Peter closes his letters with the reminder that the day of the Lord is at hand. But how long have we been hearing this—that the Lord is coming back? You have been hearing it for the last 2,000 years. But the people, the church in the first century, also had the same problem. They had been hearing about the second coming of the Lord Jesus for less than 100 years in the first century, and maybe another 100 years in the second century. But they started questioning: when is this Lord you are saying going to come back?
Peter is answering them: “You must understand in the last days scoffers will come scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this coming that he promised?’ Ever since our ancestors, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” But nothing had changed. Jesus was not here yet. So some began teaching a different doctrine, saying that Jesus is not coming again, that He had already come and we don’t have to look for His second coming.
Peter wanted them to be strong in their doctrine that Jesus will come. But our understanding of His second coming must be reoriented, because he says our timing is not God’s timing. Our timeline is not God’s timeline. We are limited by time in this creation. God created everything, so He is beyond time and beyond creation. He’s outside of creation. He’s not limited by time. That is what Peter is telling the people who doubted the second coming of Christ: your concept of time is completely wrong because you are limiting it to human understanding. We have 24 hours in a day, so we know what a day looks like. But to God, there’s no day and night because He’s outside of time. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.
It’s amazing how Peter, a fisherman, could explain the deep doctrine of creation, eternity, and the concept of time. God transformed an uneducated, illiterate fisherman into a saint who could teach the church profound theology. Some people argue that although Peter authored the letter, perhaps someone else helped him write it, because the language is so polished. Even if a scribe assisted, the message still came from Peter.
Peter emphasizes that God is the Creator, not part of creation. We are part of creation, bound by time, planets, solar systems, and the universe. But God is outside of all this because He created everything. His time is not our time. His day is not our day. His timeline is not based on ours.
Peter also reminds them of creation: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” The Bible describes creation in days: first day, second day, sixth day, and then the seventh day when God rested. But what is that “day”? Is it a 24-hour day, or something else? Peter says our concept of a day is not what God’s day is. To God, one day may be like a thousand years, and a thousand years like a day.
So, the Lord is not slow in keeping His promise to return. He is delaying His coming so that more people will come back to God and not perish. Instead, God is patient, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. That’s why God delays the second coming—out of mercy, to give more time for repentance and restoration.
Peter warns against scoffers who spread wrong doctrine. He calls them scoffers—those who speak in a derogatory way, mocking the truth. Even today, we see many scoffers around us, speaking from self-interest rather than from God’s will. You can distinguish true doctrine from false teaching by examining whose desires are being followed. Scoffers follow their own desires, but true preachers follow God’s will. Some pursue self-interest, money, or fame, but Peter challenges us to discern whether it is God’s grace and love being proclaimed or human ambition.
Peter then connects his teaching with the letter of Jude, which shares similar concerns. Peter criticizes scoffers mildly, while Jude is sharper and more pointed. Both remind us that God’s promises cannot change. God does not change like shifting shadows. Our shadows move because of the tilt of the earth, but God is unchanging. He is not like the seasons; He remains the same. We don’t have a “cold God” in winter. He is always living, active, and sustaining creation.
Christ’s return will be true and real, just as He promised, because God cannot lie. The Scriptures, from beginning to end, are filled with promises God has fulfilled. His faithfulness never changes; it is new every morning. God Himself is light, and in Him there is no shadow.
Throughout Scripture, we are reminded of His faithfulness. In Deuteronomy 7, we read that God keeps His covenant of love to a thousand generations. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians that Christ’s words are faithful. David sings in the Psalms that the Lord loves the just and will not forsake His faithful ones. And Jesus Himself said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me.”
The promise is sure: He will return. But God’s measure of time is different from ours. What seems long to us is not long to Him. His timing is perfect.
Peter also teaches that Jesus’ resurrection is unique. Others, like Lazarus, were raised from the dead, but they lived and died again. Jesus rose from the dead never to die again. He ascended into heaven, showing us that heaven is a real place, not a fantasy. Jesus is there with the Father, and one day we will be reunited with Him and our loved ones who believed. If heaven is real, so is hell—but that’s not where we want to be.
Jesus also said that His return will be a surprise, like the parable of the ten virgins waiting for the bridegroom. Five were ready with extra oil, but five were not. When the bridegroom came unexpectedly, only those prepared went in with him. In the same way, the Lord’s coming will be sudden and unannounced. We must be ready at all times.
A friend once shared a dream where Jesus said He would visit his house in eight minutes. Panicked, he and his family tried to prepare but realized that getting ready for the Lord is not an eight-minute job. Preparation must happen daily. Life is uncertain, death comes as a surprise, and so will Christ’s return.
Therefore, we are called to stay ready, keep our lamps burning, and live in constant readiness. We are not asked to calculate the exact time of His return—it is God’s business, not ours. Many false teachers have tried to predict dates, but Jesus said it belongs to the Father alone. Our responsibility is to live faithfully until He comes.
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