Sermon: Sunday, 26th April, 2026
Speaker: John Johnstone
Scripture: 2 Peter 3:1-7
Is there a final day of reckoning for all human beings or not? Is there a day of Judgment? Will Jesus come back to save those who trust in him and punish those who reject him?
Here are some more connected questions. Does it really matter how you live your life? Does it matter what you do when no one else is watching? Will there be ultimate consequences from God for how we live? Is there justice in the universe, or do our evil deeds not really matter? Should we just live life pleasing ourselves and eat, drink and be merry or should we live to please God. Can we ignore God and his ways and get away with it? These are weighty questions. But that’s because we’ve arrived at a weighty passage in 2 Peter 3. Ultimately, it all boils down to this: either we will all be judged by God, in which case our relationship with him is vital, or there is no ultimate judgment, in which case our actions have no lasting consequences.
Both cannot be true! What is the truth? Jesus says to Pilate: ‘Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.’ (John 18:37)
He also says, ‘Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.’ (John 5:28-29) Friends, Jesus is coming back both as Saviour and Judge.
How many CCTV cameras are in the UK? Over 5 million. That’s one for every 13-14 people and one of the highest proportions in the world. This means that, in urban places, you are very rarely out of view for very long. Imagine that for one week all surveillance disappeared. What would happen? Crime would spike overnight. It’s a sad but well-known fact that without accountability, people start doing what they want. This means that the presence of these cameras does change our behaviour much of the time. We know they are there and bring accountability, so we are less likely to commit crimes. But here’s the thing- there is no there is no blind spot with God. There are no gaps in coverage. There is no forgotten footage.
‘His eyes are on the ways of mortals; he sees their every step.’ (Job 34:21)
1. A truth to remember
Peter is once again reminding God’s people of something really important: Jesus is coming back and you will have to give an account of your life to him. Why is Peter so concerned to remind us that Jesus is indeed coming back? It’s because there’s a battle for our minds going on all the time.
There are scoffers who say the idea of final judgment is just nonsense. (2 Peter 3:3) We are surrounded by such people in Scotland today, so it would be easy for us to go with the flow and just believe we can live any way we choose. Because so many people mock the idea that Christ will come again in glory and power, and because so many people are just ignorant about this fact, we urgently need to remind ourselves of this core truth.
It is famously expressed in the Apostles’ Creed, a short and simple summary of our faith: ‘On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead’.
‘Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.’ (2 Peter 3:1) If Jesus is returning, then we ought to consider that every day.
In verse two, Peter reminds us to recall the words of the prophets. What did they say in the Old Testament about Jesus’ return? There are too many passages to turn to, but let’s focus on one example.
In Isaiah chapter 66 we read: ‘15 See, the Lord is coming with fire, and his chariots are like a whirlwind; he will bring down his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire. 16 For with fire and with his sword the Lord will execute judgment on all people, and many will be those slain by the Lord…
18 And I, because of what they have planned and done, am about to come and gather the people of all nations and languages, and they will come and see my glory…
22 ‘As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me,’ declares the Lord, ‘So will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me,’says the Lord’.
In verse two, Peter also speaks of a command given by Jesus through the apostles. I think in the context of Jesus’ Second Coming, this is likely his general command to be holy as he is holy. If there is a day of reckoning, then surely this ought to motivate us to live carefully day by day, in God’s strength.
Why do we need to come to church regularly and keep reading the Bible? To be reminded of the truth. This morning, we are being reminded that the Day of the Lord will bring salvation and judgment. Why do we need reminders? Because like it or not, we get moulded by the culture around us, and our culture is one where increasingly God is being squeezed out of society quite deliberately. Don’t think that fails to have an impact on you. It will cause the faith of many to wobble. We’ll get so caught up living in the here and now and living for material things that we’ll forget the unseen realities. Many Christians are already becoming embarrassed about talking about Jesus’ first coming, and what that means, far less his Second Coming. Mockery is designed to silence us.
Peter is reminding you and reminding me that Jesus is coming back. What difference will it make to keep the 2nd Coming in our sights? Consider 2 Timothy: ‘Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.’ (2 Timothy 4:8) We should long for Jesus to return. Do you?
Lord Shaftsbury was a 19th-century evangelical aristocrat who was driven by his faith in Christ and his belief in Second Coming. What difference did it make to him? He limited child labour in factories and founded Ragged Schools for the poor. At the end of his life he said: ‘I do not think that in the last 40 years I have not lived one conscious hour that was not influenced by the thought of our Lord’s return.’ I wish I could say the same.
2. A warning that we will be mocked
In verse 3, Peter says ‘above all’ – in other words, this is a really important warning: ‘Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come.’ Peter does not say scoffers ‘might’ come.
I was recently reading about how Jesus was mocked before his crucifixion. He was taunted and spat upon and dressed up like a king in order to be ridiculed. ‘They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.’ (John 19:2-3) We are Jesus’ followers and can expect many to mock us for standing up for truth.
What will these mockers say? ‘They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation. (2 Peter 3:4) In other words, they are saying: ‘The sun rose this morning and will set this evening just as it did yesterday and just as it will do tomorrow.’ This is the mockery of ‘naturalism’ – a world without God. This is a circular view of history which expects the seasons to go round and round forever. But history is not circular. It is linear – it has a beginning when God Creator the Heavens and the earth and it will have an end point when Jesus returns. The false claim is that everything will carry on just as it has always done. This is incredible similar to what our young people are taught at school and university – that we are products of time and chance and our only goal is to pass on our genes. This false philosophy is the air we breathe.
What is the real reason for their mocking and denouncing Christian truth? Actually, it’s their sinful desires. What’s the logic? Why would sinful desires drive unbelief? Because if there is no judgement then it means that I am free to live as I want, without boundaries and accountability. I can do what I think is right. I’m in charge, not God! My desires and needs and wants are all that matters.
‘Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.’ (2 Peter 3;3) Melvin Tinker considers just how secular society has become, where matters of faith are deemed to be irrelevant. He quotes the social scientist Philip Rieff to capture the modernist outlook: ‘What characterises modernity, I think, is just this idea that men need not submit to any power – higher or lower – other than their own.’
3. How do we know the scoffers are wrong?
How do we know there is a Day of Judgement? There are 2 reasons.
1. God created the heavens and the earth. In verse 5, we read: ‘But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being…’ We know that the earth has not always been there; it had to have a Designer. And we know it did not come about by mere time and chance. There is too much order and structure and design for that to make sense. The earth had a beginning and it was when God said: ‘Let there be light’. It is the powerful voice of God that makes things happen. God is the Creator and is above and beyond us. He began history. He has continued to intervene in this world. And one day he will bring it all to an end. You might scoff, but it is inadvisable to scoff the Creator and Judge. Here’s the heart of the matter: when God says something it happens. He spoke the world into being and he will speak commanding its end too.
2 God has already demonstrated that he is a God of justice who will judge all. Remember Noah and the worldwide flood. This is a simple but powerful argument: if the Flood account is true, and it is, then it’s likely that God’s character continues to be one of justice and fairness and righteousness and that there will be a day of accountability for us all. The story of Noah and the flood is a powerful reminder that God is a God who will judge sin.
If we have any doubts about that, the best place to focus on is the cross itself. At the cross, God judged his own Son, not for his sin, but for the sins of his people. If you ever want to understand how serious your sin is in God’s eyes, look at the cross. Our sin necessitated Jesus experiencing the white-hot anger of God. Do you still think the scoffers are right and that God won’t judge? He is both a God of love and justice. It is right that God is angry at sin. Our sin harms others, harms ourselves and worst of all, is a great offense to God.
We know the scoffers are wrong because they are unreliable whilst the Word of God is always reliable. Let’s hear these verses from the ESV (English Standard Version) to hear Peter’s logic: ‘… the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these [water and God’s Word] the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. 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.’ (2 Peter 3:5-7)
Peter moves from a past judgement, the flood, to a future judgment, the end of the world. Both come about through the utterly reliable Word of God. We must learn the lessons of history. God has already intervened in human affairs in judgement, and he will do so again. Before the wonderful new and perfect world is created, this current one will be destroyed by fire.
Angus Macleay: ‘We see in Scripture that God has steered the world through judgment to salvation by his Word in the past, so we can be confident that he can do so again in the future. The Lord always works through his Word.’
However, Jesus has not yet returned. Why? ‘The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.’ (2 Peter 3:9)
Next time, we shall explore the patience and mercy of God together. In the meantime, let’s prayerfully seek to live each day mindful that God will bring us all to account. Justice will be done. The wicked will be lost and those whose hope is in Jesus shall be saved.