Bible Text: 2 Peter 3:11-12 | Speaker: Dr. Harold J. Sala | Series: Guidelines For Living | 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… 2 Peter 3:11-12

Winston Churchill’s favorite song was Julia Ward Howe’s “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” containing the line, “Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!”

Today, many of us have lost the comfort of those words–the truth that one day, Jesus Christ will return. Our lives can be so enriched by gaining it again!

How should this truth affect our lives today?

First–It should affect the way you live–your lifestyle and your moral judgments. Almost every time a New Testament writer speaks of the Lord’s return, he says something about the way that truth should produce purity, yes, no less than holiness, or righteous living, something that we know so little about today that those words almost demand an explanation. For example: Peter talks about the purging of the earth by fire following the return of Jesus Christ, and then says, “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…” (2 Peter 3:11-12).

Frankly, if the condition of their lives and marriages is an indication of whether or not people really believe Jesus Christ could return in the span of their lives, I suspect that very few people are looking for His return!

A Canadian friend of mine tells what happened when it was announced that Queen Elizabeth was visiting their town! Town officials launched the greatest clean-up, paint-up, fix-up campaign that town had ever seen! The queen was coming. Royalty made the difference! Good news, friend! Royalty of the seed of David whose throne is from everlasting to everlasting is coming! Don’t forget it!

The second way that this truth should affect your life is that your value system should be different. If this talk about the return of Christ is only intellectual theory, then how I spend my time and money is my business strictly, but if there is ultimate accountability as to what I do with my money, my time, and my energies, then I must be a good steward of what I have.

The words of Jesus leap out from the pages of Matthew 6, where he said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19). Think about it!

The third way your life should be affected, is in your faithfulness to the Lord. Picture a soldier in combat. The enemy is pressing the advance, but he digs in knowing that with the dawn of the new day the captain is coming with reinforcements. The long night of the soul is bearable, when you know that there is an end to your pain, your darkness, your suffering!

The fourth way that the truth of His coming should affect your life, is in your desire to share your faith. If you had a friend living in a beach area, which you knew was going to be inundated by a tidal wave by noon tomorrow, would you just say, “Another day! Business as usual” Or, “Those guys probably are wrong! I’ve heard this before!” No way, right? You would be motivated to do everything in your power to warn the friend that you know might be affected! Need I say more?

The fifth way that your life should be different if you believe in the return of Jesus Christ is the comfort you have in your heart. This is why Paul writes about Christ’s return followed by the resurrection, and says, “Wherefore comfort one another with these words!” And Paul closes his letter to the Corinthians, saying, “Maranatha!” which means literally “He returns!” Indeed, He will return!

Resource reading: 2 Peter 3.