Pastor David Higa
Knowing the Time
2 Peter 3:1-9
But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. [2 Peter 3:8]
It is true, the older you get the faster time goes. For a two year old, the next Christmas is half their lifetime away. But for us older folk, it is just a blip on the screen. But now translate that to an Eternal God. It is actually an understatement; “that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
So how can we know the time of Jesus’ return? And how can we know the Day? These are the lessons over the next two Sundays in 2 Peter. We will look at the first question this morning, the second one next Sunday.
In regard to knowing the time, the challenge is living in the realm of time and space, and so from our perspective a thousand years is a long time. Even a hundred years is long. A “long time” is relative to life span. And so with the average lifespan [in the US] being 76-81 years [as of 2020], a thousand years is forever.
However, to the Lord it’s just a blip on the screen. Even more His timetable is right on schedule. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”
You see, while the time until Jesus’ Return is near [a blip on the screen], His mercy [longsuffering] endures forever. It is an interesting paradox; the eternal brevity of time verses the longsuffering in His mercy. But this gives us a pulse to live by during our brief time on this earth.
Having an eternal perspective in this life of faith is the key. It allows us to live through His Eternal timetable rather than our temporal one.
