Tag Archives: 2 Peter 3:8-9

Promises Made = Promises Kept: The Patient, Loving, Persistent Father

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There are a lot of promises made in this world, and let’s face it, a lot of them get broken. (Have you checked the divorce rate lately? And that doesn’t even include the LTSU’s-“Living Together Split Ups!) Good intentions don’t always work out, things and people change, and sometimes promises just don’t get kept… I promise you, though, that if you read this you will be encouraged that there is a Promise Keeper, and He’s made some promises to YOU:

Long Standing Promises From a Very Old Book

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9, NKJV) I know some people don’t like the King James Version of the Bible, and most of us have moved on to other more modern versions. I mostly use the NIV or ASV these days, but I still love some of the poetic language from the good old King James Version. After all, it is the Bible I “grew up” on, the one in which I read, memorized and studied for most of my formative Christian years.

As a result, I still like it and still use it from time to time. Yes, the language can be archaic and awkward, and sometimes it is harder to read or understand; but it can also be more formal and beautiful. And sometimes (like this time, for instance) it just flat-out creates the opportunity to make some good points, and to explore the promises of God.

There’s a Difference

This is one of those verses, because it says: 1) God keeps his promises. Scripture shows over and over that the Lord’s timing is different from man’s, and in fact Peter has just reminded us of that in verse 8. But the story of redemption as presented in the Bible over a span of thousands of years is a complex tapestry woven from revelation and history that depicts God keeping. His. Promises. Men are fickle and inconstant, and we see them throughout the tapestry weaving threads of greed, murder, deceit, lust, jealousy, violence and betrayal. God’s persistent love remains true throughout.

2) God is patient. Yes, the Lord is to be feared, and yes it is a fearful thing to fall into the hand of the Living God, and yes His judgment is terrible; but Peter reminds us that God’s wrath never falls impatiently, and that He is long-suffering towards rebellious fools who thumb their nose at Him, deny Him, and disdain His Word.

True No Matter How You Say It

3) I just like the use of “us-ward”. He is an “us-ward” God. He is the God of relationships. The Lord introduced Himself to Moses as “the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob”. We are His children and he is our Father. His love and concern and good-will are pointed “us-ward”. He loves US and His promises are made to US.

4) The Lord is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” This verse doesn’t say that God will bring everyone to salvation. In fact, Jesus reminds us in Matthew 7:13-14 that “wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” But it does say that God wants all men to come to repentance. I think it’s logical that an “us-ward” God is looking for some “God-ward” people, so repent. Claim His promises. Be God-ward. I think it makes sense no matter how you say it.

Us-ward Promises

Peter said something we really should cherish:
The Lord is not willing that any should perish,
But offered His love–and He offers it still!–
Without overriding our choice or our will,
And He offers His promise, His Word, and His voice,
While He lovingly, patiently gives us a choice…
Peter’s epistle brings hope and a good word:
The KJV says God is patient to us-ward;
Perhaps we’d be smarter by turning to God-ward,
Grateful that Grace is much more than an odd word.

To buy my latest book, Real People, Real Christmas: Thirty-one Days Discovering the Hidden Treasures of the Christmas Story, go here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1729034918/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For Slaying Giants: Thirty Days with David, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Slaying-Giants-Thirty-Devotions-Ordinary/dp/172568327X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535814431&sr=8-1&keywords=Slaying+Giants%3A+Thirty+Days+With+David
To buy my book, Beggar’s Bread, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Beggars-Bread-Devotions-Ordinary-Guy/dp/1535457392/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473336800&sr=8-1&keywords=Beggar%27s+Bread

Choose Wisely: Should You Read Today’s Blog About Eternity?

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In the grand scheme of things, what happens to us? Do we get to choose our fate, or not? Is where we spend eternity something that just happens to us, or do we have a choice in the matter? Here’s what the Apostle Peter wrote about it:

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:8-9, NIV)

Put Things in Perspective

Peter quotes Psalm 90:4 here to remind us that a day with the Lord is like a thousand years… (So if you’ve heard that phrase and wondered where it came from, there you go!) The perspective of a thousand-year day reminds me of the man who learned that a million dollars was but a penny to God, and a thousand years was but a day. He asked the Lord, “Father, will you give me a penny?” The Lord said yes. Overjoyed, the man asked, “Father, when can I have it?” The Lord said, “Just wait a day.”

Peter contrasts God’s eternal nature with our finite one. It’s hard to wrap our brains around the difference because we are so used to endings. This short passage highlights two important things: God’s timing is by definition different from our timing, and God’s agenda may be different than we assume.

Why Would God Allow Us to Choose?

As an eternal God, His desire is truly for all men to live with Him for all eternity. This might explain why the day of the Lord (which Peter felt could happen at any time) is still yet to come. God is patient, and every passing year allows a new set of people with birthdays to come to Him in repentance. I understand people objecting to that notion, feeling that a loving God would surely choose all men to be saved all the time. He could indeed do that, but He’d have to take away our choice. If He gave us no choice, we wouldn’t have freedom, and He wouldn’t be loving.

Second, Peter says God tarries in executing judgment because His desire is that all men would have an opportunity to choose grace. I don’t think this verse means that all men will be ultimately saved (universalism); but it DOES mean that Christ died for all men, and all have the opportunity to repent. It’s hard to believe, but not everybody chooses repentance, and not everybody wants God. C S Lewis says, of the person who declines to choose God: “He has his wish—to live wholly in the self and to make the best of what he finds there. And what he finds there is hell.”

Your Choice

Many people follow their own will, or depend on a finite perspective to accept or reject God when God’s will for us is infinitely better than our own… Man’s will often chooses temporary gratification over long-term benefits. God’s will always sees the bigger picture and provides the opportunity for the greatest benefit. “Instead he is patient, not wanting anyone to perish…” In the grand scheme of things, when it comes to eternity, you really DO have a choice. Perhaps you should consider your options carefully.

Peter says that God desires all folks to find repentance;
He wants all men to choose His love, and not sin’s deadly sentence.
When you think of eternity and all there is to lose,
Make sure you think of what God says right here before you choose.
I’m talking about what Peter wrote, so please do not despise me.
His letter offers sage advice; in fact, he says it nicely:
God’s steadfast, loving patience offers you a choice. Choose wisely.

To buy my latest book, Real People, Real Christmas: Thirty-one Days Discovering the Hidden Treasures of the Christmas Story, go here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1729034918/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For Slaying Giants: Thirty Days with David, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Slaying-Giants-Thirty-Devotions-Ordinary/dp/172568327X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535814431&sr=8-1&keywords=Slaying+Giants%3A+Thirty+Days+With+David
To buy my book, Beggar’s Bread, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Beggars-Bread-Devotions-Ordinary-Guy/dp/1535457392/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473336800&sr=8-1&keywords=Beggar%27s+Bread
For the Kindle Edition, go here: https://www.amazon.com/Beggars-Bread-Bo-Jackson-ebook/dp/B01K5Z0NLA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1473336800&sr=8-2&keywords=Beggar%27s+Bread