Psalm 73:2 - But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, my steps had almost slipped.
Psalm 73:3 - For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
Psalm 73:4-9 - For there are no pains in their death, and their body is fat. They are not in trouble as other men, nor are they plagued like mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace; the garment of violence covers them. Their eye bulges from fatness; the imaginations of their heart run riot. They mock and wickedly speak of oppression; they speak from on high. They have set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue parades through the earth.
Psalm 73:10 - Therefore his people return to this place, and waters of abundance are drunk by them.
Psalm 73:11-12 - They say, “How does God know? And is there knowledge with the Most High?” Behold, these are the wicked; and always at ease, they have increased in wealth.
Psalm 73:13-14 - Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence; for I have been stricken all day long and chastened every morning.
Psalm 73:15-16 - If I had said, “I will speak thus,” behold, I would have betrayed the generation of Your children. When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome in my sight.
Psalm 73:17 - Until I came into the sanctuary of God; Then I perceived their end.
Psalm 73:18-20 - Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors! Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when aroused, You will despise their form.
Psalm 73:21-28 - When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.
2 Peter 3:18 - …but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
3 responses to our God who will someday execute perfect justice
I. Be Sobered by God’s Judgment on the Unrighteous
A. The angels
2 Peter 2:4 - For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment…
Jude 6 - And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day…
2 Peter 2:4 - …cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment…
Revelation 5:11-14 - Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.
B. The ancient world
Genesis 6:5-7 - Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.”
Genesis 2:16-17 - The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”
Genesis 3:4 - The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!”
2 Peter 2:5 - …and did not spare the ancient world…
C. Sodom and Gomorrah
2 Peter 2:6 - …and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter…
Genesis 13:10 - Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere – this was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah – like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar.
Genesis 18:20 - And the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.
Genesis 19:24-25 - Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
II. Be Amazed by God’s Rescue of His People
2 Peter 2:3 - …their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
2 Peter 1:19 - So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.
A. Noah and his family
2 Peter 2:5 - …and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly…
Genesis 6:8-9 - But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.
Genesis 6:13-21 - Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with rooms, and shall cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you shall make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. You shall make a window for the ark, and finish it to a cubit from the top; and set the door of the ark in the side of it; you shall make it with lower, second, and third decks. Behold, I, even I am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark – you and your sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. Of the birds after their kind, and of the animals after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. As for you, take for yourself some of all food which is edible, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be for food for you and for them.”
Genesis 6:22 - Thus Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so he did.
2 Peter 1:1 - …to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ…
Romans 4:3 - For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
B. Lot
2 Peter 2:7-8 - …and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds)…
“While certainly far from perfect, Lot never lost his basic orientation to the Lord. The word ‘righteous’ that Peter uses need mean no more than this. In the New Testament, this word often refers to a person’s status before the Lord rather than to one’s innate moral virtue. Moreover, it is important to note that Peter does not say that the Lord rescued Lot because he was a righteous man. Similarly, it will be not by virtue of their inherent goodness that God will deliver Christians in Peter’s day, or in ours, from the judgment that he will bring on the ungodly. Rather, it will be because of their ‘knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord’ (2 Peter 1:2) and because they are distressed, as Lot was, at the rampant sin around them.” (Douglas J. Moo, 2 Peter, Jude , The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, 105.)
Genesis 19:16 - But he hesitated. So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the Lord was upon him; and they brought him out, and put him outside the city.
III. Be Encouraged Because God Knows How to Make Things Right in the End
2 Peter 2:9 - …then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment…
Practical Take-Aways
1. Be sure that you have received the righteousness of God by faith.
2. Rejoice in our Savior who makes righteousness and our eternal destiny with Him possible.
2 Timothy 1:12 - For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
3. Remember that because the Lord will make all things right in the end, often your role today is to simply return good for evil.
Romans 12:17-19 - Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
4. Choose your teachers wisely. Remember their end.
- Have you ever been frustrated or dismayed by the apparent lack of justice in this world?...
- so for example – you try to be honest at work and admit it when you make a mistake and the person in the next office lies and blames problems on everyone else…and when it comes time for the next promotion – the dishonest person is elevated and you’re passed over…
- and what’s worse – you know there are articles out there in the trade magazines that suggest you shouldn’t be so honest…
- so it sure appears that the person advocating dishonesty was right…and the person following that teaching won out…so where’s the justice?...
- or you’re a single person who’s trying to live in a way that is sexually faithful…but the person down the hall is very promiscuous – just like so many teachers in our world are teaching and modeling…and then you learn that people are mocking you behind your back for your chastity and the other person is growing in popularity…
- again – in the short term the false teaching appears to be right…and justice seems to be lacking?...
- have you ever wrestled with questions like that?...
- are you wrestling with it in any way right now?...
- if so, you’re certainly not the first…
- you may already be thinking of one of the Psalms that especially focuses on that issue…what to do when the wicked seem to be prospering…it’s Psalm 73, written by a man named Asaph…
- if you know that Psalm you know that it’s rough, it’s real, and it’s raw…
- he starts by saying…Psalm 73:2 - But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling, my steps had almost slipped.
- so there’s no pretension here…we have a crisis on our hands…
- then he explains why he was so close to stumbling, and it’s almost one of those “I can’t believe he’s being that transparent” kind of moments…because he admits…Psalm 73:3 - For I was envious of the arrogant as I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
- it’s almost one of those – “I know we do that, but I didn’t think we could admit it out loud”…or “I admire the fact that he’s being so honest…”
- then he just starts pouring out his heart…and there’s a lot stored up in there…
- Psalm 73:4–9 - For there are no pains in their death, and their body is fat. They are not in trouble as other men, nor are they plagued like mankind. Therefore pride is their necklace; the garment of violence covers them. Their eye bulges from fatness; the imaginations of their heart run riot. They mock and wickedly speak of oppression; they speak from on high. They have set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue parades through the earth.
- it’s almost like – whatever teachers they’re following – I want in on that…because – look at the short-term benefits of being wicked…it seems like a pretty good deal to me…
- then it gets worse because he says – there’s lots of them…Psalm 73:10 - Therefore his people return to this place, and waters of abundance are drunk by them.
- then he throws this on the table – and please remember – this is in the Psalms…Israel’s worship hymnal -- Psalm 73:11–12 - They say, “How does God know? And is there knowledge with the Most High?” Behold, these are the wicked; and always at ease, they have increased in wealth.
- it would not be hard for every person in this room to look at the conditions in this culture, and perhaps even to look at the conditions in your life and write a very similar Psalm…
- however, stopping there could be catastrophic to one’s spiritual life…because Asaph admitted where this line of reasoning had taken him…Psalm 73:13–14 - Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence; for I have been stricken all day long and chastened every morning.
- if that’s not full-on spiritual depression, it’s awfully close…and many of us could say…I can relate to that line of thinking…
- but if you know the Lord, as Asaph did – he didn’t let it end there…Psalm 73:15–16 - If I had said, “I will speak thus,” behold, I would have betrayed the generation of Your children. When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome in my sight.
- in other words, there was something missing in my calculation…and I needed to go somewhere to find it…which is why the Psalm turns on verse 17…
- Psalm 73:17 - Until I came into the sanctuary of God; Then I perceived their end.
- please ponder that last phrase…”I perceived their end…”
- See, when considering who we’re going to follow – it’s always wise to ask…where does that path lead?...not just how is this going to look today, but how is this going to look in eternity?...
- we’re talking about learning to develop the long view…”then I perceived their end”…
- then Asaph emerges from this spiritual funk…Psalm 73:18–20 - Surely You set them in slippery places; You cast them down to destruction. How they are destroyed in a moment! They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors! Like a dream when one awakes, O Lord, when aroused, You will despise their form.
- now it’s the wicked who are in slippery places…and though they thought God didn’t know what they were doing, and even bragged about it out loud – they were wrong…
- they confused God’s patience and longsuffering with impotence and apathy…
- look carefully…at their end…
- then Asaph turned back to his own soul…Psalm 73:21–28 - When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, Then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. With Your counsel You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For, behold, those who are far from You will perish; You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You. But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.
- friend, when you’re considering whose ideas you’re going to follow – always remember to…consider their end…
- now I realize you might say – PV, that’s all well and good, but I thought we were studying the book of 2 Peter…there’s a sense in which we just did…because that’s the point that Peter is about to make in an entirely different but extremely powerful way…
- with that in mind, please open your Bible to 2 Peter chapter 2…page 184 of the back section of the Bible under the chair in front of you…
- our theme this year is Hope for Everyday Life…and this fall we’re doing a verse-by-verse study of the book of 2 Peter entitled…Growing in Grace and Knowledge…
- that’s taken from one of the theme verses that occurs right at the end of the book -- 2 Peter 3:18 - but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
- chapter 1 was very positive…as Peter spoke about the beauty of the gospel and the sufficiency of God’s Word…those are two reasons why we can have hope that people like you and me could possible grow in grace and knowledge…
- and Peter knew that experientially…think how much he had grown because of those two marvelous provisions…
- however, things change dramatically in chapter 2…
- in fact you may have been wondering about a comment we made when we introduced this book several weeks ago and said that some writers refer to this book along with Jude as “the dark corner of the New Testament”…
- someone new to studying 2 Peter could have been in the initial messages from chapter 1 and said – “what’s so dark about this?”...
- all you have to do is read the first word in chapter 2 to see the beginning of the contrast…
- yes we have the reliable prophets from chapter 1 who were moved by the Holy Spirit of God to give us our sufficient Bibles…but…Read 2 Peter 2:1-3…
- so now what happens…and please envision Peter in a jail cell, facing martyrdom for his faith in the gospel and his commitment to following prophets that were true…
- and hoping and praying that these young Christians would not follow false prophets…
- and the logic he uses in the next 7 verses is this – consider their end…the same point Asaph made in Psalm 73….consider their end…
- read 2 Peter 2:4-10
- we’re talking this morning about Choosing Teachers Well by Considering their End
- and with the time we have remaining, let’s think about 3 responses to our God who will someday execute perfect justice.
I. Be Sobered by God’s Judgment on the Unrighteous
- the three examples that Peter uses in this passage are fascinating…
- he starts with…
A. The angels
- the doctrine of angelology is not a topic that comes up very often…at least not in Bible study…
- our culture has some interesting, and usually incorrect ideas…
- in the Christmas movie It’s a Wonderful Life – an angel receives his wings after he’s done enough good down on earth, at which time a bell rings…[Kari – please insert video clip]
- back in the 90’s, there was a TV program called Touched by an Angel – [Kari – please insert pic]…
- it’s pretty obvious those aren’t the kind of concepts Peter is discussing here…
- 2 Peter 2:4 - For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;
- another parallel passage is - Jude 6 - And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day,
- now you might say – what angels are those?...
- here’s the “honest answer part one” – we don’t know with absolute certainty, because Peter and Jude don’t tell us…and it appears that they believed their readers would already know so additional explanation was unnecessary…
- “honest answer part two” is – we don’t have to know for sure in order to benefit from the overall point which is – some angels were severely judged for some reason…and if God would judge angels for their disobedience, He’ll surely judge people who either teach false doctrine or follow false doctrine…
- please contrast what Peter just said about angels in our passage - 2 Peter 2:4 - …cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;
- to the future of righteous angels in Revelation 5:11–14 - Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.
- remember that Jude said that fallen angels did not “keep their own domain” and had “abandoned their proper abode”…
- yet these righteous angels were joyfully submitting to God’s truth and living in a way that was consistent with it…
- Perhaps we should ask -- which angel would you want to be like…when you consider their end?
- please factor that into a situation you may be facing where it doesn’t appear that justice is being done right now…
- should you therefore conclude that you might as well follow false ideas because justice will never be done?...
- friends…Peter’s point is…the angels would strongly disagree…and we should be sobered by their judgment…
- next, there’s…
B. The ancient world
- speaking here about the Flood…
- the biblical record is stark…and remember we’re only 6 chapters into the Bible…
- yet we read these sobering words…Genesis 6:5–7 - Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The Lord said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.”
- the progression is breathtaking…from God’s true prophecy in Genesis 2:16–17 - The Lord God commanded the man, saying, “From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.”
- to Satan’s false prophecy - Genesis 3:4 - The serpent said to the woman, “You surely will not die!
- to Peter now reminding us that God…2 Peter 2:5 - and did not spare the ancient world…
- Consider their end…
- I realize we’re living in a day when some, or perhaps many people do not want to hear about the judgment or the wrath of God…
- they prefer to only focus on what they consider to be the positive aspects of God’s nature…
- but we would have to ignore large sections of Scripture is we did that…
- and we would become just like the false teachers that Peter is warning against…
- his third example is…
C. Sodom and Gomorrah
- 2 Peter 2:6 - and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;
- this would have occurred about 450 years after the flood…and you may recall that this area was beautiful and fertile -- Genesis 13:10 - Lot lifted up his eyes and saw all the valley of the Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere—this was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah—like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt as you go to Zoar.
- what a great place where people could have chosen to love God and heed His truth…
- but instead the Lord told Abraham - Genesis 18:20 - And the Lord said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave.
- perhaps those who lived there thought using their lives in that fashion was pleasurable and the right thing to do…what would Peter say?...Consider their end…
- Genesis 19:24–25 - Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven, and He overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground.
- and I can imagine someone visiting here today and saying – wow, this is really a fire and brimstone church…
- perhaps a better way of saying it is, at times the Bible is a fire and brimstone book…
- we genuinely believe there is a heaven to be gained and a hell to be shunned…
- this would probably be a good time to pause and ask all of us this am – are you properly sobered by God’s judgment?...
- and listen, we have many, many reasons for joy…we’re going to talk about some of them next because Peter emphasizes that in this text as well…
- but we can get pretty flip about the kind of teachers we listen to…
- whether it be through our music, our entertainment, books, movies, podcast, and on and on…
- as if the consequences to a little sin and rebellion aren’t that bad…
- a little false prophecy probably won’t hurt us…
- friends, consider their end…consider the angels, consider the flood, consider Sodom and Gomorrah…and be properly sobered to the point of caution and carefulness…
- when’s the last time to turned off a movie or you put down a book or changed the channel and said…I don’t need any of this in my mind and heart…
- because that path would take me to a place I don’t want to go…
II. Be Amazed by God’s Rescue of His People
- by now we’re seeing a very clear contrast between the reliable prophets of chapter 1 giving us everything we need for life and godliness and the false prophets of chapter 2 secretly introducing false heresies and maligning the way of truth…
- so, consider their end…2 Peter 2:3 - …their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
- and anyone who doubts that should remember the angels, and the ancient world, and Sodom and Gomorrah…
- but what about those who choose to follow reliable prophets…the truth of God’s Word…2 Peter 1:19 - So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.
- where does following that road lead?...just ask Noah…and just ask Lot…
- and the two operative words will be – preservation and rescue…
A. Noah and his family
- Peter says - 2 Peter 2:5 - and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
- so what does Genesis 6 tell us about him?...
- Genesis 6:8–9 - But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.
- totally different than the false teachers Peter has been discussing…
- so Scripture says the Lord Himself is the One who comes and prophesies to Noah…and what a prophecy it was…
- Genesis 6:13–21 - Then God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth. Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with rooms, and shall cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you shall make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. “You shall make a window for the ark, and finish it to a cubit from the top; and set the door of the ark in the side of it; you shall make it with lower, second, and third decks. Behold, I, even I am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish. But I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. And of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every kind into the ark, to keep them alive with you; they shall be male and female. Of the birds after their kind, and of the animals after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you to keep them alive. As for you, take for yourself some of all food which is edible, and gather it to yourself; and it shall be for food for you and for them.”
- so what does a righteous man do with that prophecy from the Lord…and please keep in mind that this project was going to take 120 years…
- here’s what Noah did…Genesis 6:22 - Thus Noah did; according to all that God had commanded him, so he did.
- and why was that?...because he was a righteous man…but understood in light of the righteousness described in the very first verse of 2 Peter….2 Peter 1:1 - …to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
- he was just like Abraham…who wasn’t saved by his works as an OT saint…Romans 4:3 - For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
- the same was true of Noah…he placed his faith in God…and God’s righteousness was credited to him…looking forward to the cross when that righteousness would be fully secured through the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ…
- and because of that…Noah not only became a doer of righteousness…but Peter said he was a what?...a preacher of righteousness…
- and you might say – what does that mean?...we don’t know…the book of Genesis is silent on that as well…but it certainly doesn’t appear that he had any converts…at least as far as we know…
- but friend…consider his end…it wasn’t like the fallen angels, it wasn’t like the ancient world, it wasn’t like Sodom and Gomorrah…
- he and his family were…preserved…
- many who will hear this message today are in a similar position to Peter’s readers…
- you’ve had people in your life like Noah…
- maybe your dad was a Noah…or you mom…
- a Sunday school teacher or a youth leader…
- the challenge is – some of the truth they tried to teach doesn’t seem to be paying off in the short term…it feels restrictive or outdated…
- and now there are a lot of new potential teachers in your life…prophesying a lot of different things…
- maybe even mocking your former “preachers of righteousness”…
- what’s today’s lesson?...faith in God’s Word preserves…
- and today might be a good day to call Noah…and thank your dad, or your mom, or your SS teacher, or your youth pastor…for being a preacher of righteousness…the positional righteousness that comes through faith in Christ and the practical righteousness that results as you walk out the Christian life…
- you might even reassure them that even though you’re being exposed to a lot of different ideas and a lot of different opinions…you plan to follow what they preached and taught and live…because you’ve considered their end…
- and you want to be the beneficiary of God’s preservation, just like they have…
- the same could be said of:
B. Lot
- 2 Peter 2:7–8 - and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds),
- and you might say – wait a minute – I’ve read the story of Lot – how in the world could the Bible call him righteous?...
- that’s a good question…but friend, isn’t there a lot of hope in that?...
- While certainly far from perfect, Lot never lost his basic orientation to the Lord. The word “righteous” that Peter uses need mean no more than this. In the New Testament, this word often refers to a person’s status before the Lord rather than to one’s innate moral virtue. Moreover, it is important to note that Peter does not say that the Lord rescued Lot because he was a righteous man. Similarly, it will be not by virtue of their inherent goodness that God will deliver Christians in Peter’s day, or in ours, from the judgment that he will bring on the ungodly. Rather, it will be because of their “knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord” (2 Peter 1:2) and because they are distressed, as Lot was, at the rampant sin around them. (Douglas J. Moo, 2 Peter, Jude , The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996, 105.)
- undoubtedly Lot was impacted by the life and teaching of his uncle Abraham…and when the angels came to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah… Genesis 19:16 - But he hesitated. So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the Lord was upon him; and they brought him out, and put him outside the city.
- that’s called – being rescued…and it was a whole lot better than what happened to the fallen angels, and the people of Noah’s Day, and certainly the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah…
- well, how does Peter conclude this part of the conversation?
III. Be Encouraged because God Knows How to Make Things Right in the End
- 2 Peter 2:9 - then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,
- what a powerful phrase…the Lord knows…
- please consider the situation that really bothers you right now because justice is not happening…
- false teaching/teachers appear to be winning…
- you might even feel like Asaph…my feet are slipping…I’m becoming envious of the wicked…in vain I’ve kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence…
- friend...consider their end…because the Lord…knows…
Practical Take-Aways
1. Be sure that you have received the righteousness of God by faith.
- Noah and Lot were imperfect people…but they were people of faith…
- they believed God, and He credited it to them as righteousness…
- if you’re not sure that you’ve ever done that, why not schedule a time to talk to one of our service pastors and make sure?
2. Rejoice in our Savior who makes righteousness and our eternal destiny with Him possible.
- 2 Timothy 1:12 - For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
3. Remember that because the Lord will make all things right in the end, often your role today is to simply return good for evil.
- Romans 12:17–19 - Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.
4. Choose your teachers wisely. Remember their end.
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