Read 2 Peter 3:10-13 – Living With Godly Anticipation
1. The phrase “the day of the Lord” describes end time events and was spoken of often by the prophets. The day of the Lord in the Old Testament was characterized by two phases: God’s judgment against sinful people and God’s eternal reign over His people. God’s judgment will be a time of darkness and an expression of God’s wrath (Joel 2:1-2; Amos 5:18-20; Zeph. 1:14-15). His reign will be a time of God’s blessing (Is.2:1-3, 11:1-9, 30:23-26; Zech. 14:1, 7-11, 20, 21; Matt. 19:28; Acts 3:19-21). -NKJV Study Bible Peter will describe the day of the Lord in 2 Peter 3:10-13, but first he tells us that this time will come “as a thief in the night.” What does this mean?
2. What does Peter tell us about this time of judgment in verses 10-13?
3. Understanding these things should cause us to live life differently than those without this understanding. Verse 11 speaks of what manner of person we ought to be, and verses 12 and 13 tell us where our focus should be. According to these verses, what should our lives look like?
a. Regarding what our lives as Christians should look like, whose example of this are we told to follow? See 1 Pet 2:21-23, 1 Jn 2:6, 1 Cor 11:1, Phil 3:17, and 1 Cor 4:16.
b. What role does the Holy Spirit have in us being “the manner of person we ought to be”? What is our responsibility? See John 14:26, Acts 1:8, Eph. 5:18, Gal. 5:16-26.
4. In addition to “looking for” the coming of the day of God, verse 12 tells us we can “hasten” the coming of the day of God. It is an amazing thought that we can have such an influence.
a. In the immediate context we can do this through holy conduct and godliness. How might this hasten the coming of the day of the Lord?
b. We can also do this through evangelism and through prayer. Consider Rom. 11:25, Matt. 6:10, Rev. 22:20. What understanding or example do these verses give us?
5. (vs 13) Peter speaks of “a new heaven and a new earth.” According to verse 13b, what is the glorious difference between the earth we know and the new earth to come?
a. See this prophesied in Is. 65:17.
b. See the fulfillment of this as spoken of in Rev. 21:1.
Read 2 Peter 3:14-18 – Be Steadfast
1. After sharing these difficult yet inevitable truths, Peter reassures the churches of his love and care for them by addressing them as “beloved.” How does this speak of Peter’s intentions?
2. (vs 14) When Jesus returns, how are we to be found by Him? What does Peter’s use of the word “diligent” indicate?
3. Verse 15a refers back to verse 9. What is it confirming?
4. (Vs 15b) Though Paul had previously had to rebuke Peter (Gal. 2:11-21), we see in this verse the warm and high regard that Peter had for Paul. What do you see?
5. (Vs 16) Peter states that Paul’s writings on the end times are sometimes hard to understand. Why might we have trouble understanding the teaching of the end times?
6. (Vs 16) The twisting of Scripture which is so prevalent today is not unique to our time! Who does this verse tell us are those who twist the Scriptures? To what end?
7. How does Peter know what Paul had written? Peter lays Paul’s epistles alongside “the rest of the Scriptures.” What does this confirm?
8. Peter ends his letter with a warning and one last wise word of instruction. Peter says that since they now know what is going to happen sometime in the future (and since we now know also), they should beware, or be on guard. What should they (and we) be on guard about?
a. Define steadfastness. What might the phrase “fall from” indicate?
b. What is “the error of the wicked”? What does “being led away” indicate?
9. One way to remain steadfast is found in verse 18. What is this wise instruction?
a. What does it mean to grow in grace? How does one grow in the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?
b. What can you do to be sure you continue to grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?
10. Peter’s last words are words we could and should express daily and in every circumstance. What do these words mean?
In Summary: 2 Peter has been full of insight and instruction! Thinking back over these 7 weeks of study, what are a few things that God has used this study to teach you and make you more Christlike in your actions, your words, your thoughts, or your behaviors? Is there something that you really appreciated about the time of discussion we enjoyed together?