1This is now, beloved, the second letter that I have written to you; and in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by reminding you 2that you should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior, 3knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts 4and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” 5For they willfully forget that there were heavens from of old, and an earth formed out of water and amid water by the word of God, 6by which means the world that existed then, being overflowed with water, perished. 7But the heavens that exist now and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
8But don’t forget this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but he is patient with us, not wishing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat; and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 11Therefore, since all these things will be destroyed like this, what kind of people ought you to be in holy living and godliness, 12looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, which will cause the burning heavens to be dissolved, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
14Therefore, beloved, seeing that you look for these things, be diligent to be found in peace, without defect and blameless in his sight. 15Regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you, 16as also in all of his letters, speaking in them of these things. In those, there are some things that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unsettled twist, as they also do to the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17You therefore, beloved, knowing these things beforehand, beware, lest being carried away with the error of the wicked, you fall from your own steadfastness. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
A New Heaven and a New Earth
The old heaven and earth will pass away, and a new earth will be made.* In such a place, we will live for eternity with Jesus, the lover of our souls. This is all indescribable, because frankly it’s just indescribable. Our human mind can’t conceive of it. Isaiah describes much of this new earth in chapter 65. He begins, “17 “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind. (Isaiah 65:17 NKJV)This kind of makes me think we’ll no longer be able to remember any of the sorrowful or negative things from our time on earth. This idea is reinforced by the Apostle Peter, “12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3:1-13 NKJV)
This is all hard to imagine, but the part that I love is that “no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” I am ready for there to be no more pain, death, crying, or sorrow. In our sojourn on earth, we suffer horrendous things. In my premarital counseling, I advise young couples to be aware that tragedy is on the horizon. It is part of the human experience. John continues in the next few verses, telling us that Jesus will make all things new. This sort of sounds to me like an echo of 2 Corinthians 5:17, telling us that if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creature. Old things have passed away, all things have become new.
Reader, we can believe these things because He is faithful and true. We can’t understand everything about Jesus because He is God and we are not. Yet, the Bible tells us so much about His character and His faithfulness. I find it kind of interesting that Jesus calls Himself the “beginning and the end.” This is interesting to me because He is not confined to time. With Jesus, there isn’t a beginning or an end. So much of this is a mystery, and that’s okay. Reader, don’t ever take hold of the thought that just because you don’t understand something, it doesn’t mean that it’s not true. In these verses, Jesus promises to give a fountain of flowing water to all who are thirsty. That’s you and me. In the meantime, we are to overcome. That means we’re commanded to keep on keeping on. Don’t give up. Never surrender. This too shall pass. We who know Him are promised a crown of righteousness as part of our reward. We are promised an eternity as everlasting splendors. The contrary position is one of separation, misery, and eternal death. If you don’t know Him, accept Him today. If you do know Him, rest in the assurance of your salvation in Him. He is more than able. In the meantime, He has made us to be more than conquerors. (Romans 8:37)