JESUS WILL RETURN PETER’S SECOND LETTER _HILDA BRIGHT AND HELEN POCOCK_ CHAPTER 3 JESUS WILL RETURN AND GOD’S JUDGEMENT WILL HAPPEN V1 Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. Both letters are to remind you to think pure thoughts. V2 Remember what the holy *prophets wrote in the past... [ Continue Reading ]
Peter tells his ‘dear friends’ that this is his second letter. Peter probably did not know all the people who would read his letter. But he considered that they were his Christian friends. The first letter is probably 1 Peter. The false teachers had minds that were not morally pure. In contrast, Pet... [ Continue Reading ]
Peter wanted the Christians to remember God’s true words (1:15). God’s words would keep their minds pure. Then the Christians would not believe the false teachers. The *prophets in the *Old Testament spoke God’s words (1:20-21). The *apostles had been with Jesus, so they knew his commands. In the fi... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus came to this world for the first time about 2000 years ago. One day he will return to this world. The ‘last days’ is the time between these two events. Many people do not believe that Jesus will return. They think that Christians are silly.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Fathers’ probably refers to the holy leaders in *Old Testament times. The false teachers claimed that nothing had changed since God created the world. Therefore, nothing would change in the future. They did not believe that Jesus had spoken the truth. But Peter answered them in 4 ways: • God’s wor... [ Continue Reading ]
The false teachers refused to remember that God *judged the world. God’s word created the sky. He commanded the earth to appear out of the water (Genesis 1:9-10). Every plant and animal needs water to keep it alive (Genesis 2:5-6).... [ Continue Reading ]
However, people in the world were wicked. So God *judged the world. He caused the water to flood the earth. Noah, his family and the animals were safe in the big boat (Genesis 6:8). But everyone else who lived in the world died. Verse 7 The world does not seem to change. And God will *judge wicked... [ Continue Reading ]
In verse 5, the false teachers did not remember what God had done in the past. But in verse 8, Peter did not want his ‘dear friends’ to forget what God had done. The *Lord’s time is not the same as time in this world. To the *Lord, 1000 years in this world may be like a day (Psalms 90:4). This is of... [ Continue Reading ]
God will always keep his promises. Many people thought that Jesus should have returned already. But Peter explained that God is willing to wait. He is not slow, as people may think. But he is patient. God loves everyone. He sent Jesus to free people from their *sins (John 3:16). God is waiting becau... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus will not continue to wait for ever. Jesus said that people would not know when would return (Luke 12:39-40). People do not expect a thief to come suddenly to their house in the middle of the night. In a similar way, Jesus will suddenly return to this world. God will not give people any more ti... [ Continue Reading ]
Peter did not want to frighten Christians. He repeated here what he spoke about in verse 10. Christians should eagerly expect the day when Jesus returns to this world. Then they will encourage that day to arrive. It will come as people pray ‘We want your *kingdom to come’. And it will come as Christ... [ Continue Reading ]
Christians can expect with joy what God has promised after his judgement. Peter uses words from Isaiah 65:17 when he wrote about ‘a new heaven and a new earth’. Everyone will obey God. No wicked people will live there. The false teachers will have no place there. *Sin will never spoil anything again... [ Continue Reading ]
Peter urged his ‘dear friends’ to live pure lives without *sin. This was in contrast to the false teachers. Their lives were not pure. And they were like ‘stains’ and ‘dirty marks’ (2:13). When Christians live a pure life, it pleases God. They do not have a guilty conscience. Therefore, Christians c... [ Continue Reading ]
In verse 9, Peter had already said that the *Lord is patient. God wants more people to trust Jesus. Peter said that Paul had also written to them about this. ‘Brother’ means that Paul was a Christian. In Romans 2:4, Paul wrote that God’s kindness leads people to change their behaviour.... [ Continue Reading ]
Paul taught that Jesus will return. And Paul emphasised in his letters that Christians needed to live good lives before this event. The Christians to whom Peter was writing probably knew Paul’s letters. Peter says that God gave wisdom to Paul as he wrote the letters. Some things in Paul’s letters we... [ Continue Reading ]
The Christians knew that false teachers would come. Therefore, the Christians had to be careful. Otherwise, those wicked people would tempt them away from the truth about Jesus. If the Christians did not guard themselves, they would make their *faith weaker. There are still false teachers today. The... [ Continue Reading ]
False teachers are a problem. The only answer to this problem is that Christians should become stronger Christians. They must understand how much God loves them. Also, they must grow in their relationship with their *Lord and *Saviour Jesus Christ. John 1:14 refers to the ‘*glory’ of the only Son of... [ Continue Reading ]