Living for Christ’s Coming
2 Peter 3:10-13
Many of us are disturbed by the things going on in the world. The Coronavirus has many people in a pandemic panic. Political turmoil has led to hatred and violence on both sides in our nation. We see corruption in government, corporations, and other institutions. The economic outlook is uncertain. Families are in distress. Immorality is growing.
In the church things don’t appear to be much better. Some churches are closing for good. Famous preachers have been caught in immorality. High profile Christians have abandoned the faith. Many churches are completely given over to false doctrine and idolatry. Even in Bible preaching churches, attendance, commitment, and giving have waned. Baptisms are down as we have forgotten evangelism. What do we do in times like these?
The apostle Peter wrote to Christians who were, like us, living in stressful times. Peter is writing to counter some false teachers who were denying that Jesus is coming again to judge the world. They denied that truth because they wanted to pursue their greedy, sensual lifestyle. They were drawing away some naïve professing Christians with their message of “freedom,” which was really leading people into slavery to sin (2 Pet. 2:19). The unbelieving people around them were mocking their faith and saying, “What happened to the promise of the return of the Lord? Things are going on just the same as they always have” (2 Pet. 3:4).
Peter encouraged believers by reminding them that things had not, in fact, gone on just as they always had—that God once destroyed the inhabitable earth with a flood (2 Pet. 3:5-6). God has a different perspective on time (2 Pet. 3:7). And he also assured them that the seeming delay in the Lord’s return was not an act of negligence; but rather, was an act of mercy. Our gracious God is not willing that any perish, but that all come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9). And then, in 2 Peter 3:10-13, the apostle wrote:
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:10-13).
Listen, the apostle Peter is showing us that our hope for living in the present evil age is our certainty in the coming of the Lord and our eternal dwelling with Him. If we do not have a clear view of eternity, we have a hard time living for the Lord in this world.
Obviously, this passage gives us a perspective of things that most of the world around us do not believe. Most of the people around us, in fact, believe that—except perhaps for the trials we’ve been enduring most recently—the world is, right now, pretty much as it always has been. And they live as if the Lord Jesus will never come—as if things are going along as they always have, and as if there’s no day of judgment coming, and as if this world will never come to an end. But Peter begins with the strong affirmation that “the day of the Lord will come” (2 Pet. 3;10). “Will come” is first in the Greek text to emphasize that the Lord certainly will come (Thomas Schreiner, The New American Commentary, 1, 2 Peter, Jude [Broadman & Holman Publishers], p. 383). There is no doubt about it!
The theme of the “day of the Lord” is familiar from the Old Testament prophets. Sometimes it points to near historical judgments, whereas other times it looks ahead to a final great day of judgment. In both cases, it always uses frightening language of destruction. For example, Isaiah 13:9 warns, “Behold, the day of the LORD comes, Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it.” (See, also, Jer. 46:10; Ezek. 13:5; 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:1, 11, 31; 3:14; Amos 5:18, 20; Obad. 15; Zeph. 1:7, 14; Mal. 4:1, 5.) The New Testament repeats this theme (Acts 2:20; 1 Cor. 5:5; 2 Cor. 1:14; 1 Thess. 5:2; 2 Thess. 1:7-10; 2:2; Rev. 16:14). As I understand it, “the day of the Lord” in 2 Peter 3:10 is synonymous with the more unusual phrase, “the day of God,” in verse 12 (although MacArthur sees a distinction).
So the “day of the Lord” is not just one day (24 hours). It is another name for the final stages of God’s redemptive program for the ages. It involves the series of events that precede the return of the Lord Jesus Christ to this earth, and that includes His glorious thousand-year reign on earth after that return, and that culminates in the destruction of this present order of things and the creation of new heavens and a new earth.
Peter is not interested here in setting forth a detailed, chronological account of the end times, so that we can draw up prophecy charts. Rather, he is driving home one main point: This world and all that it treasures is going to burn. God is going to re-create a new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells. So, you need to make a basic choice: Do you want to live for everything that is certain to be destroyed, or do you want to live so that you will have an inheritance in that new heavens and earth?
Just think of what a remarkable passage this is! In it, God the Holy Spirit—through His servant Peter—graciously gives us a perspective of this world that we could not possibly have unless He revealed it to us. In it, God graciously lets us in on His plan for the future. He lets us know that this fallen order of creation is only temporary—that its present form will be demolished, and it will be replaced with a new heaven and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. And He lets us know that, by virtue of our being “in Christ” by faith, it’s our joyful destiny to live forever in that new heavens and new earth with Him!
And this truth is meant to affect our daily lives. Look at what he says in 2 Peter 3:11, “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be …?” Knowing the truth about the coming day of the Lord should dramatically impact the way we currently live our Christian lives today.
So then; let’s look closer at Peter’s words, and examine this perspective in greater detail. You can break it down into three very applicable propositions. And the first is that …
1. This present creation is destined for destruction.
“But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night ….” Peter is repeating the words of Jesus (Matt. 24:42-44), who said, “therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. 44 Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (See, also, 1 Thess. 5:2-3.)
Just as in the days prior to the flood, the people around Noah were going on about life with no thought of impending judgment, so it will be in the day when Jesus returns (Matt. 24:37-39). His coming is certain, it is sudden and unexpected by many, but it is not without warning.
What will the day of the Lord bring? Peter tells us, first of all, that “the heavens will pass away with a great noise”. Peter isn’t speaking here of “heaven” in the singular—which is the glorious abode of God. Rather, he’s speaking of “the heavens” in the plural. He is talking about the very sky above us, and the very reaches of space around us—and of all the created things that they contain!
The heavens were brought into existence by God (Gen. 1:1). They are, as Psalm 8:3 tells us, ‘the work of His fingers’. And they only continue to exist by the power of His providential hand. But one day, He will remove His hand; and with “a great noise”, the heavens will pass away. In 2 Peter 3:12, Peter said that, because of the coming of “the day of God”, these very heavens will be “dissolved” or be “destroyed”. Look up at the moon; and know that it’s only temporary. Look up on a clear night and see the stars; and know that they, too, are only temporary. Look up on a clear afternoon and see the sun shining in the sky; and know that even it is only temporary.
Second, Peter tells us that “the elements will melt with fervent heat”. The word that Peter uses here for “elements” means the basic fundamental principles of a thing. And though some translations of the Bible render this word “heavenly bodies”, it seems that, in this context, it refers to the foundational elements of the created universe.
Third, Peter even says that “both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up”. In some translations such as the New International Version, it has it that the earth and its works will be “laid bare”; or as the English Standard Version has it, the earth and its works will be “exposed”. This reflects the fact that, in some ancient manuscripts, a different Greek word is being used. And if this is the correct word, then this would speak of the fact that, in that great day of the Lord, all things that are hidden in the works of men will be fully revealed. It would be the ultimate fulfillment of Hebrews 4:13; where it says, “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13). The idea would then be that those who thought that they could hide their sins from God will be exposed. No one, no matter how clever, will get away with anything.
But if the word that is translated “burned up” is the correct one—as in the NKJV—then this is saying something more like what we’re told in 1 Corinthians 3:11-15;
For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Corinthians 3:11-15).
And so, taken all together, Peter is telling us—through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit—that on the coming day of the Lord, the universe as it is now known to us will come to an end. All that exists of this created order will dissolve and pass away with a great noise and in fervent heat. We’re told that it will come “as a thief” upon the people of this world; that is, suddenly and unexpectedly—just when they think that they have this world structured and ordered in the way that they want it. As the apostle Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3;
For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3).
And you and I cannot even begin to live as we should in this temporal world until we embrace that fact. Hope for living in this life can never be found in anything in this temporary created order. The past year has, to some degree, taught us that! Only what is ours in our Lord Jesus Christ will endure forever.
Now, all of this talk about the destruction of the present heavens and earth would indeed sound very gloomy if it weren’t for another important point that Peter makes …
2. A new heavens and new earth will take its place.
In the original language of 2 Peter 3:13, Peter puts the matter emphatically; “But new heavens and a new earth, according to the promise of God, we look for …” What a staggering thing this is to think about! We could not know about it unless God—our Creator—told us.
Will it be “new” in the sense of something completely unconnected to the old? Will it be that God will completely wipe away all traces of the fundamental elements of the first creation and make a new one, as it were, “from scratch”—utterly disconnected from the old creation? Some theologians have believed that this is so. They have suggested that, because of the fall of Adam, the whole of the created order has been completely ruined by the contamination of sin; and that it must now be done away with completely. But I don’t believe this is so. It seems to me that to believe such a thing would be to admit that the devil and sinful man succeeded in so spoiling that which God, at the very beginning, declared to be “very good” (Genesis 1:31); and that our mighty God is now incapable of restoring that which was ruined. “New”, in this case, doesn’t mean ‘completely new with no connection whatsoever to the old’.
A good analogy of what “new” would mean could be drawn from our Lord Jesus Himself. When He was born into the human family, He was made from the material of this present created order; being made in His humanity from the real substance of His mother Mary. And He lived in that same body of this created order throughout His life on this earth. When He died on the cross, He also died in that same body. And when He rose in glory, He rose in the same body in which He had died; only now glorified. He even bore, in His resurrected body, the prints of the nails in His hands (John 20:25-27). He ascended to the Father in the same resurrected body that had been crucified. And He sits even now at the right hand of the Father in heaven in the very same body that was connected to His pre-resurrection body—only now and forever glorified.
Jesus lives forever, in heavenly glory, in a body that is connected to the substance of this created order. But it is a body that has been ‘renewed’ in glory. It has real continuity to the material body that died on the cross; but it is completely ‘new’ in form and quality. It has been raised in glory. And it will be in that same body that our Lord will return to this earth on His “day”—a body composed of the same material substance taken from this created order of things; but that is eternally “renewed”. And in the same way, we are to look for new heavens and a new earth—not “new” in the sense of having no connection to the old whatsoever, but “new” in the sense of its material substance being gloriously “renewed”.
We could also consider our own salvation in Christ a good analogy of this. The Bible says that, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). When you placed your trust in Jesus, God truly made you a new creation. But you were not made “new” in the sense that there was no connection whatsoever to the old ‘you’. You still have the same family. You still live in the same house. All your old clothes still fit. But the inward ‘you’ that ‘was’ has been ‘renewed’ into a brand new ‘you’—possessing real continuity with the “old”, but radically different in glory.
This is what the Bible tells us about our future hope of resurrection because of our salvation in Christ. Paul writes (1 Corinthians 15:42-44),
The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
It’s not with an entirely different body that we will be ‘raised’. It will be with the same body in terms of possessing a material relationship with the substance of this old created order. But it’s one that is dramatically different in form from what it was. The same body that is “sown” is also “raised” with real continuity with that which was “sown”, but as a wondrously glorified body that is made fit to live eternally in God’s presence.
And in the same sense, the “new” creation will have real, material continuity with the “old” one—but as a created order that is “new” in complete and glorious renewal. Seeing the “new heavens” and “the new earth” in this way helps us understand more clearly the amazing words that the apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:19-22;
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now (Romans 8:19-22).
It is this created order—the one in which we now live—that eagerly awaits and groans after its renewal. Right now, it suffers under things like pandemics, wildfires, civil unrest, corruption, death, and so many of the other things that have troubled us over the past year. And yet, the new order of things will be so gloriously different from its present, fallen condition that it will be as “new” heavens and a “new” earth! And just think of what a greater glory this brings to our mighty God! He doesn’t utterly scrap the old created order and make a new creation. He takes that which mankind, under the influence of the devil, has ruined in a point of time through sin, and “renews” it into a gloriously new created order!
As Peter tells us, this will be in accordance with God’s own promise. Back in Isaiah 65:17–some seven and a half centuries before Peter wrote these words–God spoke through the prophet Isaiah and said;
“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind” (Isaiah 65:17).
The new will be so glorious that the old will not even come to remembrance.
Now; notice one of the great differences that will distinguish the new from the old. In 2 Peter 3:13, Peter tells us that we, according to God’s promise, look for new heavens and a new earth “in which righteousness dwells”. Righteousness does not characterize this present created order. Rather—as we all sadly know—what characterizes it is all of the terrible damage that sin has brought upon it, and the death that permeates it.
But listen to the glorious description we’re given—on the last few pages of the Bible—of our life in this wonderful “new” heavens and “new” earth:
Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful” (Revelation 21:1-5).
That’s our future in Jesus Christ. And though we live for a time in this present created order of things, we are to live in it with a perspective that is radically different from that of the unbelieving people around us. We know, from God’s own promise, that this created order is only temporary. Everything about it, and everything that we see in it—including the sin and death that sadly permeate it—is marked with the words “scheduled for demolition”. We don’t live for this world as it is now. We only live in it. We’re not held captive to the present order of things—things that are doomed to pass away. Instead, we live for God’s glorious renewal of this created order—and for our own renewal with it on His great day.
And that leads us to our last point—which is really the main point of this whole passage—that …
3. Because of the coming Day of the Lord, we ought to live holy lives .
As Peter says (2 Pet. 3:11-12a), “Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming day of God …?” Peter is not asking a question. He’s making an exclamation! The word “conduct” means way of life, or lifestyle. Peter uses it often in his first letter. He writes (1 Pet. 1:15), “but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.” In 1 Peter 2:12, he urges, “having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.” (See also, 1 Pet. 1:18; 3:1, 2, 16.) “The day of visitation” is the same as “the day of the Lord” or “the day of God.” It is the day of judgment, when we must give an account to God.
“Holy” conduct (2 Pet. 3:11) means conduct that is distinct from this evil world. We hold to the values that the Bible teaches us to live by. We live in light of eternity, not for all of the junk that’s going to burn. We value people above things. We treasure Christ above all else.
“Godliness” has the root idea of reverence and awe towards God. William Barclay (New Testament Words [Westminster Press], p. 107) says that it is “the attitude which gives God the place he ought to occupy in life and in thought and in devotion.” Peter used this word back in 2 Peter 1:3, where he said that God “has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” He includes it in the list of qualities that he gives us in 2 Peter 1:5-7: moral excellence, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love.
In 2 Peter 3:11 holy conduct and godliness are both plurals. It may refer to repeated acts of holiness and godliness (Schreiner, p. 389), or it may mean that every part of our conduct towards God and man should be holy and godly (editor’s footnote in Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker], p. 421). In other words, we should live all of life in the presence of God, with reverence towards Him. Peter says we should be “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God.” We should always be thinking of that day when we will stand before the Lord, and govern everything we do in light of it. As we live holy lives and take the gospel to the nations, it hastens Christ’s coming.
Peter goes on to write (2 Peter 3:14-15b):
Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation ….
May Peter’s closing exhortation, then, sink deeply into our hearts. And may it transform the way we live in the coming year—and always.
