In his sermon titled 'Living in the Light of the Lord's Return,' Trent Moody expounds upon 2 Peter 3:8-13, emphasizing the importance of understanding the certainty and suddenness of the Lord's return. The sermon draws parallels between the days of Noah and the coming day of the Lord, warning against complacency and the folly of presuming upon God's longsuffering. Moody stresses that the scriptures serve not merely to increase knowledge but to transform lives, urging believers to live in holy conduct and godliness in anticipation of the Lord's return. The message underscores the need for readiness and preparedness, noting that the day of the Lord will come without warning, much like a thief in the night. Moody calls for a sober-minded and joy-filled anticipation of the promised new heavens and new earth, where righteousness will dwell, encouraging believers to live expectantly and godly as they await this fulfillment.

Well, good morning. 2nd Peter chapter 3 and we will begin in verse 10 and read through verse 13. Actually, let's back up to verse 8 and get a little context here. 2nd Peter 3 verse 8 and we'll read down through verse 13. Thus says the word of the Lord, but beloved do not forget this one thing that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day.

The Lord is not slack concerning His promise as some count slackness, but is long-suffering towards us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat. Both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? 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 with fervent heat.

Nevertheless, we according to his promise look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Let's pray. Our gracious Heavenly Father, when we come before this text, we desire, Lord, that your Word would correct our thinking, or that you would help us to think rightly about what this world means, about who you are, about what you are doing, about the end of time, and also how shall we live in light of the end of time. Lord we know that you are working all things according to the counsel of your own will because you are all wise, you're all good, you're all powerful, you're all sufficient. Lord, you're everything that we need and I pray today that every heart and mind, Lord, would be filled with the Word of God, that your Word, Lord, would do its work that only you can do and Lord we will praise you for it and we thank you in Jesus name.

Amen. You may be seated. In the prayer I alluded to the kind of the theme of this text this morning and that would be and it's on your paper I believe living in light of the Lord's return. One of the things as we learned last week that many of the scoffers would deny those scoffers being those people who do not believe in the creation. They reject the judgment of God during the days of Noah in which he flooded the entire world and destroyed all mankind and all animals except that which were safe within the ark.

We spoke regarding how that ark of Noah's day was much like a picture for a type of Christ that only those in Christ will be spared for the judgment to come. That those who are in Christ are much like Noah and his family who were in that ark and who were spared. And he teaches us these things and they are really amazing to our minds and to our eyes and to our ears as we think about it. But Peter has a point that he's working towards. Peter and the Lord and all the apostles and the writers of scripture are not writing just to increase our information.

Goodness, we live in a day of information and technology and all of these things and we just love to know all of these things. But the Scriptures are not written for just the increase of knowledge. It's just not written for the increase of information. The Word of God is written so that it would have an effect upon us and that we would be changed. That we would be different.

So my desire for each and every one of you today is that when you leave this place, when the service is over, that you will be different. That you will see the world in a different way, that perhaps you will see God in a different way. I pray that your world is turned upside down in a good way, that you're on the right path. So that's my desire this morning And so as we think about this living in light of the Lord's return, if the Lord is returning and he describes this that he is and we have the promises of God that God is returning, then that should change something about us and we're going to see what that is. So as we come to this text this morning, it's important to see that what Peter is saying is in connection with what we looked at last week.

This isn't just a text that we're gonna pull out of the middle of nothing. We want to we're gonna revert back and look at some of the things I spoke about last week because he's building up to this. Peter begins verse 10 with the word but and so therefore verse 10 is really he's not contrasting as much as he is balancing out our understanding of what Peter is writing about, about the long-sufferingness of the Lord specifically. And so Peter is wanting to balance this understanding of ours out. It's not to negate that what he has said, rather to give you a fuller picture of what the Lord would have us to know regarding the Lord's return in the last days.

So last week's message Peter showed us the certainty of things that was really my focal word if there was one word it would be the certainty of what God was doing. And so we understood the certainty of the words of the prophets. That's where we began. That even in the Old Testament, they were speaking of these things. And we can believe it because they were certain.

And then we understood the certainty that scoffers will come in the last days. They'll deny the creation, they'll deny that God judged the world in a flood. They'll say no, all things have continued as they were. Nothing has changed as through millions of years processed, but no, there's a certainty that God did judge the world with a flood because they want to reject that. Scaffers reject that because the truth and the factuality of the flood declares that men are sinners and God is righteous and God judges sin.

And then there was the certainty of the coming of the day of the Lord. But the scoffers remember said, where is the promise of his coming? I hadn't seen it. If I haven't seen it, it must not be coming. And they're fooling themselves.

And what Peter says is the reason you don't see it is not because God is slack. It's not because he doesn't have the power to do it. It's not because he's late on his schedule, but it's because the Lord is long-suffering. That word is so wonderful because it means exactly what it says. He suffers long.

He's very patient with us. He's not willing, he says, for any to perish but that all should come to repentance. And we dove into what all that meant. But these scoffers denied that, but Peter wanted them to understand that God desires everyone to come to repentance. God takes no delight in the death of the wicked, But he desires all men to repent.

So the Lord's not slack concerning this promise, but rather long-suffering, not willing that any of us should perish. Nevertheless, even though it is true that the Lord is long-suffering, Peter wanted to balance this out because if we just camp and hold there forever with the Lord is long-suffering, we may get into this rut of living as if the Lord will always be long-suffering. You can hold two truths at the same time and understand that these two things can go together and both are true. The sovereignty of God and the responsibility of man before God, those two things are true. And so as we look at this, the first point that I want you to understand in verse 10 is the suddenness of the day of the Lord.

Peter wanted us to understand that God's long suffering this will not endure forever even though he's long suffering nevertheless or but the day of the Lord will come. I think there's an emphasis there but it also is telling us how it will come as a thief in the night but I want you to know this it will come. There's no denying it. It is certain as we talked about last week. And so the point that Peter is pressing his reader to understand is that the day of the Lord will be sudden and it will be without warning.

Even though the Lord is long-suffering towards us and not willing that any of his elect should perish, the day will come. Do not presume upon the longsufferingness of the Lord." You know as a little child, often times when we were left without maybe mother or father, and we were old enough for them to go and do something, we would do things that we probably shouldn't do because we knew it was going to be a while before they got home. We'll have time to fix this up and clean it up before they get back, but sometimes they came back when we weren't expecting. Don't live your life that way. That's the foolishness of a child.

You see the scripture is very clear and it was read to us this morning that the Lord comes as a thief in the night. He comes when you're not expecting it. He comes without a warning. He's not going to say you have about 10 minutes, get everything straightened up before I get there. Now the Lord comes without warning it is it is the suddenness of it do not presume upon this grace of God this this mercy of his longsufferingness for us.

You see for When he comes it will be sudden. Matthew 24 was read this morning. My brother, he must have looked at my notes and grabbed my text and read the exact verses that I wanted to read, but you know what, if it's worth reading once it's worth reading twice. Matthew 24, 36 through 44, And you can turn there if you want to and look at these. There's a few words I want to point out to you that I find are very telling.

Matthew 24, 36 through 44. Jesus says, but of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so here Jesus is doing the exact same thing, or excuse me let me back that up, Peter is doing the exact same thing that Jesus was doing. He was taking the truth of the day of the Lord and taking it back and showing you the days of Noah. As certain as the days of Noah were will be the certainty of the day of the Lord, the ultimate day of the Lord.

And he says, but as for the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away. So also will the coming of the Son of Man be, then two men will be in the field, one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill, one will be taken and the other left. And then these words, watch therefore for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming.

But know this that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Our Lord is warning his disciples of the suddenness of that day. People will be going about their normal business, there will be people who are taking business practices and then all of a sudden they will be taken. Growing up I'd always heard that the ones who were taken were raptured out and didn't have to experience any of the difficulties and the judgments of God, but it's actually the opposite of that.

I wanted to show you a couple things real quickly as a side note. In verse 39, notice the word took. And did not know until the flood came and took them all away. Who was taken away in the days of Noah? It wasn't Noah and his family.

Those who were took or taken were everyone in the entire earth and they were brought into judgment by God and destroyed. So to keep a proper biblical context, that word is important and we understand that when he uses that word or that word form again, we need to pull that same context with us through the passage. We can't be discombobulated in our understanding of context but look at what he says. The flood came and took them all away. The flood took the wicked away.

They were taken in judgment. Then verse 40 and 41 say, one will be taken and the other left. These who were taken were not raptured but rather they were taken in judgment. They weren't ready. They were just out in the field about their business.

They were just grinding weed or they were just doing their domestic duties around the home and they weren't ready. That's what the Lord is trying to help us to understand. Everyone was going about their everyday lives. They were eating and drinking. They were marrying and given in marriage.

And then the day of the Lord came. The flood came and took them all away. And so it will be when the Lord Jesus Christ returns you will be going about your daily business if it is in your lifetime. We do not know when the Lord returns. That's the point.

Watch therefore. But if if we are here, you'll be going about your day. You may see people be marrying. You may be driving down the road on a Saturday and you see a church full and you realize, hey, there's people getting married today. And then the Lord will come.

Are you ready for that day? You will not expect it, but it will come upon you nevertheless. There is nothing and that's what Peter laid out for us in the previous verses that we looked at last week and the week before and the time before. There was no way for them to understand it and there was no way for them to escape it. There was nowhere to hide from this day.

In fact, as great and as destructive as the flood was, Peter in this text wants to show us how much more significant the day of the Lord will be. It will not be a time of flood, but it will be a time like nothing the world or the universe has ever seen it will be a time of cataclysmic destruction. Notice your second point, the cataclysmic nature of the day of the Lord. That's what he says in the second part of verse 10. He says, it will come as a thief in the night in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat.

Both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. He says here that the heavens will pass away. In our understanding of heavens we see that there's three heavens that the Bible talks about. The first heaven is where the birds fly, the second heaven is where the sun moon and stars are, and then the third heaven is where God dwells. I don't believe that we look at it as progression of height but it's different.

Where God dwells you're not going to travel there in some sort of a spaceship to get there. God is in the third heaven but he's talking about here the heavens of being the first heaven where the birds fly and the second heaven where the sun moon and stars dwell or reside. So this word passing away I cannot help but believe that the passing away of the heavens and the burning up of the earth is meant to be taken literally. As literally as the flood came upon this world and all of creation was totally rocked by this cataclysmic event of the flood where The fountains of the deep burst open and the windows of heaven poured out rain upon this world and it destroyed the entirety of the world and it did not look the same. This passing away here of these things and this destruction that is coming upon the world I believe is very literal because the flood is literal and that is what he connects it to.

It's not just a metaphor. The connection that Peter makes with this literal destruction of the world by the flood would mean the literal burning up of the world by fire. Not that the entire earth would cease to exist, but that there would be a burning up and a renewing. One commentator notes it this way, he says, being burned their form and Constitution will be changed much more probably than the Constitution or form of the old world was by the flood destruction by fire being more complete and dreadful than destruction by water. God is not only going to burn up the earth and its works, but with this burning up there will be naturally a purifying of the things of this earth.

I lean towards the idea of like a forest fire that goes through and just ravages a countryside and burns up everything in its path and yet that acts as a purifying because later you will see new life springing up in that area of just a charred countryside, green grass starts to grow. But I want to say that it is exponentially greater than that. It won't be a forest fire where the little pine cones actually it helps them to sprout forth their seeds so that they will grow new pine trees. This is something where it talks about even the elements will be burned up with fervent heat and we'll talk about that. So this burning up the works not just the buildings and the structures, to my chagrin as being a contractor and building things all of these things that I'm putting my hands to will be gone but it's also the works or the evil works of the people and the worldly system that we see in effect today.

It's not just the physical things like this podium that will be gone, but it is the entirety of the system. It's all of the evil works of men, not only the physical works but all of the moral things of people or immoral will be burned up. There's an example of this in Corinthians where he speaks about what your works are like, Are they like wood, hay, and stubble or gold, silver, and precious stones? The wood, hay, and stubble being totally completely burned up, the gold, silver, and precious stones not being destroyed but being purified. They last through that.

Your works that are done for the glory of God last through that burning up and they're purified. So all the dross of mankind if you will will be destroyed. And notice this there's a great noise. The heavens will pass away with a great noise. He describes the sound of the day of destruction.

You want to know what that sounds like? It's a great noise. It will pass away and it will be loud. You know, I used to never believe in the Big Bang Theory, but now I find that it's Biblical. It just hasn't happened yet.

There's coming a Big Bang and it's called the Day of Judgment. It's the day of the Lord in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise. I believe we could translate that big bang. That's a big noise, right? The Lord will destroy these things.

It's not the big bang of the evolutionary mindset, but it is the great noise of the day of the Lord. You know I was reading even this morning a passage came to my mind years ago in Bible college I was had to write a paper kind of like a pre-sermon if you will from the book of Amos and in the book of Amos he describes here this day of the Lord. And it was terrifying. He was telling his people because his people were living in sin and they were not being judicial, they were not being merciful, they were not doing justice and equity in the biblical sense of the word. They were not doing what was right and God says to them, you should not say you look forward to the day of the Lord.

That day will be a terror to you. It will be a day of darkness not of light. And so the point of Amos' words is this, if you are not right with the Lord, much like what Will read this morning and said in Psalm 11, he said that for the wicked what will this day be like, It will be not a day of delight. It is not a day that you look forward to. If you have not repented of your sins and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ to save you from your sins because he died on the cross for you to satisfy the righteous wrath of God for you, this day will be a day of terror.

It will be a day when men wish they could climb into holes and wish for the rocks to fall upon them to hide them from that great and awesome day of the Lord. Notice how he describes us, the elements will melt and so this I understand to mean that the very basic and foundational things of this world. Thus in the context of this passage I believe that it is the very atomic components of matter. If you've studied science, which I'm sure most of you have and you understand that all things are made up of atoms and they're so small we can't even see them and they're just amazing things that go on inside this invisible world that God created that holds all things together. We talked about that last week how Jesus in the book of Colossians says that he holds all things together by his word and yet here it seems to be him letting go.

In the sense that the elements will melt with fervent heat. When God destroyed the world by the flood, he used natural means to do so. He used water. We know what water is. He used a boat made out of wood.

We know what that is. But this time when God comes, it's not even, I don't even know that it's going to be supernatural. It's going to be amazing. But God doesn't have to use supernatural to destroy the world. He has created the world with scientific truths and scientific procedures by which God has established all things by which the elements will melt with fervent heat.

In fact when you split an atom and I'm not saying God's destroying the world by nuclear bomb but when you split certain atoms you get fervent heat. Naturally so in other words God is so powerful and so wise and nothing escapes him, he doesn't have to go outside the means of scientific truths and facts to do his plan. He can. He can do anything, but he doesn't have to do that. Really the greatest miracle in all the world that's not scientific is when he takes a dead man and makes him alive.

That's a greater miracle. When he takes someone who's dead in their sins and trespasses and their souls are black and darkened because they reject the knowledge of God. In fact, we read that in Romans chapter 1. They suppress the truth and unrighteousness. When God can take that person who suppresses the truth and unrighteousness, when he takes the scoffer who rejects the truth of the Word of God and he takes that person and by the Spirit of God he makes them alive so that they have eyes that they can see, ears that they can hear, and a mind that they can understand the truth of God's Word.

That is the greatest miracle in all the world. That's what he's done for many of you here and that's what he's done for me. It's the greatest miracle. Praise be to God. People wonder why we sing praises to God.

It seems so odd. Why do we all gather here and look at a screen and we're singing to a God we can't see? Because that God that our eyes can't see, our hearts understand because we walk by faith and not by sight. And he has redeemed us by the blood of the lamb. You ask me as the old hymn goes, you ask me how I know he lives.

He lives within my heart. He's changed me. He's taken a dead man and made him alive. He took a sinful man who enjoyed sin and the pleasures of sin and now I detest it. I'm not freed from it, but I detest it.

That is the God whom we serve. He makes us new. He's making us a new creation. And that same verbiage that he uses there about taking that person and making a new creation he's going to do to this world and that's what we're going to see is wonderful. You see, these elements will melt with fervent heat.

But what is the purpose of Peter's graphic language here? These are terrifying words. Let's be honest, imagine everything that you know burned up. Graphic words. He's driving at something.

So far he's giving us information. As I began this message with, I talked about just filling our minds with information. He's given us information about about heat and about elements and about all of these great noises and things like that. That's information. What good is that information?

If we stop right now, what good is that? That will do you no good. You have information. What's the purpose of him driving at this? He's giving us information of future events but the Bible never leaves us with just information for information's sake.

He doesn't just want your head to be bigger and full of information. He wants your heart to be changed. He wants your understanding to be changed. God reveals things to us in the Bible so that it will produce a change in us. He wants us to live as point number three in the soberness of living in light of the day of the Lord.

The soberness of living with an understanding that there is a day coming when the Lord will destroy all things. Therefore, he says, since all these things be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be? For the Christian, our manner of living is directly connected to our doctrinal understanding. How do we live? As one man wrote a book years ago, how now shall we live?

Because this is true, how should we live? What manner of persons ought we to be? Our belief leads our behavior. It's true for everyone. Whether you're a believer or not, that is true.

You act and you behave based upon what you believe. You can do no other. You want me to tell you what you believe? Let me just watch how you live for a little while. I'll tell you what you believe.

I was going through the checkout aisle years ago and this lady in front of me was talking to the cash register lady and they were talking about this country song, singing about immoral things and how they loved that song and I couldn't restrain myself. I said, did you know that the music you listen to is actually your doctrinal understanding? It's what you believe. Oh no it's not, she said. That's not my view of morality.

I said yes it is. Because you said you liked it. You liked it. The things that you feed into your eyes and ears and into your senses and the things that you enjoy, that's really what you believe. Why would you listen to things and fill your mind with things that you didn't believe?

Why do people not like to read their Bible? They don't like the Bible. They don't believe the Bible. But if you believe that this is the very Word of God, you're going to read it and you're going to love it and you're going to strive with all that you are to live it because you believe it. All men act upon their beliefs.

Everyone's manner of life is based upon that. When a child learns that a fire will burn them, they are more careful around the fire. When they realize that you cannot breathe underwater, you have a healthy sober fear of water. When you realize that there is a day of the Lord that's coming and it will be a day of fire in which it will destroy all the elements with a fervent heat and a great noise, you're going to be sober when you think about that day. You're going to live differently.

You're going to consider your actions. You're going to be having that in the forefront of your mind. When a child learns that there's gravity, you're going to be more careful with heights. At least you should. Therefore, the reason we see so much ungodliness in this world is because there is so much unbelief in this world.

People live as if there is no God. They live as if the Lord will not come, much like the scoffer. Where is the promise of His coming? I don't see it. Must not be coming because I haven't seen it, but there's coming of the day of the Lord.

They deny the very existence of God. When this is the case, people live ungodly. They live contrary to God, to God's holy character, to his morals, to his word. They reject those things. I was listening to an apologist or a man who was preaching this week and to lost people and they he asked this atheist if Christianity and the Bible and the gospel are true let's just say for argument's sake it is true would you believe it And you know what the atheist said?

No. Wait a minute, I thought atheism was about the things that were true and they're seeking for truth. But if I presented you something with indisputable fact that this is true, would you believe it and you say, no, that tells me something about you? You reject the gospel because you reject God. You don't like his ways, you don't like his word, you don't like his holiness because God's holiness is like a light shining in on you and it reveals everything about you.

It may not reveal it to all of us, but I wanna tell you something, when God's word penetrates your heart, you begin to see that your heart is actually black and full of sin and The longer you live in Christ the more you'll see But you know what happens the more you see the more you rejoice because God's grace was more than sufficient to cleanse you from all unrighteousness. That's why we sing. We sing because we love God and we live and strive to live righteously because of what He has done for us. You see when you teach children that they come from animals, do not be surprised when they act like them. When people deny the day of the Lord, don't be surprised when people live as if there are no consequences for their actions.

But for the believer, we live in light of the sudden and certain day of the Lord, or at least we should. This is what Peter was trying to drive home in the minds of his readers. He's writing this to drive this truth home because these things are true what manner of persons ought you to be. He says very clearly, and Matthew Henry actually gives us a great little point of exhortation on this, he says, learn to make right use of the patience of the Lord who as yet delays his coming. So there's a way in which to use in a good way God's patience and it is this, in holy conduct.

Notice what he says here in verse 11, therefore since these things be dissolved what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness." Ephesians 422 says that you put off concerning your former conduct the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lust and be renewed in the spirit of your mind and that you put on the new man which was created according to God in true righteousness and holiness." Again, Matthew Henry says, never expect to be found at that day of God in peace if you are lazy and idle in this your day in which we must finish the work given for us to do. Only the diligent Christian will be the happy Christian in that day of our Lord. Our Lord will suddenly come upon us or shortly call us to himself and shall he find us idle?" John Gill says, not as the scoffers and the profane sinners who put away this evil day far from them, but as men who have their loins girt and their lights burning, waiting for their Lord's coming, being continually in the exercises of grace and in the discharge of the religious duties, watching and praying and hearing and reading and living soberly, righteously and godly, guarding against all intemperance and worldly mindedness and every worldly and hurtful lust.

We will reject all of those things and we will seek to live a holy life and holy conduct. Specifically this holy conduct here is talking about our relationship with each other. How we're living amongst each other. Holy conduct. We live a separate life.

It looks different. The world will look at us and think, what in the world is wrong with those people? Why do they do those things? Jesus said, all men shall know that you are my disciples if you have love one for another. That love is not a normal love.

It's not an erotic love. It's not just a brotherly type thing. It is a love that goes beyond the normal comprehension of man. They don't understand it. Why are you all so kind to one another?

Why do you love each other so much? Because He loved us so much. He enables me to love you. And it's not perfect and it's not without fault because we're sinful creatures but I tell you what, it's a glorious thing how God works in us. A love for people.

Look around this room just for a moment and think of the backgrounds and the places and the countries that we have all come from. What in the world brought us together? The Lord Jesus Christ brought us together. The fellowship of the Spirit brought us together and I can look at every one of you who have different ethnicities than I do and I can say you're my brother and you're my sister and I love you because we are now children. We're brothers and sisters in Christ.

We're the children of God. It's a glorious thing. It's a wonderful thing. It brings joy to my heart. And then he says godliness.

That is our relationship and reverence and respect towards God. Understanding the day of the Lord will change the way we treat each other and it will change the way we view God. It will help us to understand that there should be a holy reverence and respect towards God living a life of piety. Understanding that the long-sufferingness of God is not to be used for license to sin, but it should be used to encourage godly living. Use the long suffer, use the patience of God for its intended purpose.

Use up the time of your life in the best way possible. Live your every moment for the Lord. Store up your treasures not on this earth but in heaven. Another commentator notes this fact, the fact of the dissolving of the heavens and the earth, ought to be allowed to exert a deep and abiding influence upon us, to induce us to live holy lives. We should feel that there is nothing permanent on the earth, that this is not our abiding home, and that our great interests are in another world.

We should be serious, we should be humble and prayerful, and should make it our great object to be prepared for the solemn scenes through which we are soon to pass. An habitual contemplation of the truth that all that we see is soon to pass away would produce a most solitary effect upon our minds. It would make us serious. It would repress selfish ambitions. It would lead us to desire to accumulate what must soon, it would lead us not to desire to accumulate what must soon be destroyed.

It would prompt us to lay up treasures in heaven. It would cause us to ask the deep earnestness, with deep earnestness, whether we are prepared for these amazing scenes which Peter lays out before us. But not only that, How do you feel about that day? You know there's times in our lives when we have something on the calendar and we think, oh man, that's gonna be tough. Oh man, that's gonna be a long drive.

Oh man, that's going to be whatever. And then there's other things that we have on our calendar and we say, man, I can't wait. Man, the time is just going too slow. I can't wait for that day. This is going to be a joyful day.

It's the vacation with the family. It's the great trip to somewhere we've always wanted to go. It's something that is glorious and we're looking forward to it. You see in this passage in verse 12 he says looking forward and hastening the day of God. Is that how you view this day?

If you're a believer you should. If you're an unbeliever not so much. But if you're a believer you can look towards this day he says with the expectation of that day. Looking for, this phrase is used numerous times in this chapter. We are to be looking for the coming of Christ.

It denotes a mental direction. Me and you know how it is when you get something on your mind, man, there is nothing. You're in that box. Women don't understand our boxes sometimes. That's okay.

We don't understand yours. So we get in that box and we're focused in. We should all be focused in on that day. Looking for. We are looking for the coming of Christ.

This this mental direction, our minds are to be set upon that day and be faithful until that day. Listen to what Luke says, what the Lord says in Luke 12 he says let your waists be girded and your lamps burning and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master when he will return from the wedding that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself, have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve." Think about that just for a moment. The Lord Jesus Christ on that day, when you come into that kingdom, will gird himself and serve you. What?

This is our God. Has he not served us enough? What have we done for him? We said thank you. We praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow.

But yet when we enter into that kingdom, He will gird Himself and serve us just like He did with the disciples. What a God. Notice what he says. And if he should come in the second watch or come in the third watch and find them so blessed are those servants. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into therefore you also be ready for the Son of Man is coming in an hour you do not expect and then Peter said that Peter said to him Lord do you speak this parable to us only or to all people?

Is it only for the Jews, Lord, or for all people? I think we can testify this morning It's for all people. And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward whom his master will make ruler over his household to give them their portion of food and due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will make him ruler over all that he has, but if that servant says in his heart, listen, but if that servant says in his heart, my master's delaying his coming, And he begins to beat the male and female servants into eat and drink and be drunk.

And the master of that servant will come on a day when he's not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. And that servant who knew his master's will and did not prepare himself or do according to his will shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know yet committed things deserving of stripes shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required, and to whom much has been committed of him, they will ask the more." And Listen to this, I came to send fire on the earth and how I wish it were already kindled. If you were a faithful servant, listen just like what our brother said this morning, being a faithful servant, being obedient does not make you a child of God.

It proves you're a child of God. You can't be good and please God enough so that he says, okay I think I choose you to be my child. No. God chooses you when you're yet his enemy and he makes him your child and when you're his child you say, I love that father. I love God and I want to serve him with all that I am every day of my life so we are good because of his goodness to us not to earn his favor.

You cannot earn his favor. You see there's an eager anticipation of that day. It is a hastening the coming of the day of God. Earnest desire mixed with fervent prayer. What are you looking forward to?

Are you looking forward to marriage? Some of you are. What are you looking forward to? Children? I know that really perfect job that you've always wanted.

Or your dream house, or perhaps your retirement, or perhaps your grandchildren. You see, that day should make all of these things pale in comparison for the believer that we are looking forward and hastening the day of the Lord. I can't wait till it gets here. Come quickly Lord Jesus. Why can I say these things?

Even the creation says this. The creation speaks. In Romans chapter 8 it says this, for the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. Remember what we talked about last time, this revealing of the sons of God. They're those who are of the elect who have not repented of their sins and trusted in Christ yet and the creation itself eagerly awaits the revealing of them because when they've all been revealed the day of the Lord will come.

We don't know when that is but it goes on in Romans 8. For the creation was subjected to futility not willingly But because of him who subjected it in hope because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption Into the glorious liberty of the children of God for we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pains together until now. All of creation is longing for this day. Should not God's chief crown of creation long for that day? Should we not long for that day?

This gives us good reason for sobriety and joy. He says, because of which, that which there means the day of God, the heavens will be dissolved being on fire and the elements will melt with fervent heat. This truth and the certainty of this event is the best motivator and reason for sober-minded living and joy-filled living and hopeful anticipation of that day. And lastly, in verse 13, we see the hopeful anticipation of the promise of God. The hopeful anticipation of the promise of God.

Verse 13, nevertheless, you know even though all of these things are true and it's such a shocking picture for us, nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. The truth of this day should not get us down. When we consider all the things that we've worked hard for in this life, we shouldn't be down because of that. Listen to what happens. Rather, we, it should create in us a hopeful anticipation of the promise of God.

What is that promise? He tells us a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. This is the promise. Consider this sinful world. Consider pain, consider suffering, consider loss, consider separation from loved ones, consider death, consider crying, consider weeds in your garden.

We're all getting there. Right? Consider all of these experiences that we have. We don't even know how to understand. We don't have a grid to process a world without sin.

That's why we... It's like we're holding on to this so much. Don't hold on to this place. There is coming a day where there will be a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells. Right now sin dwells.

Sin reigns. From the least of us to the greatest of us and even creation itself is bound by this fall in the curse of Adam and Eve. It's full of the depravity of man and the wickedness and the wicked plans of man. Think of the continual struggle of even believers as we struggle with sin. But listen, there is coming a day.

Revelation 21, you've read this once or twice, we've heard a sermon once or three times or ten times on this one. Listen, Revelation 21, 1 through 7, Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I John saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying behold the tabernacle of God is with men and he will dwell with them and they shall be his people God himself will be with them and be their God and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes there shall be no more death no sorrow no crying there shall be no more pain for the former things have passed away.

Then he who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said to me, right, for these words are true and fateful, and he said to me, it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, and I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my son." Notice that one point. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirst.

Do you thirst for this? Do you thirst for the day in which there will be no more sin? Do you thirst to be cleansed from your sin? Do you thirst for righteousness that only God can give you? Jesus Christ himself says, I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirst.

He will not turn you away. He is ready to receive you into himself and to give you of that living water. What a place of joy. What a place of peace. If you're in Christ, this will be your home.

There's a a day when the longsufferingness of God will end and the day of that day will overtake the unregenerate without warning. Are you ready for that day? Today is the day of salvation. Listen, his long suffering is still going right now. Right now.

He's still patient. He's still waiting. He's waiting to receive you into himself. How does this happen? Well, very simply this, repent of your sins.

A sin is anything that you've done contrary to the will of God. And here's the truth of the matter, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, every last one of us. The difference between the believer and the unbeliever is this, not that we are better than unbelievers, but that we are forgiven. That's the difference. He has put his righteousness upon us, and he calls you to have that done for you today.

Repent of your sins and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ for the salvation of your souls. Be saved. Today is the day of salvation. Today is the day. Why are you lingering?

Why are you tearing? Some practical implications of this quickly. You have them on your paper there. And I'm just going to read the first part. You can read the rest of it since you have it.

Four things, be ready. Be ready for that day. Number two, be holy. Live in light of that day. Number three, be looking.

Live expectantly for that day. And fourthly, be believing, because this is the promise of God who cannot lie. Let's pray. Our gracious, most holy Father, I'm constantly astounded at your word, at how wonderful it is and how clear it is and how helpful it is, how instructive. And in fact, Lord, these are the very words of life.

And I pray today that you would make this word effectual to the saving of souls. Oh God, we love you. Help us, Lord, to long for that day more. Help us Lord to be ever watching and diligent and not just standing and looking into the sky but Lord being faithful servants, serving you in this world because you have served us so marvelously, Lord. Help us to be holy as you are holy.

And that we know, Lord, that we can only do that because of the Spirit of God who lives in us, helping us and equipping us and making it possible that we should live as children of God. So Lord, do your work today. May you be glorified in all that is said and done. And we ask it in Christ's name. Amen.