The Lord Knows How to Rescue

“For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority.” 2 Peter 2:4-10 NASB

The context here is that of false prophets and teachers, which include false pastors, evangelists, and preachers who secretly introduce destructive heresies, who malign the truth of God’s word, and who exploit the people with false words. And also it is of those who follow them into their sensuality. And the conclusion to all of that is that their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. They will face the judgment of God.

And then we have this following section where we have detailed for us several examples really of God’s sovereignty over it all, but also of God judging people and angels who rebelled against him, showing that God is a God of his word and he does not give out false threats nor false promises. But please know here that biblical promises of God all have conditions that must be met by us before we can claim any of those promises.

So, always read the promises of God in their full context, looking for who the promises are given to, and looking for the character of those to whom they are given, and looking for the conditions that must be met by us to have those promises fulfilled in our lives. For example, John 10:28-30 must be read in the context of verse 27 which tells us who those promises are for. They are for those who are listening to the Lord and who are obeying him.

So, in this section of Scripture here this morning we have a clear picture of God being a God of his word, both in fulfilling his promises and in fulfilling his threats of judgment. And so the whole idea here is that we should take God seriously. We should take him at his word. For he will do what he said he would do. So all those people out there professing his name who are still living in deliberate and habitual sin will not inherit eternal life with God.

And yet most of them, it appears, do not take that seriously. They don’t believe that God will judge them for their rebellion and for their willful, deliberate, and habitual sinning against him, and for them ignoring his righteous decrees and his commandments to us under the New Covenant. For they think if they make a profession of faith in Christ they are good to go. But the Scriptures contradict that notion, over again.

And for those of us who are walking according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, though not necessarily in absolute perfection, but in practice, in lifestyle, we have the hope and the promise of eternal life with God, but provided that we continue in those walks of faith in obedience to our Lord steadfast until the very end. And these are not my words. Please read the following Scriptures which teach that:

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

And then this is beautiful! The God who did all that was just described for us is the God, the only true God, who has the power to rescue the godly from temptation. Amen! And this is not saying that we will never be tempted. We will, most certainly, because we live in flesh bodies, and we are human beings, and because we have a very persistent enemy, the devil, who is out to devour us in any which way that he can. So be on your guard!!

But we are not powerless to resist the devil. We have the full armor of God, and we have the God of the Scriptures empowering us to resist the devil and to flee temptation and to continue to walk in holiness and in righteousness in the power of God until the day that our Lord takes us home to be with him for eternity. So not one of us who is of genuine faith in Jesus Christ ever has to fear being tempted to the point of giving in to that temptation.

Now this does not mean that we can play with fire expecting to not get burned, since God is on our side. That would be pure stupidity! We have to be following our Lord in obedience to his word, listening to his voice, paying attention when he gives us warnings, and heeding those warnings, even if it costs us friendships or followers or whatever. And we must be keeping our minds and our hearts pure, utilizing spiritual disciplines to keep us there.

And, again, the Scriptures teach that if we decide, instead, to go our own way, and to follow the way of the flesh, and not the way of the Spirit, and to sin against our Lord deliberately and habitually, instead of walking in holiness and in righteousness and in purity of devotion to our Lord, we will face the wrath of God instead of the goodness of God. For we are all going to reap what we sow – some to destruction and others to eternal life with God.

[Rom 2:6-8; 1 Co 6:9-10; 2 Co 5:10; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]

Behold Our God

By Jonathan Baird / Meghan Baird / Ryan Baird / Stephen Altrogge

Who has held the oceans in his hands?

Who has numbered every grain of sand?

Kings and nations tremble at his voice

All creation rises to rejoice

Who has given counsel to the Lord?

Who can question any of his words?

Who can teach, the one who knows all things?

Who can fathom all his wondrous deeds?

Who has felt the nails upon his hands?

Bearing all the guilt of sinful man

God eternal, humbled to the grave

Jesus, Savior, risen now to reign

Behold our God, seated on his throne

Come, let us adore him

Behold our king, nothing can compare

Come, let us adore him

You will reign forever (let Your glory fill the Earth)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCwb1vEXyv4

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