God Is On Schedule - Part 2

Text: 2 Peter 3:3–9
Series: Sermons 2001 Rewritten
Date:
Speaker: Ed Rangel
Location: Waupaca Church of Christ
Bible Version: NASB 1995
Sermon Type: Expository

Learning Objectives

1. Review the four promises God made concerning Abraham’s descendants in Genesis 15.
2. Explain how God judged Egypt according to His word and His timing.
3. Show that final judgment is certain even when men mistake God’s patience for delay.
4. Connect Israel’s riches and promised land to the Christian’s heavenly inheritance.
5. Press the need for obedience, repentance, and faithfulness while God patiently waits.

Thesis

God fulfilled His promise to judge Egypt and bring Israel out with possessions, and He will just as surely judge the wicked and bring His faithful people into the better country He has promised.

Introduction.

1. This sermon continues the previous lesson. a. In the first lesson, we considered the first two promises God made to Abraham in Genesis 15. b. Abraham’s descendants would be strangers in a land not their own. c. They would suffer oppression and slavery.
2. In this lesson, we consider the last two promises. a. God would judge the nation that oppressed them. b. Afterward, Israel would come out with many possessions. c. God would bring them toward the land He had promised.
3. Second Peter 3 remains the frame. a. Scoffers question the promise of the Lord’s coming. b. They confuse patience with delay. c. Peter says God is not slow about His promise.
4. Genesis 15 helps answer the scoffer. a. God told Abraham what would happen before it happened. b. Generations passed. c. Israel suffered. d. Egypt seemed strong. e. Yet God fulfilled His word exactly.
5. The point is plain. a. God’s clock does not run by human impatience. b. God’s promises are not weakened by passing time. c. God is on schedule.

I. God Promised to Judge the Nation That Oppressed His People.

A. Genesis 15:14 gives the promise.

1. God said, “But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve.” a. Israel would serve another nation. b. That nation would oppress them. c. God would not leave the oppression unanswered.
2. The word “judge” matters. a. It means God would render a decision. b. He would deal with Egypt according to its deeds. c. He would repay oppression with righteous judgment.
3. Egypt was not outside God’s sight. a. Pharaoh’s throne did not intimidate God. b. Egypt’s gods did not rival God. c. Egyptian power did not cancel God’s promise.

B. God’s judgment was delayed but not forgotten.

1. Four hundred years passed. a. Men were born. b. Men died. c. Generations came and went.
2. The oppressed may have wondered where God was. a. Why has He not acted? b. Why does Pharaoh still rule? c. Why do our children suffer?
3. But God had already spoken. a. The time was appointed. b. The judgment was certain. c. The promise was still moving toward fulfillment.

C. The application is still needed.

1. Men often think God is inactive because He does not act immediately. a. That is shallow thinking. b. That is human impatience. c. That is the mistake of the scoffer.
2. God sees oppression. a. Physical oppression. b. Emotional oppression. c. Verbal oppression. d. Spiritual persecution.
3. God will repay. a. Not always when we demand. b. Not always in the way we expect. c. But always according to righteousness and truth.

II. God Fulfilled His Promise by Judging Egypt With Mighty Plagues.

A. Exodus records the judgment of Egypt.

1. Exodus 7–12 records the ten plagues. a. Water turned to blood. b. Frogs. c. Lice. d. Flies. e. Pestilence on livestock. f. Boils. g. Hail. h. Locusts. i. Darkness. j. Death of the firstborn.
2. These were not random disasters. a. They were divine judgments. b. They exposed Egypt’s helplessness. c. They forced Pharaoh to confront the God he resisted.
3. Egypt suffered as God had warned. a. Distress. b. Pain. c. Loss. d. Humiliation. e. Death.

B. The plagues demonstrated God’s superiority.

1. Pharaoh asked, “Who is the LORD?” a. God answered. b. Not with debate. c. With judgment.
2. Egypt’s gods were powerless. a. The Nile could not save them. b. Their livestock could not save them. c. Their magicians could not save them. d. Pharaoh could not save them.
3. God’s word ruled the moment. a. Moses spoke. b. God acted. c. Pharaoh hardened his heart. d. Judgment intensified.

C. The plagues reminded Israel that God keeps time.

1. Israel needed to see God’s faithfulness. a. He had heard their groaning. b. He had remembered His covenant. c. He had come down to deliver.
2. God was not early. a. He was not late. b. He was not confused. c. He acted at the appointed time.
3. Israel’s deliverance proves Peter’s point. a. Men may call God slow. b. Men may mock His promise. c. But God fulfills His word when His time has come.

III. God Has Also Promised Final Judgment Against Those Who Oppose Him and Afflict His People.

A. The promise of judgment is not yet fully completed.

1. Revelation 6:9–10 pictures martyred saints crying for judgment. a. They had been slain because of the word of God. b. They had maintained their testimony. c. They asked, “How long, O Lord?”
2. Their question is not unbelief. a. It is longing for righteous vindication. b. It is confidence that God will judge. c. It is the cry of the oppressed to the Judge of all.
3. God’s answer is not denial. a. Judgment is coming. b. The timing belongs to God. c. The saints must trust Him.

B. God will repay those who afflict His people.

1. Second Thessalonians 1:5–6 says God’s judgment is righteous. a. The saints suffer for the kingdom. b. God sees their affliction. c. God will repay with affliction those who afflict them.
2. Second Thessalonians 1:7–9 continues the warning. a. The Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven. b. He will come with His mighty angels. c. He will deal out retribution to those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel.
3. That text is plain. a. The issue is not merely atheism. b. The issue includes refusal to obey the gospel. c. Eternal destruction is real.

C. Jesus taught a resurrection of life and judgment.

1. John 5:28–29 says all who are in the tombs will hear His voice. a. All will come forth. b. Those who did good to a resurrection of life. c. Those who practiced evil to a resurrection of judgment.
2. The grave does not cancel accountability. a. Death is not escape. b. Time is not escape. c. Forgetfulness by men is not escape.
3. God’s judgment will be complete. a. No deed forgotten. b. No oppression ignored. c. No rebellion hidden. d. No faithful suffering wasted.

D. The only safe place is in Christ.

1. Matthew 25:41 warns of eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. a. Hell is not a joke. b. Judgment is not symbolic nonsense. c. Christ Himself warned of it.
2. God’s wrath is against all who refuse His will. a. Not just the unusually wicked. b. Not just historical tyrants. c. All who reject the Lord.
3. The gospel is the way of escape. a. Hear Christ. b. Believe Christ. c. Repent. d. Confess. e. Be baptized. f. Live faithfully.

IV. God Promised Israel Would Come Out With Possessions.

A. Genesis 15:14 includes the promise of possessions.

1. God said, “Afterward they will come out with many possessions.” a. They would not remain slaves forever. b. They would not leave empty-handed. c. Their oppressors would lose what they had held.
2. This promise must have seemed impossible. a. Slaves do not normally plunder empires. b. The oppressed do not normally receive wealth from their captors. c. Yet God said it would happen.
3. God’s promises are not limited by appearances. a. Egypt looked strong. b. Israel looked weak. c. God’s word was stronger than both.

B. Exodus 12:35–36 records the fulfillment.

1. Israel asked the Egyptians for articles of silver, gold, and clothing. a. They did according to Moses’ word. b. The Egyptians gave freely. c. Israel came out with possessions.
2. The Lord gave Israel favor in the sight of the Egyptians. a. This was not clever negotiation. b. This was not mere human luck. c. The Lord moved the situation.
3. The text says they plundered the Egyptians. a. The oppressors were judged. b. The oppressed were enriched. c. God fulfilled exactly what He had said.

C. Waiting faith receives what God promises.

1. Israel had to wait through long years. a. Years of foreign life. b. Years of oppression. c. Years of crying out.
2. God’s fulfillment came after patience. a. Not by Israel’s timetable. b. Not by Pharaoh’s permission. c. By God’s power.
3. The lesson is not prosperity preaching. a. God is not promising Christians Egyptian gold today. b. God is teaching us that His word comes true. c. The greater Christian inheritance is spiritual, eternal, and reserved in heaven.

V. God Promised a Better Land, and He Brought Israel Into the Land He Swore to Give.

A. God promised a land flowing with milk and honey.

1. Exodus 3:8 says God came down to deliver them. a. From Egyptian power. b. From bondage. c. From oppression.
2. He would bring them to a good and spacious land. a. A land flowing with milk and honey. b. A land promised to the fathers. c. A land tied to covenant.
3. Deliverance had direction. a. God did not merely bring them out. b. He brought them toward something. c. Redemption had a destination.

B. Joshua records Israel entering the land.

1. Joshua 3:17 shows Israel crossing the Jordan. a. The priests stood on dry ground. b. The ark of the covenant stood in the middle. c. All Israel crossed on dry ground.
2. The land promise moved from expectation to possession. a. Abraham had received the promise. b. Moses had led toward it. c. Joshua brought them in.
3. God kept His word. a. Four hundred years did not cancel it. b. Pharaoh did not stop it. c. Wilderness failures did not erase God’s faithfulness.

C. Israel still had to obey.

1. Exodus 19:5–6 says, “If you will indeed obey My voice.” a. Covenant blessing required obedience. b. Israel would be God’s own possession. c. They would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.
2. God’s promise never authorized rebellion. a. The golden calf generation learned that. b. The wilderness generation learned that. c. The promised land was not a license to disobey.
3. Moses later set life and death before them. a. Blessing and curse. b. Prosperity and adversity. c. Obedience and rebellion. d. Life required loving the LORD, obeying His voice, and holding fast to Him.

VI. God Has Promised Christians a Better Country and an Eternal Inheritance.

A. Christians have a heavenly reward.

1. Matthew 5:12 says to rejoice because the reward in heaven is great. a. Persecution does not erase reward. b. Suffering for righteousness is not wasted. c. Heaven outweighs earthly loss.
2. First Peter 1:3–4 says Christians are born again to a living hope. a. Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. b. To an inheritance imperishable. c. Undefiled. d. Unfading. e. Reserved in heaven.
3. This inheritance is greater than Canaan. a. Canaan could be invaded. b. Canaan could be lost through disobedience. c. The heavenly inheritance does not fade.

B. Christians look for new heavens and a new earth.

1. Second Peter 3:13 says we look for new heavens and a new earth. a. According to His promise. b. In which righteousness dwells. c. After the judgment Peter describes.
2. The Christian’s hope is not an earthly kingdom scheme. a. We do not wait for Christ to start reigning from Jerusalem. b. Christ reigns now. c. We look for final righteousness and eternal dwelling with God.
3. The promise demands holy living. a. Second Peter 3:11 asks what sort of people we ought to be. b. Holy conduct. c. Godliness. d. Expectation.

C. Faithful saints desire the better country.

1. Hebrews 11:13–16 says the faithful died in faith. a. They saw promises from a distance. b. They welcomed them. c. They confessed they were strangers and exiles on earth.
2. They desired a better country. a. Not the one they left. b. Not a temporary earthly security. c. A heavenly one.
3. God prepared a city for them. a. God is not ashamed to be called their God. b. The city is His preparation. c. The faithful live and die looking forward.

D. Obedience remains necessary.

1. John 14:23 says the one who loves Christ keeps His word. a. Love is not mere talk. b. Love obeys. c. The Father and Son abide with the obedient.
2. First John 1:6–7 says fellowship requires walking in the light. a. Claiming fellowship while walking in darkness is a lie. b. Walking in the light brings fellowship. c. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin.
3. The promise is not for rebels who refuse the Lord. a. It is for those who come to Christ. b. It is for those who walk by faith. c. It is for those who remain faithful.

Application.

1. For the impatient. a. God is not slow. b. God fulfilled His word after four hundred years. c. Do not measure divine faithfulness by human impatience.
2. For the oppressed. a. God sees. b. God hears. c. God will judge righteously. d. No faithful suffering is wasted.
3. For the sinner. a. Judgment is coming. b. Patience is not permission. c. Obey the gospel while God is giving time.
4. For the Christian. a. Do not lose sight of the better country. b. Do not return to Egypt in your heart. c. Walk in the light and hold fast.
5. For the church. a. Preach judgment. b. Preach patience. c. Preach repentance. d. Preach the inheritance reserved in heaven.

Conclusion.

1. God made four promises concerning Abraham’s descendants. a. They would be strangers. b. They would be oppressed. c. Their oppressors would be judged. d. They would come out with possessions and move toward the promised land.
2. God kept every promise. a. Egypt received judgment. b. Israel came out with possessions. c. Israel crossed toward the land. d. God’s schedule proved perfect.
3. Second Peter 3 tells us the same truth about the Lord’s coming. a. Scoffers mock. b. Time passes. c. Men misunderstand patience. d. But God is not slow.
4. Final judgment is coming. a. The wicked will answer. b. The faithful will be vindicated. c. The patient mercy of God will not last forever.
5. The better country is ahead. a. Not Egypt. b. Not this world. c. Not temporary comfort. d. Heaven.
6. Moses set life and death before Israel. a. The gospel sets life and death before us. b. Choose life. c. Obey the Lord. d. Hold fast to Him.

Invitation.

1. Hear the word. a. Romans 10:17 says faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
2. Believe Christ. a. John 8:24 warns that unless you believe that Jesus is He, you will die in your sins.
3. Repent. a. Acts 17:30 says God commands all people everywhere to repent.
4. Confess Christ. a. Romans 10:9–10 teaches confession with the mouth and belief in the heart.
5. Be baptized for the remission of sins. a. Acts 2:38 commands repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins.
6. Live faithfully. a. Revelation 2:10 calls the Christian to be faithful until death.
7. God is on schedule. a. Judgment is coming. b. The inheritance is promised. c. Today is the time to obey.

Word Study.

Scripture Interlock Table.