But
there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false
teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even
denying the Lord who bought them, and
bring on themselves swift destruction.
And many will follow their
destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By
covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their
judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. 2 Peter 2:1-3 NKJV
Our
subject last week was the warning we receive about false prophets appearing in
the end of the age as part of the apostasy which will occur in the Church just
before the return of Jesus for His bride.
Considering the seriousness of the offense, and the damage that will be
done, it is natural to wonder what God has planned for these people in light of
their offense against Him. Also, it goes
without saying that if we are concerned at all with the “what” God has planned
for them, we are more than likely rather impatient for the ‘when” as well.
One
of my favorite writers in the New Testament concerning the time of the end of
the age is the apostle Peter. You may recall some of my past writings on Peter
and his letters to the Church, and I referred to them as his “last words”
because of his awareness that his death was quickly approaching. I believe that because of his knowledge of
what was to shortly occur, his concern was for the future of the Church and the
problems it would encounter. In this
passage from Peter’s second letter to the Church, we are told in no uncertain
terms that their judgment is guaranteed.
In
this chapter Peter begins by telling us that not only will there be false
prophets as we approach the return of Christ, these people will receive the
judgment they richly deserve just as God has judged others in the past. Although it might seem to us at times that
God could have forgotten because these individuals are not judged immediately,
Peter makes the point that our Father never forgets. He then goes on to remind us of three
examples of God passing His judgment on those who have done something to
deserve His wrath.
For
if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and
did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people,
a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; and
turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who
afterward would live ungodly;
and delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy
conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, tormented his righteous soul from day to day by
seeing and hearing their
lawless deeds)— 2 Peter 2:4-8 NKJV
From the way that Peter words these verses,
it almost seems certain that he is responding to the question of “when” will
God judge? I believe either some in the
Church were asking the question already, or Peter understood that it would be
asked. Being impatient to see God judge
sin is a common theme throughout the scriptures with many examples we can find
of His people crying out “how long”? God
will even hear this in heaven from those who have been martyred for His names’
sake.
And they cried with a loud voice, saying,
“How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those
who dwell on the earth?” Revelation 6:10 NKJV
When we see someone doing something we know
is contrary to God’s laws, it is natural to desire to see justice applied. However, at a time where believers are
becoming more and more the minority in today’s society, and many are
experiencing some sort of persecution, the temptation to defend ourselves and
attempting to somehow persecute those who persecute us is strong. We are told in no uncertain terms, though,
that it is not our place to do that but rather God’s alone. Paul put it this way in his letter to the
Romans;
Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath;
for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will
repay,” says the Lord.
Romans 12:19 NKJV
So it begins to make sense that if we are not to be
the instruments of God’s justice, we are placed in a position of waiting on God
to exercise His promise to judge. This
then, in light of our natural impatience, leads us to ask the question “when”? This is where Peter surprises us by answering
that question by reminding us of the event we are all eagerly watching for, the
rapture of the Church. Many have
referred to this passage as an “if/when” argument to support the doctrine of
the Pre-tribulation rapture. By using
the example of Noah and the flood, and Lot at Sodom and Gomorrah, Peter illustrates
that God delivers His own before He
passes His judgment. Notice that Peter
begins verse four by saying “if God did not
spare” and follows up in verse nine by
saying;
then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations
and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, 2 Peter 2:9
NKJV
Do
you want to know when God will judge?
Peter’s answer is that God is waiting to remove His own from harm’s way before
He judges the world for their offense towards Him. Never fall into the trap of believing that
God has forgotten, or changed His mind, or any other of the lies Satan uses to
excuse sinful behavior. Peter addresses
this in the next chapter where he tells his readers this;
knowing
this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to
their own lusts,
and saying, “Where is the promise of
His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of
creation.”
For this they willfully forget: that
by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water
and in the water,
by which the world that then existed perished, being
flooded with water.
But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same
word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly
men. 2 Peter 3:3-7 NKJV
God
will judge. We have His promise on that.
Keep
watching.
