How Then Shall We Live 2 Peter 3:11-18

Adapted from a David Owens sermon
http://www.sermoncentral.com/print_friendly.asp?ContributorID=&Ser
monID=156120

A minister visiting with an elderly woman in
the nursing home. The young minister said,
“At your age you should be thinking about
the hereafter!” The older woman said, “Oh, I
do all the time. No matter where I am – in
my room, down in the cafeteria, or down in
the recreation room – I ask myself „What
am I here after?‟ ”

C.S. Lewis said, “It is since Christians have
largely ceased to think of the other world
that they have become so ineffective in this
one.”
Popular author and preacher, Joseph
Stowell wrote, “When we begin to believe
the reality of the other side, we start
behaving differently on this side.”

Last week, we noticed that Peter focused
on the reality of the second coming of
Christ. All true believers hold firmly to the
fact that Jesus will come again. We might
disagree about what exactly will happen
when He returns, but we know that He is
coming and when He comes everything will
be changed forever.

Therefore, in light of Jesus‟ certain return,
we must ask and answer a very important
question:
“How Then Shall We Live?”
How should we be living in order to be
ready? What should we be doing in order to
be living a life that is pleasing to God?

Let‟s see how Peter answers this important
question. The admonition that best
summarizes Peter‟s answer is “make every
effort!”. Peter has employed this idea
before.
2 Peter 1:5, NET Peter admonished, For
this very reason, make every effort to add to
your faith excellence, to excellence,
knowledge;

Then in 2 Peter 1:10 NET he commanded,
Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every
effort to be sure of your calling and election.
For by doing this you will never stumble into
sin.
Again in 2 Peter 1:15 NET
Indeed, I will also make every effort that,
after my departure, you have a testimony of
these things. Let‟s look at this final section
of the letter and see what we must make
every effort to do in light of the coming of
Christ.

2 Peter 3:11 NET Since all these things are
to melt away in this manner, what sort of
people must we be, conducting our 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. 14
Therefore, dear friends, since you are
waiting for these things, strive to be found
at peace, without spot or blemish, when you
come into his presence.

Because we realize that the world will be
destroyed, and that even the elements will
be disintegrated, we fix our hope, not on
anything in this world, but only on the Lord.
And, as we discussed last week, because
we don‟t know when all this will take place,
we must be constantly ready for His return.
This expectant attitude ought to make a
difference in our personal, daily conduct.

Our conduct should be characterized by
holiness (Grk “in holy conduct” NETnotes) and
godliness. Holiness entails separation from
evil and dedication to God. Godliness
relates to piety and worship – it describes
the person whose life is devoted to pleasing
God. Commentator John McArthur
describes holiness and godliness this way:
“Holy conduct refers to action, godliness
refers to attitude.

Holy conduct refers to the way I live my life,
godliness refers to the spirit of reverence
within me by which I live my life…
Peter is saying what kind of person ought
you to be in heart and in behavior, in motive
and in action, in attitude and in duty.”
Be holy in action and godly in attitude.

The result or conclusion of our effort to be
holy and godly is addressed in verse 14
Therefore, dear friends, since you are
waiting for these things, strive to be found
at peace, without spot or blemish, when you
come into his presence. It is interesting that
Peter used these same words in reference
to Jesus in 1 Peter 1:19 NET but by
precious blood like that of an unblemished
and spotless lamb, namely Christ.

Let‟s contrast this with Peter‟s description of
false teachers. 2 Peter 2:13b,c NET…By
considering it a pleasure to carouse in
broad daylight, they are stains and
blemishes, indulging in their deceitful
pleasures when they feast together with
you. 14 Their eyes, full of adultery, never
stop sinning; they entice unstable people.
They have trained their hearts for greed,
these cursed children!
No peace or purity found in them.

We want to be like Jesus, and we want to
be at peace with Him & His people. This
peace results from our efforts to please the
Lord, and from the forgiveness we receive
through our relationship with Christ.
Ultimately, those who are “found at peace,
without spot or blemish,” have put out of
their lives the things He hates, and have put
into their lives the things God loves.

Other New Testament writers also teach
that an eager expectancy of the Lord‟s
return ought to motivate us to godly living.
Paul, in his 2nd letter to the saints in Corinth,
talked about the reality of the loss of our
earthly tent, and our appearance before the
judgment seat of Christ. Paul‟s conclusion is
that this should cause us to make it our goal
to please the Lord and to try to persuade
others.

2 Corinthians 5:1 NET For we know that if
our earthly house, the tent we live in, is
dismantled, we have a building from God, a
house not built by human hands, that is
eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this earthly
house we groan, because we desire to put
on our heavenly dwelling, 3 if indeed, after
we have put on our heavenly house, we will
not be found naked.

4 For we groan while we are in this tent,
since we are weighed down, because we
do not want to be unclothed, but clothed, so
that what is mortal may be swallowed up by
life. 5 Now the one who prepared us for this
very purpose is God, who gave us the Spirit
as a down payment.

6 Therefore we are always full of courage,
and we know that as long as we are alive
here on earth we are absent from the Lord
— 7 for we live by faith, not by sight. 8 Thus
we are full of courage and would prefer to
be away from the body and at home with
the Lord. 9 So then whether we are alive or
away, we make it our ambition to please
him.

10 For we must all appear before the
judgment seat of Christ, so that each one
may be paid back according to what he has
done while in the body, whether good or
evil. 11 Therefore, because we know the
fear of the Lord, we try to persuade people,
but we are well known to God, and I hope
we are well known to your consciences too.

In John‟s first letter, he made these
motivating points:
1 John 2:28 NET And now, little children,
remain in him, so that when he appears we
may have confidence and not shrink away
from him in shame when he comes back.

1 John 3:2 NET Dear friends, we are God's
children now, and what we will be has not
yet been revealed. We know that whenever
it is revealed we will be like him, because
we will see him just as he is. 3 And
everyone who has this hope focused on him
purifies himself, just as Jesus is pure).

It is easy to see how the second coming
should motivate us to live holy and godly
lives. When Jesus returns we must strive to
be found at peace, without spot or blemish.
Since Christ is coming back, we first of all
must make every effort to live godly lives.

2 Peter 3:15 NET And regard the patience
of our Lord as salvation, just as also our
dear brother Paul wrote to you, according to
the wisdom given to him, 16 speaking of
these things in all his letters. Some things in
these letters are hard to understand, things
the ignorant and unstable twist to their own
destruction, as they also do to the rest of
the scriptures.

Here we notice that verse 15 continues the
thought that Peter began back in verse 9,
where Peter explained why the Lord had
delayed fulfilling His promise to return. God
had every reason long ago to judge the
world and burn up its works, but His
merciful desire to see more people repent,
has kept Him from fulfilling the promised
return. The Day of Judgment is coming, but
until then, we continue to live in the time of
the Lord‟s patience which results in the
Days of Salvation.

Unfortunately, while we make every effort
trying to win the lost, Satan is at work trying
to foil our efforts. Satan has many tricks up
his sleeve for keeping the lost lost. One of
the tragic ways Satan works is through false
teachers.

Peter classifies Paul‟s letters as Scripture,
the inspired Word of God, which shouldn‟t
surprise us since from the moment of their
composition and delivery to their recipients
they had the authority of commands of the
Lord through his apostle.

Peter points out that Paul‟s letters contain
some things that can be hard to
understand, which makes them easily used
for distortion and false teaching.
What happens to people who twist…the
Scriptures? Peter says that they do it to
their own destruction.

It leads to destruction because it is the
rejection of God‟s way and the setting up of
one‟s own way in opposition to God. This is
why it is so important for us to correctly
handle the Word of God. (2 Tim. 2:15) G.K.
Chesterson once said, “orthodoxy is like
walking along a narrow ridge; one step to
either side was a step to disaster.

Jesus is God and man; God is love and
holiness; Christianity is grace and morality;
the Christian lives in this world and lives in
the world of eternity. Overstress either side
of these great two-sided truths, and at once
destructive heresy emerges.

One of the most tragic things in life is when
a man twists Christian truth and Holy
Scripture into an excuse and even a reason
for doing what he wants to do instead of
taking them as guides for doing what God
wants him to do.”
May God help us to correctly handle His
Word – to understand it, abide by it, and
lead others to Christ through it!

Let‟s notice one final thing before we leave
this point. Back in verse 12, Peter
mentioned that it is possible for us to hasten
the return of Jesus. Peter wrote: “while
waiting for and hastening the coming of the
day of God.” How can we Christians hasten,
speed up, the coming of Jesus? It can be
done through prayer. Jesus taught us to
pray, “Thy Kingdom come.”
(Mt. 6:10)

It can be done through preaching and
witnessing. If God is delaying the return of
Christ so that more can be saved, then if we
are busy bringing people to Christ, that will
speed His coming.

It can be done through penitence
(repentance and obedience).
In Acts 3, Peter preached, Therefore repent
and turn back so that your sins may be
wiped out, so that times of refreshing may
come from the presence of the Lord, and so
that he may send the Messiah appointed for
you — that is, Jesus. Acts 3:19,20 NET

Since we know that the day of Christ is
coming, and since we can hasten, speed
up, its coming,
1 - let us make every effort to live godly
lives.
2 – let us make every effort to win the lost.

2 Peter 3:17 NET Therefore, dear friends,
since you have been forewarned, be on
your guard that you do not get led astray by
the error of these unprincipled men and fall
from your firm grasp on the truth. 18 But
grow in the grace and knowledge of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the
honor both now and on that eternal day.

It is heartwarming that Peter writes with
such affection in this last chapter. Four
times he began his statements with “dear
friends.” These concluding two verses touch
on the two main themes of the letter and
summarize its contents. First, he reminds
the reader, be on your guard that you do not
get led astray by the error of these
unprincipled men.

The word translated “guard” carries the
meaning of constantly guarding yourself.
(to watch, keep watch [Thayer])
Peter said his readers knew the truth, but
he warned them that knowledge alone was
not sufficient protection. They had to be on
their guard; they had to be alert.
Second, there is the exhortation, But grow
in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ.

Did you notice in verse 17 that a person‟s
secure position, firm grasp on the truth, is
something they can fall from by being led
astray by the error of these unprincipled
men. Peter is emphasizing that this is
serious business – we must guard
ourselves or we may fall being led astray.

So how can we maintain our steadfastness
and avoid being among those who are led
astray? Peter says we can do so by
growing in the grace and knowledge
of…Jesus... This command to grow carries
the meaning of constantly growing.
Someone said: “The Christian life is like
riding a bicycle – unless you keep moving,
you fall off.” Peter says that we must
continually grow in the grace and
knowledge of…Jesus...

To Grow in the grace of…Jesus… includes
many things. We are saved by grace and
we must grow in our understanding and
trust in that grace. To Grow in grace also
has to do with becoming more like Jesus in
our character and in the way we treat
others. Grow in grace also means being
strengthened by grace, (2 Tim. 2:1-4) being
able to endure suffering through grace (2
Cor. 12:7-10)

But, we must not only grow in grace, we
must grow in the knowledge of our Lord.
Consider the balance of these two things.
Knowledge without grace is a terrible
weapon, and grace without knowledge can
be very shallow. Notice that we are not
challenged to grow in the knowledge of the
Bible, as good and necessary as that is.

No, we are challenged to grow in the
knowledge of our Lord. It is one thing to
know the Bible, but it is another thing to
know the Lord, who is the central theme of
the Bible. We should know the Bible so that
we can know the Lord, not just the Bible.

The diligent Christian must constantly be
guarding themselves, lest they be led astray
by the error, and the diligent Christian must
make every effort to constantly grow in the
grace and knowledge of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. All of this requires
diligence, and demands discipline.

Nobody automatically drifts into spiritual
growth and strength, but anyone can drift
out of spiritual security and strength. That‟s
why the Hebrew writer wrote: Therefore we
must pay closer attention to what we have
heard, so that we do not drift away.
Hebrews 2:1 NET

Physical and spiritual growth follows pretty
much the same patterns. We grow from the
inside out. We need nourishment and
exercise to grow. We grow best in a loving
family environment. We need to grow in a
balanced way. Imagine if your left & right
arms or legs grew at different rates. How
awkward. That‟s why we want to grow in
grace and knowledge.

So here we are at the end of this wonderful,
short letter from the apostle Peter. Peter
has reminded us of so many powerful
truths. He has reminded us that God has
given us everything we need for life and
godliness, and we can make our calling and
election sure.

Peter has reminded us we can trust our
Bibles because the men who wrote it were
carried along by the Holy Spirit. He has
reminded us there will be false teachers
and we must be on guard. Peter has
reminded us Jesus is coming back, no
matter how long His return is delayed, we
must be ready.

Today we have learned we can be ready by
giving attention to three things.
Make Every Effort to Live Godly
Lives
Make Every Effort to Win the
Lost
Make Every Effort to Guard
Yourself
and Grow Spiritually.
What action plan do you need to put into
place as you leave here today?

What changes do you need to make to be
living a more godly life?
What actions do you need to begin to be
reaching out to the lost?
Who do you need to invite over for dinner or
desert?
Who do you need to invite to worship?
Who do you need to have a spiritual
conversation with and offer to study the
Bible with?

What steps do you need to take to guard
yourself and to begin growing spiritually?
Do you need to be more regular in your
daily or weekly spiritual disciplines? Do you
need to ask someone to be your mentor or
your accountability partner? Let‟s be sure
we leave here today ready to do something
to be more ready for Christ‟s return.

Do you remember the reports of air traffic
controllers falling asleep on the job? A lone
air traffic controller at Washington D.C.'s
Ronald Reagan Airport admitted to falling
asleep during his shift. A little after midnight,
the pilots of two commercial planes were
unable to reach the tower, but they were in
communication with a regional air traffic
control facility about 40 miles from the
airport.

Regional air traffic facilities handle aircraft
within roughly a 50 mile radius of an airport,
but landings and takeoffs are handled by
controllers in the airport tower.
Another incident occurred when an air
traffic controller was found sleeping while
on duty at an airport in Knoxville, TN.

The airport control tower was staffed with
one air traffic controller who worked both
the radar and tower positions and handled
seven aircraft over a five hour period
because the radar controller was
unresponsive. Unlike the controller at the
Washington, D.C. airport who fell asleep in
his chair, The Knoxville air traffic controller
allegedly made a bed out of couch cushions
and covered himself with a blanket so he
could be more comfortable.

According an anonymous federal official, a
co-worker checked on the controller several
times, each time shaking him awake.
The controller would promise to stay awake
and do his job, but, each time, he would
return to his makeshift bed and sleep.

The last thing we want is to be found asleep
on the job when Jesus returns. We don‟t
want to be caught off guard and by surprise.
That means we need to be alert and ready
at all times. The one who testifies to these
things says, "Yes, I am coming soon!"
Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! The grace of the
Lord Jesus be with all. Revelation 22:20,21
NET
To Him be the glory both now and forever!
Amen!

How Then Shall We Live 2 Peter 3:11-18

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to How Then Shall We Live 2 Peter 3:11-18

Similar to How Then Shall We Live 2 Peter 3:11-18 (20)

More from Rick Peterson

More from Rick Peterson (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

How Then Shall We Live 2 Peter 3:11-18