2 Peter Chapter 3:

2 Peter Chapter 3:

3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

4 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 the creation.

5 For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:

6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

9 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.

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

13 Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

14 Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

The coming of the Lord and the end of all things as we presently know them is the most referenced event in the entire Bible, and with very good reason. After all, since sin entered into the world, this cataclysmic crescendo has been the one inevitable thing throughout history. Even though God has effectively ended the world once already with the Flood as Peter references in this passage, the second coming of the Lord will literally make the Flood quite pale in comparison. The 'end time' and end time events have long been an obsession with many people, and in the time of advanced technology that we live in, one can access opinions and supposed information galore, complete with dramatic and technologically impressive video and such. These kinds of things are so available today simply because there is such a market for it due to the mass obsession with people wanting to know exactly what will happen, and when, in regard to 'the end of the world.' What I would like to point out is that this zeal and obsession people have is really a misguided effort to prepare themselves for what is to come before the end. If we truly want to be ready for the things to come, we should focus not on the future, but rather on what we actually have to deal with today. The key to what I'm trying to say is found in the last verse of our text Bible passage, which for emphasis sake I will cite again: "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless."

Keeping our spirits free from anxiety and fear, along with every other evil, is something that we can and must do in the here and now. The point I'm making, and Peter's point of saying that is that if we do NOT "keep [our] hearts with all diligence" today, we will not even be prepared for the events of today, much less for the earth shaking events of the end of the age (Prov. 4:23; Lk. 21:25,26). To clarify what I'm saying I will cite the second passage that I referenced just now: "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken" (Lk. 21:25,26). Note that Jesus said that it will be the failure of the 'hearts' of men, constituted by the lack of diligence to 'keep their hearts,' that will be their undoing. Another notable thing that Jesus said just a little bit after that statement, tells us HOW we can be "found... In peace, without spot, and blameless:" "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Lk. 21:36). It is by means of much honest and effectual prayer that we keep our hearts in a place of pureness and peace. The beloved apostle gave us the same instruction as Peter in regard to our preparation for the coming of the Lord: "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (I Jn. 3:2,3).

Jesus also emphasized in the sermon on the mount that being prepared for the events of today is where our focus needs to be: "Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof" (Mat. 6:31-34). I believe the point is sufficient made now, so allow me to say that the knowledge of end time events is very important to our faith, otherwise there would not be so much in the Bible about it. But to approach these things with an obsessive spirit of fear and apprehension will most likely lead someone to the wrong sources for that information. Fear will lead one to fear, and there is certainly an abundance of fear-mongering 'information' plastered all over the Internet about end time events. If we focus on keeping our hearts pure and full of peace, and we give ourselves to honest, diligent study of the Bible; God's 'Spirit of truth' can lead us and teach us in the things we need to know about the things to come (Jn. 16:13). Being led by the Spirit of God, and being taught by that same Spirit, is really the key to all true understanding and knowledge (Jn. 14:26; Rom. 8:14). I think that about covers the bases for now. God bless.