2 Peter 3:10

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 a 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... Nevertheless, we, according to His promise, look for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells... but grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever. Amen. (2 Peter 3:10-18)

The world as we know it will end—and how we live now should be shaped by what we know is coming.

Elon Musk and the End of the World

This last week in Mexico City, Elon Musk—the founder and CEO of SpaceX and also of Tesla Motors—stood before a very large conference and spent about ninety minutes talking about his goal to begin colonizing Mars by the end of the next decade. He showed computer animations of a huge spaceship that would carry one hundred people at a time, with plans to build a colony of more than a million people on the red planet over the next half century to a century. It's a pretty far-out thing.

This guy intrigues me, so I follow some of what he has to say. One thing you learn if you listen to him is that he is wholly and completely committed to the mission of getting people to Mars, of moving everybody off fossil fuels with Tesla, and of moving toward renewable resources with SolarCity. Why is he so committed? Because he is one hundred percent convinced that this world will not always be as it is. He believes some cataclysmic event will take place here. There have been extinction events in the past, he says, and there's certain to be one in the future.

The World as We Know It Will End

Say what you will about Elon Musk—and there's a lot you could say—he holds the same absolute belief Peter presents in this passage: the world as we know it will end. He bases that conviction on different things than Peter did, but Peter was thoroughly convinced of it. So was the Apostle Paul, so was James, so was John, and so has the church been for two thousand years. So do many of you in this room believe it.

Peter says it like this: "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 a fervent heat." Two thousand years ago Peter was convinced there would one day be a sudden cataclysmic event in which the world as we know it will cease to exist—what he called the day of the Lord. He was not the only one. Go back to Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Amos, and the whole list of prophets, and they spoke of this coming day of God. Paul speaks of it. Jesus prophesied about it.

What Is the Day of the Lord?

As the Scriptures describe it, the day of the Lord is that day in which God intervenes in the realm of humanity for judgment. It has been prophesied and looked forward to for many centuries. God has done this before. As Peter referred to in the previous passage, back in Genesis 6, 7, and 8 we read of the flood of Noah. God surveyed what was happening, determined there was to be a judgment, and brought a global flood through which only Noah and his family were spared.

But God gave a covenant that He would never again destroy the world with a flood. We see it in Genesis 9: "The waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh." He gave the rainbow as the sign of that covenant, a reminder to us and to Him. So this day of the Lord will come—but not by flood.

No One Knows the Day or Hour

When will it come? That's always the question. Peter says the day of the Lord will come "as a thief in the night," meaning suddenly, without warning. We don't know exactly when. Anyone who tells you they have pinpointed it by some Bible code or intricate algorithm is either self-deceived or selling something—maybe a little of both. People have sold all kinds of books claiming to have pinpointed the time, and even now people are setting dates.

But what did Jesus say? In Acts 1 His early followers wanted to know the timing too: "Will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" Jesus answered, "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father has put under His own authority." This was consistent with His teaching in Matthew 24:

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, but My Father only. (Matthew 24:35-36)

Highlight, underline, put a star next to verse 36. When someone tells you they've pinpointed the day, remember this. Jesus continued: as in the days of Noah, life went on as usual—eating, drinking, marrying—until the day Noah entered the ark, and they did not know until the flood took them all away. "Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." I don't know how He could be more emphatic. You will not know when—but you should be ready.

Why We Believe This

At this point the skeptic might ask, why would you believe such a thing? The reason Peter said it—and the reason the church teaches it—is that the same person who taught him these things would, about a week later, be crucified on a Roman cross, and three days after that rise from the dead. You'd assume someone who died, rose, and ascended into heaven might have some authority to say the end will come. It sounds far out when Elon Musk says it, when I say it, when Peter says it. But they believed and taught it because Jesus, who preached it, was crucified, rose, and ascended.

Charles Spurgeon, the prince of preachers, said it well: "Though many attempts have been made to form a consistent scheme of prophecy, not one has been even moderately successful... So intricate is the architecture of the future history that the architect himself alone knows where this stone and that stone are to be ordained." Only God knows when these things shall come to pass. But Jesus did tell us: heaven and earth will pass away.

The Nature of That Day

What will that day be like? Peter says the heavens will pass away with a great noise, the elements will melt with a fervent heat, and both the earth and the works in it will be burned up. So here's the forecast: it's going to be hot—really, really hot—and no rain, because that already happened, and God said He wouldn't do it again.

There is considerable debate among scholars over whether this event will bring total annihilation of the earth and cosmos, or whether the fire is a purifying, refining fire that purges all sin and wickedness. Books have been written on both sides, because other prophetic passages seem to allude to things continuing. In my humble opinion, I tend to side with the view that this is a purifying fire that refines and purges out all sin, after which God renews and makes all things new. But there are arguments on both sides. We don't understand every detail of timing—but we do know that Jesus, who died, rose, and ascended, said it will come to pass.

The prophet Isaiah said this day will come on everything proud and lofty (Isaiah 2:12), as destruction from the Almighty (Isaiah 13; Joel 1). Joel called it "the great and awesome day of the Lord" (Joel 2:31). Malachi called it "the great and dreadful day of the Lord" (Malachi 4:5). It is also called the day of Christ, the day of God, the day of judgment, the day of calamity, the day of wrath, the day of His fierce anger, the day of His great slaughter, the day of the Lord's vengeance, the day of doom, and the day of indignation. None of those sound good. They're sobering and frightening—more like Hollywood titles than Scripture references. It is the great and terrible day that will bring darkness, distress, and wrath upon a sinful, fallen world.

Not Appointed to Wrath

What shall become of those who have put their faith in Christ? Turn to Paul's words in 1 Thessalonians. He closes chapter 4 saying, "Therefore comfort one another with these words," and then writes:

Concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. 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... But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. (1 Thessalonians 5:1-4)

Notice the they and them versus the us and we. Sudden destruction comes upon those who have not put their faith in Christ, but "you are all sons of light and sons of the day." Therefore, let us not sleep as others do, but watch and be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of the hope of salvation. "For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ."

How does that work? When Jesus died on the cross, He took upon Himself all sin and absorbed the wrath of God against it, so that you, having put your trust in Him, will not be appointed to wrath—though one day wrath will surely come. It will come suddenly upon those who are not watching. But you are of the day; you are awake, enlightened by the Spirit of grace, and it will not overtake you as a thief.

Knowledge of the Future Should Alter Present Behavior

Notice the "therefore" in the middle: "Let us not sleep as others do, but let us watch and be sober" (1 Thessalonians 5:6). Because we know this, it should have a transforming effect in our lives. Peter says the same in 2 Peter 3:11: "Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness?" The J.B. Phillips translation reads, "In view of the fact that all these things will be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be? Surely men of good and holy character, who are expecting and earnestly longing for the coming day of God."

This was the teaching of both Paul and Peter, and they got it from the one who died, rose, and ascended. In Matthew 24:42 Jesus said, "Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming." In verse 44, "Be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect." And in Matthew 25:13, "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour." The wise follower of Jesus is a vigilant servant. The Lord will return, and when He comes He will pour out wrath upon a fallen, sinful world.

Christians Look Forward to the End of All Things

Peter continues: "Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells" (2 Peter 3:13). This is a touchy point I went back and forth on this week, because it needs to be parsed carefully. What we should never look forward to with excitement is the day of wrath. Even the Old Testament prophets said, "Woe to him who looks forward to the day of wrath." Nobody should be excited about the coming day of God's wrath.

But what comes on the other side of that day—when God's purifying, refining fire purges all sin from the face of the earth—is what we look forward to. According to His promise, a new heaven and a new earth. Whether it is a wholly new creation or a renewed creation after sin is purged, whatever the case, it is new. He makes all things new.

Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away... 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." (Revelation 21:1-5)

No death, no pain, no sorrow, no illness. I don't know about you, but that sounds really good. When sin is gone, God can dwell with His people and wipe away all tears. I long for this, because I see the same news you do. When we see children shot at school, people bombed in Syria, people beheaded in northern Iraq—there is a part in every one of us that says, that needs to stop. And the Bible proclaims there will be a day when it will be no more. So we have an optimistic vision of the future that comes after this purging fire.

God's Glorious Promise Should Prompt the Pursuit of Godliness

Because of this great promise, Peter says, "Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless" (2 Peter 3:14). The NIV reads, "Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with Him." Peter loved this phrase—he uses it four times in this short letter (2 Peter 1:10, 1:15, and here).

What does it mean to make every effort? I regularly go to the gym, and this week I was on the treadmill in front of a pull-up assist machine—the kind where you set a weight that reduces your body weight so it's easier to do pull-ups. A person came in and started cranking out pull-ups, and from a distance they looked awesome. Then I noticed they'd set the weight to about 150 pounds, and they couldn't have weighed more than 170. They could do pull-ups all day long—but they were not making every effort.

Or maybe you remember flipping channels late at night and finding the infomercial for the ab belt. "You want firm, toned abs but don't have time to work out? Just put it on and push the button and it will shock you." Then they show a picture of someone ripped like Atlas—right after his four-hour workout. That's not making every effort.

So how do we make every effort? Peter tells us back in 2 Peter 1:5: "Giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful." Paul says the same to young Timothy in 1 Timothy 4: "Exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come." Bodily exercise is good for this world, but it won't carry into eternity. Godliness has rewards in this life and the one to come.

The Patience of God Is Salvation

Peter continues: "Consider that the long-suffering of our Lord is salvation" (2 Peter 3:15). Earlier in the chapter the scoffer asks, "Where is the sign of His coming? I thought you said Jesus was coming back—why is He delaying?" The Lord delays because He is gracious. Verse 9 told us He is "not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." Why has Jesus not returned yet? Because He does not delight in the death of the wicked. He does not want to see people destroyed.

In 2 Timothy 2, Paul tells Timothy we are to pray for all men that they would come to faith, because God desires that all would be saved. His desire is not that anyone would face His wrath, because Jesus took that wrath on the cross. So God's long-suffering is meant to give time for more people to turn to Him in repentance and for us to share the good news.

Grow in Grace and Knowledge

Peter adds a quick side note: writing around AD 66, he already regards Paul's letters as Scripture—"as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you... in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures" (verse 16). The early church already held Paul's epistles as Scripture.

Then verse 17: because the Lord will one day return, because He has promised a glorious future, because He waits patiently wanting to save more people, "you therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen." What should we be doing? Exercising ourselves in godliness, growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I thank You for Your word. It's a challenging word dealing with subjects we don't like to ponder—the coming day of wrath. But I thank You that You have not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through Your Son. Jesus, we thank You that on the cross two thousand years ago You took our sin, our transgression, our iniquity, and absorbed wrath for us that we might receive grace and righteousness. I pray that this message of grace would so impact our lives that we would not be able to hold it back, but would be compelled to give it out. Freely we have received; freely may we give. Help us to be watching and waiting, ready for the day when You come and call us home. And until then, give us the same passion and desire You have to see people come to the knowledge of the truth and to repentance, that we would not desire that any would perish. Stir our hearts, Lord. Stir our hearts. Amen.