The Day of the Lord (Part C)

It's all Jesus. In the world you have to do things for that paycheck.

You have to have the money. But the righteous soul understands this will go into the war chest. This helps me stay healthy so I can work, serve the Lord, raise my children under Christ and do whatever it is I'm doing. So maybe God will send somebody my way and say, says to me, what makes you distinct? What makes you different?

Why aren't you like us? This is Cross Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of Second Peter.

Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross Reference Radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. But for now, here's Pastor Rick in Second Peter chapter three with his continuing study called The Day of the Lord. What is so strange about the Son of Man coming from heaven as a man, doing these deeds in your face, preaching righteousness and living that way? What is so odd about that? Well, they weren't interested. They wanted to kill him publicly in front of everybody as shamefully as they could. And they achieved that on his flesh because Jesus said, no one kills me.

That's why he said, Father, into your hands I commend my spirit. Nobody does that. Who does that? Who can just turn themselves off?

No one. I mean, you can, but you need something to do it. He just dismissed his humanity. I'm out of here. I'm not simplifying it.

I'm just trying to make it not complicated. Well, anyway, back to the nutty, odd approach to Christianity that implies instability, which he will then later say is not something that belongs to the righteous but the unrighteous. Would you like a seatmate on the next flight to be an oddball or just nutty or both? I don't want one like that. I mean, if you ride the subways in New York, they're there.

Sometimes they get the whole car to themselves. I'm trying to say that there are Christians that think somehow behaving like a weirdo is behaving as though you have the Holy Spirit. And as Tozier so eloquently said, the Holy Spirit is not the cause of insanity.

He is the cure. We are told to be in our scripture harmless. We are told to be separate. We are told to be wise. And here it comes, one that we all struggle with from time to time. We are told to be kind to one another. It's really not my fault when I lose it.

If somebody just kept tugging on my cape. Excuses, excuses, nothing about being screwy or aloof or arrogant or unkind. We're never encouraged to be those things, nor are we. Is it winked at in scripture? We are to be mindful. Verse two of Second Peter, chapter three, we are not to be ignorant. Verse eight, we are to be diligent. Verse fourteen.

And we are to be where if I can lump that one in with those others. In verse seventeen, we are to be ready to put on the armor of God, not a straight jacket. Clothed in righteousness, not weirdness. Now, if this offends you, it is your own conscience. It is your own conscience bearing witness to this truth. Don't be that.

There's no need. Just be who you are in Christ. He's given you enough.

You don't have to go look for a cherry to put on top. Just be like Christ in the simplicity of the word. He says godliness here. And that's what we're talking about.

What should he say? What should these apostles encourage us to be ungodly? It is excellence in character. None of us make it all the way there. But I think most of us who love the Lord cover so much ground in this area that we otherwise would never have covered.

Have we remained in the world? Just think about all the things you used to do before coming to Christ. Those of you who were once in the world and you're not to do those anymore. And you may still long for some of them in your flesh, which your spirit knows better. And because your spirit does fight it out with your flesh, here you are. So it does make a difference, contrary to the lies of hell.

We must not let our view of God's love blind us to his holiness and what he wants from us. You say, but I'm always failing. So you're always getting up too, aren't you? That ought to irk everybody in hell. Just keep doing it.

Verse 12. You know, sometimes I have to tell myself these things too. I mean, I know some of you think I'm one step from perfect. I sometimes have to say, Lord, I know you love me.

I know you care. All the Bible verses and the knowledge in the years and still there are things I struggle with. And I either believe what I preach or I'm faking it. That is, to me, repulsive. If I fail, it's not because I'm faking it.

It's because I'm weak. But it's not because I didn't believe it. I believe everything that I preach, even when I'm wrong. Hopefully it gets filtered and corrected.

But I work really hard not to do that. As I would think you would, too, when it comes to sharing the gospel, that you've worked really hard to understand how to articulate your own faith. Verse 12. Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire and the elements will melt, liquefy with fervent heat. Longing for, there it is. We want to be in a place where there's no more curse, no more sin. But this is stabilized, I have to add, as Jesus pointed out in his own ministry.

It's day right now and I have to work. The night is coming. There are still souls to be saved and I want to be part of it. How would you like to get to heaven and found out you've made no contribution to the population? You've done nothing but received. Now under certain circumstances it is still quite incredible, like the thief on the cross, the outlaw on the cross.

It's still quite remarkable that he got it under such difficult conditions. But what if he had the gospel, believed his whole life, and just never did anything with it? Those of you who serve in a church, you're contributing to the work of the Lord. That's why it is called ministry.

It is what he is doing in a locale and you're part of it. And it matters because if we stop having servants that did so much here, some of you don't know how much work goes on into making the bride of Christ attractive every time we assemble. Just last week two of our ladies came in and shampooed the entire carpet in this room. And every other room in the building that has carpet. And we have so many servants like this that step up. In every ministry, the ushers, the love and care, the kindness you get in the chapel store. They even give you candy for free, which really burns me up.

Why do they do this? It's all Jesus. In the world, you have to do things for that paycheck.

You have to have the money. But the righteous soul understands this will go into the war chest. This helps me stay healthy so I can work, serve the Lord, raise my children under Christ, and do whatever it is I'm doing. So maybe God will send somebody my way and says to me, what makes you distinct? What makes you different?

Why aren't you like us? Why don't you want to go in the back and have a joint together? That's putting up a building, right?

You have this joint that everybody can go into. Peter, in writing this 12th verse, he's repeating the things he has said earlier in verse 10. And he's repeating it with a force of conviction that we lose a little bit in a letter. Whether he dictated this or wrote it himself is irrelevant.

It is still translated into the same passion, making its way to paper. So as he's speaking this way, his tone returns. He says, looking for the hastening of that day. It's coming and it's going to be fire and things are going to melt. It is going to be cataclysmic. That's his tone. He gets a little animated here, as I am.

Practicing moves. Verse 13. Nevertheless, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

The world to come is the world we want, not this one. This one's broken. It's damaged.

It's damaged beyond repair. That's why it's going to be burned up. No, we're not going to all be sitting on it burning and cooking.

I mean, don't give these silly images. Of course, God will have dealt with the souls that resisted him, and he will have issued into his presence those who have not and start this new eternal age. Verse 14. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found in him in peace without spot and blameless. Well, we've crossed a Rubicon here.

Now we're into verse 14. We've got to finish. Work hard, Peter says. That's what be diligent means. Come on, put some elbow grease in it, boys. Put your backs into it, lads. That's what he's saying.

And lassies. If you're going to go ahead and get from one destination to the other, put some effort into it. What did you expect? To come to this church and walk away wholly on just magically? That would be sweet.

I would be bragging to the other pastors. You got any people like that? But it's not the way it is. Be diligent in this life, especially with each other. It's so hard to be diligent with people.

They're just a pain in the necks. Not all of them all of the time, just some of them some of the time, and that's all it takes. But Jesus says this, Luke's gospel. You think the apostles are fierce? Listen to our Lord. He says, Let your waste be girded and your lamps burning. You yourselves be like men who wait for their master. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Read that whole section and find out how intense it gets when he says what happens to those that aren't doing what they're supposed to do. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. And that's what Peter is saying, looking forward. He says it three times. He mentions to look forward and here in verse 14. And again, while I'm eating up time looking, I won't do it.

You can do it on your own. We'll come back. And I don't mean that rudely. 2 Corinthians 11, verse 12, For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. Now, remember, jealousy in the context of scripture means it's something that is rightfully mine that is being taken away from me. And so it creates this spirit of jealousy, not the world's kind of jealousy where I possess of you, I own you. And if nobody can have you, if I can't have you, then nobody can.

That's worldly. But when the scriptures speak of godly jealousy, it is saying this is my battlefield because something is trying to take what doesn't belong to them. And so when Paul says, I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy, for I have betrothed you to one husband that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. Paul says, I want you to be holy and pure. I don't want this or this stuff coming into your life, destroying the innocence, the beauty of your salvation. He says, be diligent, Peter does, to be found in him in peace.

Again, work hard because he's worthy, incidentally, and it is worth it. And he says, without spot and blameless. This is what Peter said of Jesus in chapter 1 of 1 Peter, that he is the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish, without spot. He also said the false teachers in 2 Peter chapter 2, they are spotted and blemished. Verse 13 of chapter 2, he says, they are spots and blemishes carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you. They have embedded themselves with you. They're false.

They are spotted and blemished and they don't care. And so follow Christ and not them. When Paul wrote to Timothy, a very similar thing. He says in 1 Timothy 6, I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things and behold Christ Jesus, who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ appearing, whether you die or whether you're raptured. That's the appearing of Christ for each individual in one of those two ways. And we are guaranteed to struggle with sin and yet remain a child of God.

How beautiful. Verse 15, and consider the long suffering of our Lord is salvation as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you. If God struck dead or just struck hard, everyone or anyone who misbehaved or committed some wrong act without giving any space for remorse and repentance. What would happen? There would be no people left.

That's what would happen. But he does give space. That's why we suffer those who break our hearts and pray on their behalf, because we understand the war taking place. Again, Jesus said to the church at Progamos, I've given you space to repent. You didn't take it or you better take it.

It's up to the individual. What's it going to be said about the one who's been given space? God is saying, don't think I'm enjoying this. Don't think for a moment because I haven't come upside your head that somehow I'm good with this. I'm telling you what's happening. I'm suffering it because I want to reach you.

I'm giving you time and it hurts. What if he forgave all those who misbehaved and did wrong according to his predetermined plan? Well, see, that's the difference between Cain and Abel. Cain wanted to come his way. Abel came God's way.

Cain was rebuked. Abel was received. That's the difference between the two outlaws on the cross.

The cross at Christ's cross. There, one submitted to God and his terms and the other did not. One is in heaven as we speak.

The other is not and never will be. And that is that's how it is, he says, as our beloved Paul. Peter loved Paul also as our beloved Paul, brother Paul.

We're in verse 15. He loved Paul because Paul loved the Lord so much with everything he had. In spite of the fact that Paul publicly called Peter out and straightened him out for hypocrisy. This is Peter and Paul is like, I don't care who it is, but he's wrong. He dealt with this.

He gave Peter time to fix this. Peter didn't fix it because Christianity was in danger of stopping right there in Antioch, Syria. And Paul stirred by the spirit. You read about it in Galatians Chapter two.

But here's the probably as magnificent a part of the story. Paul calls out Peter in front of everybody. Peter is man enough to receive the correction and the rebuke and harbor no ill feelings against Paul. In fact, he's devoted enough to Jesus Christ to uphold all that Paul has said and to admit that Paul is a deep man.

He does it. We'll get to that in verse 16 in a minute. What a man these people were. Well, you know, when they died, God still has other people like that to this day that just have the right stuff when confronted with wrong things. He says according to the wisdom given to him. See, Peter is attesting that the gift of divine wisdom, wisdom and knowledge, not the same thing, operated in Paul.

Wisdom is knowing what to do with knowledge, one greater part of wisdom. And Paul admired this and supported him one apostle to another. And to do this, Peter had to be a man who wasn't fraught or loaded with in soaked with insecurities about himself. Peter was a solid man.

Make no mistake about that. He says he wrote to you Pauline letters. We were talking about long suffering that shows up in Romans and Second Corinthians and Ephesians and Colossians and Galatians.

Who knows what letter Peter is talking about. Verse 16, As also in all his epistles speaking in them of these things 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. Yeah, because the Holy Spirit's not in them.

That's why they twist them, twist them to fit their own desires. He's ranking Paul's writings as equal with the Old Testament or the Bible. He's saying Paul's writings are the word of God. That is enormous.

He's saying that without shame or hesitation. It is a very beautiful part of our Bible to see this powerful unity amongst the apostles. He says in which some things are hard to understand.

We all read Paul's letters. There's a lot of stuff there hard to understand even when you've been studying it for years. And then you get something and you forget it years later.

You got to go back and do it again. Which untaught and unstable people twisted their own destruction. That's the false teachers.

Jehovah Witnesses being perhaps the most successful at this in our society. As they do also the rest of the scriptures as I've commented on. Verse 17, you therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware that you also fall from your own steadfastness being led away with the error of the wicked. Never, never do the apostles let Christians think that you can walk away from Christ and it's all going to be OK.

They just do. And right. You know, if we just live Acts two forty two. The act of Acts, the book of Acts, chapter two, verse forty two.

They continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine teachings. That's our Bible. That's our New Testament Bibles. If we continue in what they taught, then he says in their fellowship, if we put ourselves where they put themselves when it comes to people, he says in breaking of bread.

That is the communion table. That is the realness of the presence of Christ with the people of Christ. And he says in prayers, if we do it like them, we're told in Acts two forty two, we have the advantage. And he says with the error of the wicked, those he says he doesn't want them to be. Beware, lest you also fall from your steadfastness being led away with the error of the wicked, which is the judgment of Christ. The penalty for that rejection of Christ is eternal damnation, as we've talked about. I think a lot of pastors are afraid to use words like damnation and condemnation in hell. Jesus wasn't afraid to use it and the apostles weren't. We better not be either. You do when you preach Christ, you say, listen, there's a consequence to telling him, go away from me. I'll hear you at a later time.

Don't trust that stuff. Verse 18, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to him be glory both now and forever. Amen. We ought to grow in knowledge, but which comes first? Knowledge or grace? Grace. Grace is a form of knowledge, but it's one that just kind of comes upon us.

Just like a blanket, like a cool breeze. Grace just hits us. It is one thing to be led to the person of Christ. It's another thing to be developed in Christ. Now, who is arrogant enough to think that I've given my life to Christ? Therefore, I know everything I need to know now. Therefore, I know how this Christian life is.

I don't need any development. I don't need anybody who's more developed than me to help me develop to be a better me. I've got it all because, after all, it's me. Grace will deal with that. We are saved by grace through faith and that not of ourselves so that we can grow in grace. That's this kindness that reflects the love of God.

It is undeserved, God giving it to us nonetheless. And so we don't confuse our struggles with our salvation. We struggle because we are saved. God will present us faultless, not because we are, but because he presents us that way. Jude 24, and out to him who was able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy. Christ is delighted that you stuck with him in spite of your failures. That's the picture painted by that stroke of Jude. It was abundant grace for all saints and all situations, for all sins. Jesus conquered all and Peter saw it.

He watched him do it. So as much more I could say, I want to close with a quote from Corrie 10 Boom. It's just one of her.

Corrie 10 Boom. All right, we're ready. The blood of Jesus has never cleansed an excuse.

Wow, that got to some of you, not me. It's not for excuses. It's for people who face facts. The God of truth and grace is born. Love and humility. Don't be the know it all. I know it all. I don't need the grace. I know it all. Eve wanted to know, but she messed up the grace in the process.

She forfeited the grace in the process because all she had to do was obey. That's all we have time for on today's edition of Cross Reference Radio. You've been listening to Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia as he teaches through the book of Second Peter. If you'd like to listen to more messages from this series or if you'd like more information about this program, please visit our Web site, crossreferenceradio.com. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast so you'll never have to miss a program. Just search for Cross Reference Radio in iTunes, Google Play Music or your favorite podcast app. What a great way to keep God's word with you wherever you go. We hope you'll tune in again next time as Pastor Rick continues studying through the scriptures right here on Cross Reference Radio.