Breaking Camp

“Since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me” (v14).

Let’s put something on the table from the get go. I haven’t been camping in forty years. Please don’t get the impression that I’m some sort of rugged outdoorsman who longs to camp in the great outdoors. No, my idea of roughing it is going to a cabin without wifi. The Apostle Peter is no such dude. He’s a former commercial fisherman who made a serious career change to follow a homeless Rabbi/Carpenter and spread the word of His resurrection. Pete knows what it’s like to camp. But more than that, he knows that life is temporary. Our time here on this planet is more like tent camping than house building. We’re only here for a very short time. And Pete knows that it’s about time for him to break camp.

Because the apostle can see the light at the end of the tunnel, he’s made it a priority to remind his friends about who Jesus is, what He’s done for us and who we are as a result of God’s saving work in our lives. In his first letter to them, Pete encourages his readers to see the big picture. When life comes at you hard, know that Jesus is right there with you. Allow Christ to give you the strength when attacks come from the outside. In this second letter, he writes about an assault from inside the church. False teachers are infiltrating local congregations and are doing terrible damage. This is such a critical issue that he’s given it his total focus for the remainder of his short time left on this earth. Before Pete breaks camp, he’s spend all of his energy reminding his friends of the truth.

He knows the clocking is ticking down. It’s crunch time. This is when the real winners show what they’re made of. With the game on the line, Pete takes a peek at the scoreboard to see how much time’s left. “I know that the putting off of my body will be soon” (v14). The clock’s winding down. It’s time to make a play! The apostle uses a Greek phrase that’s full of camping terminology. It’s more like the kind of stuff you’d hear at REI than in church. The ESV uses the phrase “putting off.” This is apothesis, the action of removing something, taking down or putting away. What is he about to take down? His “body” or skenoma. This isn’t one of the regular Greek terms for the human body. This is used to describe a tent, a portable tabernacle or a temporary dwelling. Pete knows that he will strike camp “soon” (Gr. tachinos). It will happen shortly and swiftly. He’ll pack up his tent in the very near future. He knows for a fact that his death is imminent. With his clock approaching 0:00, the apostle doesn’t waste time with things that don’t matter. His priority is reminding fellow believers to know they’re salvation is all about Jesus. Nothing more. Nothing less. Before Pete breaks camp, this is at the top of his “to do” list. It’s the ONLY thing on his “to do” list!

This idea of life on earth as camping is familiar to Jesus’ crew. His buddy John wrote about how God set up His tent on the third rock from the sun. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (Jn 1:14). “Dwelt” is the Greek verb skeno’o. Look familiar? It’s the kissin’ cousin of the word Pete picks here in his second letter. It means to pitch a tent or set up a tabernacle. Both of these apostles are pointing back to the Old Testament. Back in Moses’ day, God was right there among His people in His very own tent called the tabernacle. Wherever they went, they set up God’s temporary headquarters when they set up camp. John wants his readers to know that when Jesus showed up, He was and is God. Just as God went camping with His people in the OT, Jesus pitches His tent.  

Here, Pete knows that it’s about time to take down his tent and break camp. He knows because Jesus told him. Remember his famous conversation with the resurrected Christ on the beach of the Sea of Galilee (Jn 21:18-19)? This is a key moment in Pete’s life. In a very short time, he went from the leader of the disciples to the denier of his Savior. When a middle school girl accused him of being one of Jesus’ crew, Pete folded up like a tent. Most Bible scholars consider the Gospel of Mark to be Peter’s account of Christ’s life. The former fisherman doesn’t leave out the most embarrassing moment of his life (Mk 14:66-72). After His miraculous resurrection, Jesus makes a point of getting some one-on-one time with Pete. After restoring him to his place in ministry, Christ lets Peter in on how his earthly life will end. When he’s old, he will be crucified just as His Lord was crucified. Since we know the Romans executed the apostle in AD 68, he is clearly writing just before that date. Now an old man, Pete knows he’s about to break camp.

The apostle knows what many of us need to remember. We’re only on this earth a short time. When you look through the lens of eternity, life is lived in the blink of an eye. Pete has an enormous sense of urgency. Do I? Do I realize that the clock is counting down? Do I live like it’s crunch time? Do I live like I’m just passing through? Do I understand that I’m about to break camp?