Welcoming the Thief Part I:
Early Warnings
Well, classes are winding down and I find myself the least pressed at the end of this semester than any of the previous ones. I may actually get to enjoy all this graduation stuff. I did, however, (and still do, actually), have to write a couple of papers for some classes. One of them was especially helpful in wrestling through one unanswered question in particular that has been demanding my attention for awhile. As those of you who have been reading my oft negelcted blog for some time know, I believe the Scriptures to speak of the death and resurrection of Christ accomplishing the redemption of not only mankind, but the very creation itself; I place my hope in an eternity in the presence of God, under the reign of King Jesus, on this very earth in a redeemed state (for more info or a refresher, see this post). However, despite all the Scriptural support from the apostles Paul and John, there has been one passage written by another apostle, Peter, that has always been a problem for my thinking. Though confirming the hope of a new heaven and new earth, II Peter 3 talks explicilty about the destruction and burning up of the earth in final judgment. So, how can we reconcile the idea of a redeemed earth with this Scripture? Must I change my thinking? These are exactly the questions I set out to find the answers to in writing this paper. For those interested, and to give credit where it is due, I'll put the bibliography here. Finally, because of its length, I will present the paper in installments. Hope you enjoy it.
For the Kingdom,
Ian
Welcoming the Thief:
2 Peter and Hope in the Destruction of the World
Growing up in the late 1970’s and into the early and mid-1980’s, I remember news reports about the cold-war, the threat of nuclear attacks, and the devastation that was sure to follow. I recall hearing anchormen talking about war in Lebanon and other small countries, and seeing breaking stories about terrorists hijacking airplanes and of hostage situations all over the world. Along side these memories are those of the early stages of our family’s Christian walk, and a lot of discussion amongst the families at our church about a book called The Late Great Planet Earth. As I recall all of these memories, it is easy for me to see why I grew up scared to death of the end of the world. This fear persisted into my later childhood and early teen years as my church taught me, and movies like A Thief in the Night seemed to confirm, that this world and everything in it would meet a disastrous end, and ultimately be destroyed altogether; it would burn up and cease to exist. The “thief” was a reason to tightly bolt my doors, someone to be feared, some one I wanted to try to escape. Of course, I was supposed to be comforted by the fact that I could escape this cataclysm by accepting Jesus as my personal savior, and that if I did he would snatch me up into the sky before things got too bad; he would take me away from the place he himself had called good, the place where he had allowed me to live and grow and love, the place where my friends and family would suffer and die a gruesome death if they too didn’t accept Jesus. My salvation was first and foremost an escape from terror. As I recall these teachings, it is easy for me to see why they did not offer me much comfort at all.
I am sorry to say that this account of the end of the world is still being propagated and believed today; the Left Behind franchise has even thought it appropriate to market it through books, movies, and video games. I am left wondering what kind of hope the youth of the Church are clinging onto today. However, isn’t this what the Scriptures say will happen? Won’t the earth melt, perish, and be destroyed? And won’t a new heaven and earth take its place? Indeed, this is what the Apostle Peter seems to be saying in verses 10 through 13 in the third chapter of his second letter.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, on account of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. (NAS)Peter here seems to be validating the concept of the very earth, all of creation being destroyed, and God’s making of a new heaven and a new earth for those who love him; a heaven and earth “in which righteousness dwells.” However, upon closer examination of this text, it is found that what Peter is actually saying, and what the Scriptures as a whole are saying, is far different, and far more hopeful, than that belief that struck such fear in my heart as a child.
In order to find what Peter is really saying, we need to look more closely at the text of his letter. Verses 10 through 13 of 2 Peter 3, which speak of the apparent destruction of the earth, come at the end of a passage in which Peter is not addressing the end of the world as his main point. The section, beginning in 3:1 starts with an exhortation to the reader to, “remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles.” (3:2). Following this reminder, Peter immediately tells his audience that it is of the utmost importance to be on guard against scoffers and false teachers. “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts,” (3:3). The warning about false teachers and those seeking to cause division within the believers is a common one amongst the apostles, appearing as early as in the gospels themselves (see Matthew 24:5, Acts 20:29-30, 1 Timothy 4:1, 1 John 1:18), and Peter here seems to indicate that the danger of scoffers and mockers is a present threat to his audience (Moo, 165); although he presents his warning in future terms, making explicit mention of the last days, Peter includes instruction as to how his readers themselves should respond to the words of mocking. The apostle John, in his first general epistle supports the idea of mockers and scoffers, false teachers and false prophets being a present threat, and even identifies his readers’ present time as the last days which mentioned by Peter, in verse 18 of his second chapter when he says, “Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have arisen; from this we know that it is the last hour.” (NAS).
After the initial warning, Peter identifies a specific topic that these scoffers will latch onto and attempt to use to spread doubt and dissension within the Church: the promise of King Jesus’ return. “Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come... saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.’ ” (3:3a-4). The form of Peter’s satinet here, how he presents the question of the mockers, makes it clear that this is not an innocent request for information about the return of the Christ. Douglas Moo notes that “The form of the question itself... imitates a form found in the Old Testament to express unbelief and mockery. In asking where this coming [of Christ] was, the false teachers were implying that it was past due and that it was therefore not going to happen at all” (Moo, 166). Their rejection rested on a belief that the world has not changed since the beginning of creation (2 Pet 3:4, NAS), even though the “fathers,” most likely a reference to the Jewish Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Moo, 167), and therefore a reference to the teachings and faith of the Old Testament as a whole, taught and believed in a changed creation at the presence of Messiah. “The false teachers have been at pains to deny, and Peter to affirm, that the promise of eschatological judgment is rooted in the Old Testament itself,” and they, “were apparently scoffing at the idea of Christ’s return at the end of history because they could not imagine the kind of change in the world and in the human situation that the church’s teaching about the Parousia [the appearing, or presence of Christ] assumed” (167).
To be Contniued...
posted by Ian @ 7:39 PM
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