Free Bible Commentary
“Second Peter 3:14-16”
Categories: Second Peter“Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction..”
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Since we patiently await the Lord’s return and eagerly anticipate our heavenly abode, we are to be “spotless and blameless” (verse 14) in our short-term earthly pilgrimage. Peter said previously that we have been redeemed, “with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:19). In light of the Lord’s selfless sacrifice and impending reappearance, we should live our lives after His godly example. We are to be “diligent” in our pursuit of peace and righteous living. The way we treat others and the manner in which we conduct our lives have a direct effect on how we will be judged.
In verse 15 Peter may have indicated the many references that the Apostle Paul made to the Lord’s Return in his letters, or he may have had passages like Romans 2:4 and Romans 9:22-23 in mind which specifically refer to “the patience of our Lord as salvation.” God’s longsuffering extends time and opportunities for more people to hear the Gospel’s call and turn from sins that earn the Lord’s hostility. Every minute of our life is an undeserved gift and precious opportunity to create a closer walk with God. Conversely, every minute spent apart from the Lord and His saving grace is precious time wasted that cannot be recaptured.
Peter and Paul were not bitter rivals but “beloved brothers,” and they did not teach different doctrines as some religious groups teach today. They were completely on the same page in teaching the inspired “doctrine of Christ” (2 John 1:9), and earnestly contending for the one-and-only faith, once for all times handed down to the saints (Jude 1:3). False teachers were distorting Paul’s teaching just as they were Peter’s and “also the rest of the Scriptures” (verse 16). When you misinterpret God’s word, take it out of context or pervert it in any way, you do so to your “own destruction”. Ignorance of God’s word will not be a good excuse on the Day of Judgment. The ignorant and “untaught” are just as guilty as the “unstable” and blatantly ungodly.
Do not build your spiritual foundation on the things in Scripture that are “hard to understand,” or you may very well be building a house of cards. Rather, let the clear and simple truths of God’s word be your bedrock, and develop your understanding of the more difficult and challenging passages through prism of the unequivocal, simple, black and white truth. Many Bible students make the mistake of going to highly figurative and exhilarating books like Revelation to build the framework of their understanding of God’s word, and then force the bulk of the Bible’s teaching into their preconceived and twisted frame of reference. This backward and perverted approach to Bible interpretation will only produce a deformed and fruitless faith.
But why has God allow “some things” that are “hard to understand” into the Holy Scriptures. Wouldn’t it have been better for Him to have made everything crystal clear and easy-peasy? Friend, God wants you to be a serious student of His precious word! He didn’t give us all milk to drink because that would be spiritually unhealthy for us. He gave us some solid food as well to help develop and strengthen our spiritual muscles (Hebrews 5:14)! The Holy Spirit has inspired the books of the Bible in such a way that the basics of salvation can be easily understood, but also that a stronger and more meaningful faith can be acquired by sinking your teeth deeper into the word. Don’t be a surface-skimmer but a deep-diver!
Please read 2 Peter 3:17-18 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
