Home. Something we can all relate to. That one place we find refuge, solace, comfort and at times even quiet, still peace. That place we can return to after work, after travelling or even after years away and it can somehow stir us from within. But really what is home? Is it a physical place that stirs us or is it an emotional connection to past experiences? When we think about home, we usually think about a smaller sphere of habitation. I’ve often heard it said that love changes a house into a home. So a house is home? But a house is just a physical structure made out of wood, glass, and other materials. Or we think of home as the town or city where we grew up or spent most of our formative years. If you were to ask me where my hometown is, I would tell you Combine, Texas. A sleepy little town that sits 40 miles SE of Dallas. Or what if somebody asked you what your home state is? Texans love this question, we are proud of our state and proud to call it home. On the cruise a few weeks ago, most of the ship was comprised of Texans and at every big show they would give the Texans a chance to hoot and man that whole theater would come alive! We love to associate our love with our home. But making our sphere even larger than a house, a city or a state, what about your home country. As Margie and I travel overseas, if someone asks us where we are from, we don’t reply with the address of our house, or the city we grew up in, we tell them America. Now I’d like to throw you a curve ball…
What if I were to ask you what your home planet is? Well, you’d probably want to walk me to the nearest psychiatric ward and leave me there for a bit. Home planet? What a silly question because obviously we are all forced to live upon the planet Earth. I mean we don’t have a choice do we? Or do we? Here’s the million dollar question of the day. Where is home for you?
Think about this question as a Christian. As a child of God. As one that believes in Jesus Christ and has put your faith in the only one that has the power to save you from the oppression of your sins. What and where is home to the Christian?
This morning we find ourselves in the third chapter of 2 Peter where we will find the answers to this question in great detail. You see the questions that stump the world do not stump God. He created this world and He created us, in essence creating these questions. If you desire the answers to the world and the life that He made to live within it, simply go to His Word. The answers lie before us in plain sight. But just like a secret message that requires a magic decoder ring, you need help deciphering the message. On your own you can stare at that secret message forever and never understand its true meaning. God in His endless grace and love provides us with His Holy Spirit that can make His Word real to us. Without the Holy Spirit the message is jumbled and strange. You see we need God to understand God.
Let’s explore what Peter tells us here about God’s worlds of past present and future and how His plans determine and reveal our true home as Christians. This is a lengthier passage than normal, but it belongs together and must be consumed together. Take a deep breath, relax and enjoy God’s Word.
“4 They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” 5 For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6 and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 7 But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.
8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.
11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! 13 But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
What a powerful, descriptive and prophetic passage from God. We’ll start off by noting that God presents three different worlds to us, all His, but only one our home. There is a past world, a present world and future world.
Peter says of the past world, “that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, 6 and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished.” At the very beginning, in the creation story, God creates it all. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Gen 1:1-2) The world of the past was a world of water. Before God spoke light into existence with His Words in Gen 1:3 there was Heaven, there was Earth, and there was water. The heavens existed long ago, the Earth was formed out of water and it was all spoken into existence by God Himself. But our study verse today goes onto say that “the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished." This is indicative of the flood that God used to destroy the world. The flood that Noah and his family escaped in the ark. This is the past world, it was home to many, but it was not home to them long, and it was not our home.
So, lets look at the present world. We of course could not call the days of Noah our home but surely, we can call this world today our home right? Or can we? Here comes the crux of our study today. How do you see this world today? As your home or as merely a stopping point in your eternal journey with Christ? I would be bold in saying that the vast majority of our world today sees the reason of life, the point of our existence, as merely living a scant 82 or so years on this planet. That’s life. Existing for some pointless reason. Suffering the mundane, monotony of a daily grind almost as if life is some kind of cruel job. I think most also assume that this planet is our home by assuming that it will always “just be here.” That it is some kind of perpetual game board where eternal generations of people will live out their various moves. Not so. In our passage we will see that the world we are in today is a present world, not an eternal world. Just as the world of the past was deluged with water and passed away, our world today is destined to pass away.
So what plans does God have for His present world? “But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed."
Recall that the past world was “deluged with water” and God promised us that He would never destroy the Earth by water again. In fact, he made a rainbow to symbolize this eternal promise. (Gen 9:11-12) So we know that the present world will not be destroyed with water, so how? Fire. When I think of fire and destruction, I first think of forest fires. Those horrible fires and the boundless destruction and death that they bring. But when you look at verse 7 you see, “But by the same Word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire.” First note that the verse starts with “by the same Word.” The direct words spoken by the mouth of God in Genesis 1, created everything and by the same Words He will destroy the present world. Also, it’s very interesting to note that a different translation of “stored up FOR fire” is “stored up WITH fire.” Most might think that God will somehow rain down fire and He could very well do that, but here it seems apparent that the fire is stored up WITHIN the planet.
We had left Maui just before the massive eruptions of Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii, but they made global news. At one time years ago Marge and I did however take a helicopter flight over the active volcano and the sight was amazing to say the least. The red hot liquid rock bubbled and oozed from the Earth. As it travelled miles to the sea it shot out great pillars of steam as it cooled in the sea water. It was quite the image to see the power held carefully right beneath the surface of the Earth. We are oblivious to the power that God holds just beneath our feet. We have also been fortunate enough to have toured the adjacent town to Pompeii that sits even closer to Vesuvius, Herculaneum. When Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, the destruction was immediate and lethal. We saw actual 1900 year old bodies still mummified in the identical poses they held as they succumbed to the terror of death. Moms holding children, families huddled together and people with mouths agape in horror. God will use fire.
So, all of this sounds really morbid right? Many call this end of times kind of stuff and would say its crazy or just spewing doom. They would start tuning it out by saying that God would never do that. He would never destroy the world. But yet if you believe in God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit, and believe that the Word of God is His Holy written Words, then here it sits, right in front of you. But you really have to see this in its context. God wants nothing more than to see every person accept His Son, be saved from their sins, and inherit eternal salvation. So how long does He give this present world to do that? 5,000 years? Is that enough for all people to believe? 10,000 years? My friends, Jesus ascended back into heaven about 2,000 years ago and do you think the world is getting better or worse? Do you think more people are following Christ and loving each other than 200 years ago? Eventually God says, my plan will move forward.
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
God has eternity behind Him and eternity before Him. With God one day is as a thousand years. He’s in no hurry and He’s got no place to be. But the point here is even if He gave us a million years would it do any good? Will the human heart ever change? Not without Jesus.
So, as we are in this present world, a world doomed to be consumed and burned with fire how are we to react? Simple. Tell others about Jesus so that they too can avoid the fire and have a home in heaven, reunited with God their Father. “Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, 12 waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God.” We are to be living lives of Holiness and Godliness. Godliness means to “act like God”, to emulate the example that we have in Christ. To be Holy is to be set aside for the use of God. We are set aside by God to walk, talk and act like Jesus. To be a light to the world. To “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Matt 28:19-20a
So we’ve thoroughly explored the past world, and the present world. This is where it gets good. This is where we will see our true home. The place God made us to be. You see we are indeed foreigners here. Children of God living in a sinful, evil world. God made us to be with Him and when we move into His future world, we will enjoy the most abundant goodness that has ever existed. We will finally be home.
“But according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.” John 14:1-4
Our home is not here. As one that has called upon Christ to save you, your true home is in Heaven, resting in the glorious presence of God. I pray that you have accepted who Christ says He is, and that you have admitted to Him that your sins have gotten the best of you. That you cannot control them or pay for them. You are powerless to sin. But Jesus is not. As he hung on that Cross, He conquered the sin that holds you in bondage today. Jesus has the power over your sin. Call upon His name and you will be saved. It’s a promise from God and God is truth.
If you have called upon God, your home has moved. It’s no longer a house made of wood. It’s no longer a small town in Central Texas. It’s no longer a country. In fact, your home is no longer even this planet. My good friend, Jesus has made your new home Heaven.
Share the good news of Jesus with someone today and move their citizenship from this world to the one of Heaven.
Praise God for Jesus.
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