' worth of work, or it may take a thousand years to do the work of one day. God created time, but God also transcends time.
___And from time to time, he enters time. There was a time before time when God spoke and the world came into being. There was a time during time when God smote evil off the face of the earth with a flood. There was a time in the fullness of time when God sent forth his Son to be the Savior of the world. And there will be a time beyond time when God will pierce the heavens and intervene on earth to judge the living and the dead.
___But God didn't ask our permission at creation. He didn't check with us on a convenient time for a flood. And whether we like it or not, our impatience is not a factor when it comes to the time of the Lord's return. God acts when God is good and ready to act. It's just that his time and our time are two different kinds of times.
___Be thankful in waiting
___At least God has waited long enough for us to be saved. So, I guess we can be thankful, for at least God waited long enough for us to come to know Christ. And the longer God waits, the more time there is for opportunities for other people to know Jesus. So, God's waiting is not a waste of time.
___Waiting is not necessarily doing nothing. And don't underestimate the importance of God waiting. He is waiting for the right time.
___In times like these, I know it is tempting for us to wonder where God is in the midst of this mess. I want to know why it wasn't a good idea for God to step into time and stop time on Tuesday Sept. 11 and avert the catastrophe that befell our nation. It would have been a good time for the Second Coming.
___But no, God still waits. He is patient because of his love. The text says, "He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." He is patient because he wants everyone to be saved.
___One of these days
___But do you know what? Just because God is patient, it doesn't mean he will wait around forever. Someday the Lord will act. The steeple of a German church has a clock on it. Around the face of the clock it says, "One of these hours the Lord will come." And so he will.
___Our popular theology these days keeps us looking for signs of the times, but the Bible seems to indicate there won't be much warning about the Second Coming. It says, "The day of the Lord will come like a thief."
___A thief doesn't give any warning about when he is coming into your house. If you had warning, you would have the police there to capture him. No, a thief comes suddenly, surprisingly, surreptitiously. The Bible says that God will act like a thief, not in the sense that he will steal, but in the sense that he will act when we least expect it. God is patient because he wants everyone to be saved. But his patience does not mean waiting forever.
___There's a new world coming
___God's action through the return of Christ will bring about a new world. In God's new world evil will have been burned to ashes, sin incinerated to dust.
___Peter describes it first in negative terms: 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. But he also reminds us that with the destruction of the old, God can have room to build something new.
___In keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness, he says in verse 13. In the past few weeks, we have witnessed unspeakable evil and experienced inexpressible sorrow. But one of these days, evil and sin and sorrow will be crushed. Evil will not be crushed by the kingdoms of this world, nor will it be eradicated by the armies of nations, for as long as we are in this world evil will raise its ugly head. But one of these days, the Lord will return and everything will be set right. God will replace this old world of sin and sorrow with a new world.
___In the meantime
___So what do we do in the meantime? In the meantime, the Bible tells us to live pure lives, to live in peace and to announce the hope of salvation in Jesus Christ. If there was ever a moment in the history of the world for God's people to stand up and announce the hope of salvation, now is the time.
___We must be careful in our emotional distress not to respond to evil with evil, but to respond by living pure lives and pure love.
___The story is told of Robert Louis Stevenson as a boy at the age of 12. He was in his room staring out the window into the night watching a man light the street lamps in the street. His governess came in to check on him and asked him what he was doing. He answered, "I am watching a man cut holes in the darkness."
___If ever there were a time when we need to cut holes in darkness it is now. In these darkest of days, the task of the church is to be a light shining in the darkness. The church must stand and speak prophetically so our society will not become set on a vengeance that leads us to become that which we deplore. If we become like that which we deplore, we have simply piled darkness upon darkness and multiplied evil upon evil.
___No, instead it is a unique moment in history when the whole world is looking for hope and help that comes from above. We must lead the way. We can show people that real hope is built on the solid rock of a risen and returning Christ. The church has an opportunity like never before to show the world that light destroys darkness and that perfect love casts out fear.
___The Lord has not yet returned, but his delay provides a unique moment to be about the mission of God's kingdom, announcing a new world. If there was ever a time for us to recommit ourselves to the mission and ministry of the church, it is now.
___James Krabill, a missionary to the Ivory Coast reports, "I am sometimes asked by people my age and younger how in this world I can still be committed to something as messy as missions. I believe it is time we ask how in a place as messy as this world we can be committed to anything but missions."
___So we wait for the return of the Lord. But while we wait, we will light the way to a new world by living pure lives, being at peace with people and announcing the hope of salvation in Jesus Christ.
For thought and discussion
___ Is there any remedy for impatience, or is it simply the way people are built? Should there be a difference between Christians and non-believers when it comes to this area of our lives?
___ In your own words, restate what the Bible says is the reason for the delay of the Second Coming.
___ Name some things that you or your church are doing to make the most of the time God has given us in fulfilling his mission. What can be done to become even more effective in redeeming this important time?
___ Is there any real sense of urgency that the Lord's return is imminent? If there is not a sense of urgency, why is that so? If there were a greater feeling that the time was near, how would the lives of Christians be different? How would churches change their ministries? What would you do if you thought today was the day Christ would return to earth?
___ What does the text mean when it says, "With the Lord a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day"?
___ What is the purpose of the destruction of the heavens and earth and elements? Can anything good come from destruction?
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