2 Peter 3:8-14
But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
Welcome to Getting ready for Sunday, a podcast of first Lutheran Church. Each week I introduced the readings for the upcoming Sunday with some notes and explanation so you can be ready for worship when you arrive. I look at the Old Testament, Psalm epistle and Gospel reading for the upcoming Sunday and offer a few notes and explanation. The Epistle reading for Sunday, December 10, is from Second Peter chapter three, verses eight through 14. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is worth as 1000 years and 1000 years has one day, the Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise at some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. And then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn. But according to his promise, we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these Be diligent to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace. Here ends the reading. Here, the apostle Peter is looking forward to the day of the Lord. And he begins with a question that I, you know, I think many Christians have, why is it taking so long? Come on Jesus get down here. He says, with the Lord one day is as 1000 years and 1000 years as one day, the Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness. So he's saying, God is not slow, what is he? He's patient. He doesn't want people to perish. He wants all to reach repentance. But then he goes on to say, be ready. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. Jesus uses that image like a thief in the night. So we must always be ready on the watch. He describes the heavens passing away with a roar, and the body's burning up and dissolved as well as the earth and all the works are done, it will be exposed. The reason he's talking about the Earth and other heavenly bodies and all these things burning away and being dissolved, is he wants to show us that these things are temporary, that the only thing that matters is eternal life. And that's what he says in verse 11. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people out to you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, right? We shouldn't hold on to the things of this world. They don't matter. They don't last. Heaven and earth will pass away, burned up in this fire. And so all that matters is how we live and how we follow our Savior. He says, but according to this his promise, we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. So the promise we're looking forward to is not this earth continuing forever, but a new heavens remade after it's been burned up in God's judgment remade to be perfect forever. And so while we wait for that, we endeavor to be faithful so that when he finds us He will find us in Christ saved without spot or blemish. That's all I have for today. We'll see you on Sunday. Bye.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai