Living in Anticipation: Embracing Christ's Return

Summary

In our journey through 2 Peter, we are reminded of the importance of living "on call" for Christ's return. This isn't just a passive waiting but an active engagement with our faith, constantly aware of the eternal implications of our daily lives. The story of forgetting a child at church humorously illustrates our human tendency to forget important things, and Peter's message serves as a crucial reminder of the ultimate reality: Christ will return. This return is not just a distant theological concept but a transformative truth that should shape our lives and priorities.

Peter emphasizes the need for reminders and reinforcements in our spiritual journey. Just as we need study partners in school, we need fellow believers to remind us of the gospel and the reality of Christ's return. This discipleship and mutual reinforcement are vital because we live in a world filled with messages that often distract us from eternal truths. The church is called to be a community where these reminders are shared, equipping each other to live in light of eternity.

Peter also addresses the skepticism and false teachings that deny Christ's return. He counters these by pointing to the reliability of the witnesses and the prophetic word, emphasizing that the return of Christ is not a myth but a reality grounded in credible testimony and divine revelation. The transfiguration of Jesus serves as a powerful preview of His glory and return, reinforcing the certainty of this future event.

Living "on call" means not taking gospel opportunities for granted and living from the reality of our eternal future rather than for our temporal future. This perspective frees us from over-focusing on earthly concerns and allows us to live with purpose and hope. For those who have not yet embraced this truth, the invitation is open to receive the forgiveness and righteousness offered by Christ, ensuring a place in His eternal kingdom.

Key Takeaways:

1. Living "On Call" for Christ's Return: Being on call as a follower of Jesus means actively engaging with our faith and living in anticipation of Christ's return. This reality should shape our priorities and actions, reminding us that our time on earth is temporary and that we are stewards of God's kingdom. [03:27]

2. The Importance of Spiritual Reinforcements: Just as we need reminders in our daily lives, we need spiritual reinforcements to keep us focused on eternal truths. Discipleship and community are essential for equipping each other to live in light of Christ's return, providing mutual support and encouragement. [06:54]

3. Countering Skepticism with Credible Witnesses: Peter addresses the skepticism surrounding Christ's return by pointing to the reliability of eyewitnesses and the prophetic word. The transfiguration of Jesus serves as a powerful testimony to the reality of His return, reinforcing our faith in this future event. [12:45]

4. Living from Our Eternal Future: As Christians, we are called to live from the reality of our eternal future rather than for our temporal future. This perspective frees us from over-focusing on earthly concerns and allows us to live with purpose and hope, knowing that our eternal destiny is secure in Christ. [17:13]

5. The Urgency of the Gospel Message: The reality of Christ's return and the coming judgment should compel us to share the gospel with urgency. We are called to make others aware of this truth, inviting them to receive the forgiveness and righteousness offered by Christ, ensuring their place in His eternal kingdom. [25:11]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:45] - Introduction to the Series
- [02:30] - The Story of Forgetfulness
- [03:27] - The Reality of Christ's Return
- [05:15] - Importance of Spiritual Reminders
- [06:54] - Discipleship and Community
- [08:30] - Addressing Skepticism
- [10:00] - The Transfiguration as a Preview
- [12:45] - The Temporary Nature of Life
- [14:30] - Eternal Life and Judgment
- [17:13] - Living from Our Eternal Future
- [19:00] - The Urgency of the Gospel
- [20:42] - Credible Witnesses and Prophetic Word
- [23:00] - The Challenge of Modern Distractions
- [25:11] - Conclusion and Invitation to Faith

Study Guide

### Bible Study Discussion Guide

#### Bible Reading
- 2 Peter 1:11-21
- Matthew 17:1-9 (The Transfiguration)
- Hebrews 9:27

#### Observation Questions
1. What does Peter emphasize as the ultimate reality that believers should remember? How does he illustrate the importance of this reminder? [03:27]
2. How does Peter describe the role of fellow believers in reinforcing the truth of Christ's return? What analogy does he use to explain this concept? [06:54]
3. What event does Peter refer to as a powerful testimony to the reality of Christ's return, and how does he describe it? [20:42]
4. According to the sermon, what are some of the distractions that can cause believers to lose focus on the reality of Christ's return? [17:13]

#### Interpretation Questions
1. Why does Peter find it necessary to remind the church of Christ's return, and what are the consequences of forgetting this truth? [03:27]
2. How does the concept of living "on call" for Christ's return challenge the way believers prioritize their daily lives? [06:54]
3. In what ways does the transfiguration of Jesus serve as a credible witness to His return, according to Peter? [20:42]
4. How does the sermon suggest that modern distractions might desensitize believers to the seriousness of eternity? [17:13]

#### Application Questions
1. Reflect on your own life: Are there areas where you might be living more for your temporal future than your eternal future? How can you shift your focus? [17:13]
2. How can you actively engage with your faith and live in anticipation of Christ's return in your daily routine? What practical steps can you take this week? [03:27]
3. Identify a fellow believer who can serve as a "study buddy" or reinforcement in your spiritual journey. How can you support each other in remembering the reality of Christ's return? [06:54]
4. Consider the skepticism and false teachings you encounter in your environment. How can you counter these with credible witnesses and the prophetic word? [20:42]
5. What specific distractions in your life might be preventing you from focusing on the reality of Christ's return? How can you minimize these distractions this week? [17:13]
6. How can you share the urgency of the gospel message with someone in your life who has not yet embraced the truth of Christ's return? What approach will you take? [25:11]
7. Reflect on the analogy of our bodies as tents. How does this perspective influence your understanding of life’s temporality and the promise of eternal life? [12:45]

Devotional

Day 1: Living with Eternal Anticipation
Living "on call" for Christ's return is not a passive state but an active engagement with one's faith. This involves a conscious awareness of the eternal implications of daily actions and decisions. The reminder of Christ's return is not merely a distant theological concept but a transformative truth that should shape our lives and priorities. By living with this anticipation, believers are encouraged to focus on their role as stewards of God's kingdom, understanding that their time on earth is temporary. This perspective helps to align their actions with the eternal future they are promised in Christ. [03:27]

"For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, 'There is peace and security,' then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape." (1 Thessalonians 5:2-3, ESV)

Reflection: What is one area of your life where you can actively live in anticipation of Christ's return today? How can this perspective change your priorities?

Day 2: Strength in Spiritual Community
The importance of spiritual reinforcements is emphasized as believers are encouraged to remind each other of eternal truths. Just as students benefit from study partners, Christians need fellow believers to help them stay focused on the gospel and the reality of Christ's return. This mutual reinforcement is vital in a world filled with distractions that can lead one away from eternal truths. The church is called to be a community where these reminders are shared, equipping each other to live in light of eternity. [06:54]

"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:24-25, ESV)

Reflection: Who in your spiritual community can you encourage today? How can you remind them of the eternal truths of the gospel?

Day 3: Trusting in Credible Testimonies
Peter addresses skepticism about Christ's return by pointing to the reliability of eyewitnesses and the prophetic word. The transfiguration of Jesus serves as a powerful testimony to the reality of His return, reinforcing the certainty of this future event. This credible testimony is not a myth but a reality grounded in divine revelation. Believers are encouraged to trust in these witnesses and the prophetic word, which provide a firm foundation for their faith in the promise of Christ's return. [12:45]

"For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty." (2 Peter 1:16, ESV)

Reflection: How can you strengthen your trust in the testimonies of Scripture today? What steps can you take to deepen your understanding of the prophetic word?

Day 4: Living with Eternal Perspective
Christians are called to live from the reality of their eternal future rather than for their temporal future. This perspective frees them from over-focusing on earthly concerns and allows them to live with purpose and hope. By understanding that their eternal destiny is secure in Christ, believers can navigate life's challenges with a sense of peace and assurance. This eternal perspective encourages them to prioritize their spiritual growth and the advancement of God's kingdom over temporary, worldly pursuits. [17:13]

"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." (2 Corinthians 4:16-17, ESV)

Reflection: What is one earthly concern that you can release to God today, trusting in your eternal future with Him? How can this shift in focus bring you peace?

Day 5: Urgency in Sharing the Gospel
The reality of Christ's return and the coming judgment should compel believers to share the gospel with urgency. This message is not just for personal reflection but is meant to be shared with others, inviting them to receive the forgiveness and righteousness offered by Christ. The urgency of the gospel message is a call to action, encouraging believers to make others aware of this truth and to ensure their place in His eternal kingdom. [25:11]

"Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." (2 Corinthians 5:20, ESV)

Reflection: Who in your life needs to hear the gospel message today? How can you share the hope of Christ's return with them in a loving and urgent manner?

Quotes

"From that knowing of God, the results are that we show God, we display fruit of this relationship with Him. Okay, so that was last week. Now, if you don't remember anything from last week, you know, don't sweat it, okay? As I find myself... As I find myself in this aging process, see, I tend to forget certain important responsibilities and realities. And now, one of those instances happened a few weeks ago, where my wife and I had returned home from church separately, since, you know, I get here a little bit earlier, and my wife and I, we end up taking two cars. So we both arrived home on that day, and now on this day, we also had a family function to go to. So we arrive in two cars, then we hop into one car as a family, and we look back, and we make sure we have the whole family, and what we do is we then observe that there's two kids in the backseat. Now, listen, having two kids present in the backseat, that would be a win for us if, well, we actually only had two kids in our family. The problem is that we actually have three kids in our family. And so at that moment..." [00:00:43]

"my wife and I, we realized that we had forgotten one of our adorable children at church. And now, yes, I tried to play it off with being like, you know, the one left behind being left at church when I was like, well, you know, Jesus was left at home at the temple by his Mary Joseph, right? They left him behind, right? Telling them, my child, they're experiencing life of Christ. I also tried to pull the like rite of passage card, like sharing my experience as a child of being left at church. And yet, thankfully, my child who was left, who now goes by the name of Kevin McAllister, was graciously and understanding and was retrieved. Now, yet, here's what my wife and I have decided to do because of that experience. Well, let's do our best to remind each other that we need to return home as a family of five post -church and not a family of four post -church, okay? So I share that story of my forgetfulness because, well, whether you are aging like myself or even somewhat younger as humans, it tends to be that times we are forgetful. And because of our forgetfulness, well, we tend to need reminders of the very important matters in our lives. And so today, that is what we're going to see Peter do in this passage." [00:01:44]

"Christ's return. And so why the reminder? Well, here's the reality of where the church, Peter, is writing to, and for us today. Well, the church then finds themselves in the story of Jesus, in this part of it, where it's Jesus, he's king, he is already incarnated, he was crucified, he was resurrected, and he ascended to the right hand of God. And yet Peter is reminding them that the ascension isn't the climax of the story, right? That what comes next is actually Jesus' return, where he comes to judge righteous and the unrighteous of the earth, where he comes to restore the dwelling place between God and man, when he comes to reconcile, he comes to redeem, to usher in this new heavens, this new earth. And so Peter reminds them that Jesus will be coming back, right? Maranatha, that means come Jesus now. And now the reasons Peter desires to remind the church of this impending return are two things. First, he wants to remind the church of the You see, first, Peter knows that humans, and even the followers of Jesus, we can get caught up in our day -to -day lives, we can get focused solely on us, our future, our plans, our individual desires, and in that, we can lose sight that Jesus, as Lord, is our future." [00:03:27]

"Because of this deception, now many disciples of Jesus are just living with the reality of judgment without the trust that Christ will return to bring all evil, sorrow, sin, brokenness to an end. So here's what happens. When there's no remembrance of this reality of return, well, there's no recognition in this life of the disciples for the role of the righteousness in their lives. Basically, if there's no prospect of future judgment, well, one doesn't really need to worry about living some sort of righteous life. And that's a very deceptive message. And so here's what we're going to be on call in this passage, 2 Peter 11 -21, what this looks like. See, on call means that we are on call for the reality of return." [00:05:10]

"having reinforcements and being reinforcements reminders okay this reinforcement of a message well that's not just a christian concept right think of the concept of like a study partner in a school right call them a study buddy right what's a what's a study buddy well that's a a pure a reminder right which which is actually different from a student tutor relationship and now here's the thing for followers of jesus we're all study buddies now i know how that's a cringy term but it's true right none of us are peers with jesus we're all his students he is the rabbi he is the teacher so we don't need to remind him of what we've learned about him like no that's not the case we need to remind each other about what we've learned about him right look at what peter shares in verse 11 he says you know and are established in these truths verse 11 peter's what he's speaking to believers not those who aren't aware of jesus and in that here's what he's doing he's highlighting the need to to continue to disciple and to be discipled to equip and to be equipped okay and so if that's peter's desire for the church what does discipleship equipping look like in your life so here's what it means for me that means i need people like cory and jason to preach to me to remind me of the gospel to remind me that i want to live my life now with this reminder that king jesus will return and i'm sure that at times i'm going to be able to do that but i'm not going to be able to do that my hope is that i'm a helpful reminder to them like i need to be a reinforcement to them like hey guys just like you reminded me like the gospel is life we're called to live each day with the knowledge that at any moment christ will return right hey i hope that's helpful today and now that also means that discipleship" [00:06:54]

"and equipping can't just be a Sunday morning message. I need other spaces to be discipled, to be equipped. So for me, that means I need each one of the guys who show up to my men's connect group, I need them each week in my life. Like I need those guys there, not so I can share with them, that's part of it, but that they can share with me. Because here's the thing, to live in this reality of return, we need each other as disciples. We need other disciples of Jesus in our lives. Okay, now here's what I'm not saying. I'm not saying we only need disciples of Jesus in our lives. Like we create some sort of Christian bubble. Listen, if our desire is to always just be with believers, that's a great desire, and that day will come when Christ returns. But in the meantime, we have work to do here, right? We need to have people who don't yet know Jesus in our lives as well, because we are on a mission to declare Christ. But of course, right, we also can't just have only non -believers in our lives. We need to have people who are We need both, because we need equipping and we need discipleship. We need reinforcers of the return in our lives. And so why other disciples of Jesus? Well, again, discipleship and reinforcement of messages, these aren't just concepts for the church. Now the church may provide a name for these methods, but discipleship, reinforcement of message, they happen all around us." [00:08:30]

"These are concepts found in all areas of our lives, right? Think about it. For most of us, we don't have a name. For most of us, whether it's work, school, however we operate in this world, the reality is we probably have many reinforcements of some sort of messages about our lives. And most messages probably pertain not to future or eternity, but probably focus on the right now and the present, right? Right now, meaning" [00:09:57]

"living for the things of this world without regard of Christ's return. Now, that might not be every situation, right? Maybe you have co -workers or classmates that are followers of Jesus, that are reinforcers, but I'd suggest for most, right, being a Christian at work or in school, it makes you an outlier. And an outlier, you're probably not privy to many reinforcements to Christ's return, right? It's probably like, hey, Bill, just a quick reminder, like get that TPS report to me, and oh yeah, like Jesus is coming back. But rather, I guess the scenario would probably be more like you're met with these reinforcements that don't really give much space for any sort of idea of judgment to come, of heaven or hell, living with the reality of return. It's probably just life for here, for now, life not for the furthering of God's kingdom, but the furthering of individual kingdoms. And so that means, yes, you might receive daily reinforcements, but I suggest, they're reinforcements of the values of this world and not reinforcements of the values of the one who will return and judge the world. And so what are the reinforcements of the things and the values of this world values? Well, it's things like, well, like the car you drive or the house you live in, right? The level of popularity or influence you can gain, how successful you can be at your craft, your sport, your industry, right? My thought is that we probably receive reinforcements of the now aspects in our life way more than the reinforcements of the present. And so reinforcements, reminders, they are everywhere." [00:10:20]

"he's noticing the false messages in his culture in particular of doubting Christ's return are having an influence over the followers of Jesus. And Peter acts on this concern. And I love the level at which Peter is willing to go to remind the church of the reality of the return, of being a reinforcer of this return. He's actually giving his whole self, his whole temporal time here for the purpose of eternal glory. If you look at verse 13, he uses the body. But that translates to the same term that Paul uses in 2 Corinthians, this idea of tent. It says," [00:12:45]

"doesn't want the disciples of jesus to be deceived that this body this tent is all we have and so he's giving himself wholly as this reminder that christ will return that there is eternal life that will come and now here's what i think the challenge and the reality comes with the bible's revelation of eternal life we'll see eternal life for the bible is going to consist of two options it will either be one in the presence of god for all eternity or two separated from god for all eternity suffering this idea of shield of hell right and this takes place once again as hebrew tells us after death comes judgment or upon christ's return and now listen that language of hell and separation it might be uncomfortable for some of us i know it can be uncomfortable for me at times but as uncomfortable as the eternal judgment make us feel it doesn't make the reality of eternal judgment less real and so listen as a christian if we really believe that there's going to be judgment that christ will reign as ultimate authority and he will minister what is right and what is just where those who have never received christ's righteousness for unforgiveness of sins those who have received christ's righteousness for forgiveness of sins will be welcomed and those who have not chosen to receive the freak of the salvation will be separated from god if we really believe that i'm left with this challenge well what are we doing about that right what are we doing in regards to making those around us aware of this reality and listen i direct that first and foremost at myself" [00:14:30]

"Like, what am I doing about the reality of Christ's return in my own life? What am I doing about the reality of Christ's return in the lives of those who don't yet know him? And listen, sometimes I think I'm aware and I'm acting and I'm moving on this. And other times I feel maybe I'm just apathetic or indifferent. And what that should do in those times is it should break my heart. Because here's what tends to happen. Instead of breaking my heart, I just turn my attention to the worries about my responsibilities here and now. Or I'm just so tired from the responsibilities I need to, like, check out. And listen, here's something to just be aware of. Like, I wonder if the struggles that we deal with day to day, the distractions we're met with, like our cell phones, social media, streaming service. I just wonder how the current structure of society and culture maybe has potentially desensitized us to the reality of the seriousness of eternity. Right? Honestly. Honestly, Peter seems to have an easy call out to these false teachers who claim that Christ is not returning. Those who are outwardly claiming, like, don't get caught up in this idea that Jesus will come back. Right?" [00:17:13]

Chatbot

Transcript

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