Greetings everyone.
May the peace of our Lord Jesus be with you today. I pray you are well.
This has been a difficult week for all of us. Covid-19 is back. Afghanistan is a self inflicted mess. A tremendous hurricane is giving the Gulf Coast region a serious body blow. The heat is getting to all of us and our ACs are conking out. But these are not the things that bother us the most. Something else is troubling each of us, that something is poor leadership. Nationally, our leadership stinks. It really does.
In the United States of America, there is a succession of leadership should the President not be able to carry out his or her duties. The Presidential order of succession is as follows: first, it falls to the VP. Next in line is the Speaker of the House. Then the Pro-Tempore leader of the Senate, then the Secretary of State, then the Secretary of the Treasury, so on and so on, till around # 16, it falls to the Secretary of Veteran Affairs. I am telling you this, after much thought and prayer, there is not a name on this current leadership list that would instill confidence in any of us. It is a list of lifelong politicians and bureaucrats. It really is a depressing list, Google it if you don’t believe me.
As a people who believe in the God Most High, we may be down for a bit, but we never quit. We have all had lousy bosses before and we have had lousy Presidents. Just like that Grateful Dead song from the 80s, “We will get by”, we will survive. But it may not be easy.
The people of Israel survived dozens of not just bad leaders, but also brutal, evil and even perverted leaders. In a few weeks, we will begin to look at the kings of Israel and Judah, to see what we can learn about surviving a season of bad leadership. We are fortunate that our local leadership seems to be not just competent, but talented and diligent. Our prayer should be that our Federal leaders would be as talented as our local leaders.
Here is where we begin with our responsibilities during a leadership crisis. We need to pray for our leaders, our nation, Afghanistan, the Gulf Coast, our first responders and those on the medical front line. If you don’t pray daily now, you should begin. If you already pray daily, pray more. We need to pray for righteousness to hold sway over our society. We are in a sinful mess.
What I am writing about today is important for us to know. It is why Christians can function with love and joy even while the world is falling apart. Pray, pray, and then pray some more.
We continue today in our look at the book by Dr. M.R. DeHaan, The Chemistry of the Blood. What I pray you are learning is that God is all about chemistry, all about science, and his Word is full of both. This book is not only about the chemistry of the blood, but also the chemistry of conscience, the chemistry of Calvary, the chemistry of light, the chemistry of the book, and the chemistry of prayer. Science is involved in ALL of God’s creation. This should not surprise us. God is the author of all things. But because of our own failure to believe totally in God’s Holy Word, and the false teachings throughout the world today, we are surprised that what the Bible says is TRUE. Overcome this sense of surprise. Believe the Bible and it’s gospel. Today we will look at the chemistry of matter.
According to the Bible, the world on which we are currently living is not to continue in its present form, but to undergo a purification by fire at the end of the ages. No one knows the date and time but God. This is in the Bible. I'm not telling you this to scare you. You should not be afraid of this. We should expectantly look forward to this. We should pray for this.
To those of us who call ourselves Christians, well some Christians anyway, the Word of God is enough. Today we will look at both the Scriptures and science in regards to this ending of earth as we know it. Hopefully we will see how both the Word of God and science agree together to not only make this ending possible and probable, but also TRUTH.
Both the Bible and science indicate with great certainty that the time is coming when the earth will blow up like a bomb and be burned, then recast into a new and rejuvenated world in which righteousness will forever dwell and sin shall never again be known. 2 Peter 3:3-13 describes this event. As you read this passage, does your spirit agree with it, or does your spirit disagree with the Word? This is an important question for you to be able to answer. It determines if your priority is God's Word or the worldly teachings of our society inculcated into our brains since we started school.
“First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this second coming he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men and women.”
“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish (eternally), but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.”
“Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.
This is the word of the Lord taught to us by Peter, The Rock himself. This is not the word of mankind. This is the word of God, trustworthy and true, just as much as John 3:16 is trustworthy and true. If you doubt one you doubt all. If one is true they are all true. Disprove one truth in the Bible and it all is a sham. My testimony and teaching is that it is not a sham. The Bible is all TRUTH.
In this passage we have God’s statement of the certainty of this event and it mentions two great forces of nature; namely fire and water. To prove the certainty that the world will be destroyed by fire, Peter reminds us of the other time that the world was destroyed by water. Referring to the past judgment of the flood Peter adds the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men and women.
Fire and water are the two most powerful forces in nature, as well as, the two most useful forces in nature when harnessed safely. Energy, electricity, the uses go on and on. There is nothing more destructive than fire or water when God unleashes them. Just think of Noah’s flood and Sodom and Gomorrah. They were God’s instruments of destruction in the two greatest earth judgments in history and are used as examples of the greater judgment still to come. Just look at the pictures coming out of Louisiana after Hurricane Ida.
The earth was once destroyed by water and it shall yet again be once more destroyed by fire. This is what God’s Word says. It will not make any difference whether you believe this or not so far as its certainty is concerned, but it will make a great difference to you whether you BELIEVE it or not so far as your own ESCAPE from the fire of his judgment is concerned. It is what God says that counts, not what you think.
Let’s return to to 2 Peter 3:3-4,
“You must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.”
Mocking the slowness of the Return of Christ. Has there ever been a time when Christ, Christians, and Christianity has been ridiculed more than it is today? Many Christians have even given up on their belief in the Return of Jesus and even in the authenticity of the Bible.
I understand that this is not the popular warm and fuzzy message that everyone always likes to hear about Jesus and God’s Word. I am not seeking popularity and acceptance for myself. I seek to truthfully communicate God’s word to you so that you may accept it, in all of its Truth.
Peter in verses 5-7, reminded us that once before mankind was warned that God would destroy the world. This time it was by water and mankind rejected God’s warning then, just as the scoffers of today are ridiculing today’s prophets, rejecting their warning of the great judgment to come.
Peter is telling us to “Remember the flood of Noah”. God delayed then as he does now, out of His grace and mercy. But mockers mock all the same. Then in verses 8-9, Peter encourages those of us who believe that God’s delay is due to this longsuffering grace and mercy of God. Let us take heart in this delay for our friends and loved ones who do not believe. This delay should motivate all of us to share the gospel of Christ before the Return of Christ. 2 Peter 3:10,
“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.”
The word used here for heavens does not refer to the heaven where God dwells. There are at least three heavens mentioned in the Bible: the atmospheric heavens, meaning the atmosphere surrounding the earth with its clouds and vapors; the starry heavens; and then the third heaven which is where God abides.
From the Greek word of heaven we know that Peter here is referring to the atmospheric AND the starry heavens. Let’s think about our atmosphere that Peter says will explode. What are the elements? Well, there are over a hundred different elements, including oxygen, hydrogen, calcium, potassium, sodium, and on and on. Just focus on oxygen and hydrogen. This alone is a volatile mixture, not only will the explosion be big and the heat terrific and intense, the earth in its entirety will be consumed.
The Bible says that the moon shall turn red by the reflected light of this explosion and subsequent fire. The sun shall be darkened. The smoke from this explosion will travel 93,000,000 miles into space and envelope the sun. The shockwave will disturb the stars and divert them from their courses, as they fall away. It will be the very crash of worlds that the scientists have used to describe creation. It will be THE BIG BANG. As always, the world gets it wrong. God did create the earth. There will be a BIG BANG, but it comes at the end of the ages, not the beginning.
It will be creation, but a NEW CREATION. Take heart and believe. It will be a new heaven and a new earth. God is not destroying the earth for the sake of destruction. It is to create for us a home for eternity. The earth that we live on now is not our eternal home. Understand this and get over it. Stop worshiping the earth. Worship God. The earth is a false idol. Sure, we are to be good stewards of the earth, but we are not to worship the earth. Isaiah 65:17-19,
“Behold I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and crying will be heard in it no more.”
If you believe John 3:16 and Jesus, please do not fail to believe 2 Peter chapter 3 and the words of the prophet Isaiah. It’s all part of God’s plan for us to dwell in eternity with him and Jesus. Don’t believe the lies of Satan and his minions, don’t take the bait. It sows seeds of doubt that will hinder your walk, your testimony, and maybe even your eternity.
Do no harm, do good, and stay in love with God and stay strong in the faith.
Blessings,
Thad Brown
Opportunity House
and Harmony UMC