Lesson 36
Second Peter
Warning against dangers
facing the Church
Chapter 3
The Certainty of the
Believers Hope – The Return of Christ
Peter’s next example where the F/T’s have missed the boat if you
will is in 3:6
They have overlooked the fact of catastropheism has occurred, that
is something that superseded natural laws therefore destroys uniformitarianism.
through which
(water) the world at that time was
destroyed, being flooded with water.
was
destroyed, being flooded with water.
-
have 2 verbs here, one to describe what happened and the other to tell us how
it happened
Summary observations:
1. The environment that
existed prior to the flood was destroyed, ruined as a consequence of God’s
judgment. Gen 6:5-7
2. The divine viewpoint
points to the reality of catastropheism, events that supersede natural laws
which were established by God.
3. The academic world out
there does not accept catastropheism at any point and the universal flood
specifically.
They have many blind spots:
a. Rejection of Genesis and
Job as reliable.
b. Disregarding strata
graphic evidences of a global flood.
- have come up with a
horizontal thrust theory to account for older type strata being on top of
younger strata.
c. Disregarding the cause of
Mountains, orogenesis, or mountain building. Platonics. Psalm 104:5-9
d. Disregarding the time of
glacier formation (ice ages).
Job 38:29-30 at the time of the flood.
e. Disregarding normal
genetic codes in the development within species. (biogenesis)
4. What academia says took
millions of years to occur actually took 371 days, the length of the flood when
focused on the earth.
5. We need to remember that
the flood was also a judgment from the justice of God.
6. Those who hold to the
uniformitarian or evolutionary view deny divine judgment in the past and hence
also in the future.
3:7 Deals with reality of
future judgment
But by His word the present
heavens and earth are being reserved for fire,
Peter sets the contrast here between the past judgment by
the flood that he just covered and the future judgment of the earth that is
detailed in
His point is that these heavens and earth or the universe
as we know it is being held in reserve for a future judgment by His Word, His
power.
kept
for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
- kept is the present passive
participle of thre,w meaning to keep or guard
- the ongoing keeping or guarding
the heavens and the earth refers to the ongoing task of Jesus Christ the God,
man in hypostatic union in upholding or sustaining all things by the word of
His power. Heb 1:2-3; also Col 1:17
destruction
of ungodly men
- avpw,leia, destruction
or ruin here of eternal punishment,
judgment in the LOF the result of the GWTJ.
- The who! ungodly
men avsebh,j, describes the unbeliever as one having no
reverential awe or respect for God and
who He is, having rejected Christ as Savior.
3:7 But the present heavens and earth by His
Word are reserved for fire, being kept for a day judgment and destruction of
ungodly men (UB).
Summary Observations:
1. Since these F/T’s are negative to
divine revelation concerning past history being willfully ignorant they are
also negative to and ignorant of the reality of the future history of the
earth.
2. As a result of God’s covenant
with Noah there
will never be another judgment of mankind by a universal flood as per 3:6.
- Gen 9:9-17 (sign of this covenant
is the rainbow)
3. Fire is often used to
characterize the judgment of God which flows from His perfect righteousness and
executed by His justice.
4. Many OT prophesies confirm this
fact: Isa. 66:15-16; Joel 2:30; Zeph
1:18; 3:8; Mal 4:1-3
5. Note that the unbelievers after
the GWTJ will not cease to exist but will fall under the eternal ruin and
destruction (avpw,leia) in the LOF.
3:8 - 9 Orientation to Time; Peter is addressing
believers not the F/T’s here!
Peter
answers the question why should the Lord be so long in coming!
But do not let this one fact escape your
notice, beloved,
- It appears that some of these believers were
being influenced by the input from the false teachers and were failing to apply
the Word in life and were becoming disoriented to the prophetic word 1:19
But stop letting this one
fact escape your notice beloved
Peter is exhorting them to not be like the F/T’s in vs:5
who through willful negative volition rejected the true origins “by the Word of
God.”
So what is the fact that is blatantly obvious is
presented next. (emphatic position)
that
with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one
day.
3:8 But stop letting this one fact escape your
notice, Beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a
thousand years as one day.
Summary Observations:
1. With the command here to stop letting this one
fact escape your notice he’s exhorting these believers to not let the
propaganda of the F/T’s to influence and distort their thinking.
- stay focused on the truth
2. We must remember that as far as God's
faithfulness to His promises, it does not matter if He gave His promise
yesterday or a thousand years ago. He will still remain faithful and will
fulfill every promise completely (cf. Ps. 90:4).
3. Most common interpretation of this verse is
that these are purely figurative numbers and could represent any period of
time.
- their view is that since God is transcendent He is therefore
not subject to a realization of time elapse
4. God is not governed by time in the same sense
as we are but He is clearly cognizant of time lapse which is noted in the
dispensations.
5. We evaluate events and time verses time while
God looks at time verses Eternity and the fulfillment of His plan.
6. This common
interpretation fails in several areas:
a. It denies the simplest
meaning without any basis for it, basic hermeneutic principle.
b. Fails to deal with or
understand the comparative analogy introduced by w`j
(hos).
c. Opens the door for
evolution instead of closing it as per the strong thrust of the context dealing
with the uniformitarian view.
7. The correct interpretation must:
a. deal adequately with the context that is the refutation
of uniformitarianism.
b. deal with the comparative established in these 2
clauses.
- say
something meaningful, different but related
c. take into account the Biblical usage of “day.”
8. Day is used in Scripture 3 ways:
a. literal 24 hour day, or a solar day
1. Gen 1:3-31 during the 6 days of restoration
2. The Sabbath day Ex
3. As a believer we are to live one day at a time, that is to take each day as a grace gift, an
opportunity to glorify God as we apply His Word regardless of the external
circumstances. Matt. 6:31-34; Rom 14:5,6
b. Less than 24 hours.
1. the moment of time we
believed in Christ, 2 Cor. 6:2
2. the day of Christ, the
Rapture Phil 1:6, 10,
3. the day will show it 1 Cor.
c. More than 24 hours
1. “Day of the Lord” or that day refers to the whole
program of events including the 7 years of the Tribulation, the Second Advent
and the entire millennial reign of Christ.
Isa 2:12; 13:6,9; Ezk 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:31; Isa 2:11; 2 Pet 3:10
2. “Day of God” 2 Pet