Who You Gonna Believe?

“They will say, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation” (v4).

“The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior,” the great theologian Dr. Phil likes to say. Many times, he’s right on target. If you want to know what somebody’s going to do, see what they’ve done before. Well, the false teachers are using the same argument when it comes to Jesus’ second coming. They taunt His followers with the fact that He promised to return but hasn’t showed up. They go so far as to say everything is exactly the same as it was from Day One of creation. “You want proof of what’s going to happen?” they ask sarcastically, “Nothing, because nothing like that has happened before.” It’s true that Christ hasn’t returned. But it’s also true that He promised He would.

So who you gonna believe? 

These false teachers used ridicule and sarcasm to talk smack about the fact that Christ hasn’t come back. “Where is the promise of His coming?” (v4). If Jesus guaranteed to return, why isn’t He here? That’s the 800-pound theological gorilla in the room. If these con artists are right about something, this is it. Look around. Jesus isn’t here. He may have promised to return, but He certainly hasn’t pulled it off yet. According to the false teachers, that means it’s a stone cold, lead pipe lock that He’s NEVER coming back. They use this fact to talks trash to the followers of Jesus. They make turn His promise into a punchline. 

Pete makes it clear that the early church expected Jesus’ big comeback. This idea is a huge theme in lots of Paul’s letters to local churches (1Cor 15:51; 1Th 1:10; 2:19; 4:15-18; 5:1-2). And there’s a huge reason why: Jesus said He was coming back! He personally promised He’s not done yet (Mt 16:27; 24:36-42; Mk 13:34-36; Lk 9:26; 21:34-36). Why should we trust the radical Rabbi/Carpenter on the second coming? I’m so glad you asked. He not only predicted His own death, He told everybody exactly how it would happen. EXACTLY. He also predicted His own resurrection exactly how it would happen. Anyone who can do that, has serious cred. If Christ can make the call on His own death and resurrection, I’m siding with Him on His final comeback. 

So who you gonna believe?

These spiritual hucksters try to sell their message by wrapping it in the Bible. They flip open the OT and talk about “the fathers” (v4). They’re the heavy hitters of the Hebrew Torah. Abraham. Isaac. Jacob. They go back to the beginning of the Jewish faith. It all started when God reached down and handpicked Abraham and his family to be the firehose of blessing for a lost and dying world (Gen 12:2-3). God was faithful to keep His promise to Abe’s boy Isaac (Gen 26:3-5) and grandson Jacob (Gen 28:13-15). This lets us know that these con artists are Jewish. They claim the same spiritual dads. Peter is writing to Jewish followers of Jesus, “who are the elect exiles of the dispersion” living in what we now know as Turkey (1Pet 1:1).

Hey, these guys must not be so bad. They’re just like us. They believe what we believe, right? WRONG! We need to be very careful not to fall for every person who comes our way talking Jesus talk. Just because some smooth talking teacher quotes a few Bible verses, it certainly doesn’t mean they’re part of the family. Don’t forget how the folks in Berea cross checked everything Paul told them. “They received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11). 

Don’t fall for biblical smoke and mirrors. One sure way to do that is to become more and more familiar with God’s Word. Another red flag is the focus of the message you’re hearing. Does it point you to Jesus? Does it point to the Hero of the story? Does it set your eyes on “Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith” (Heb 12:2)? The Son of God said Himself that He’s the focus of every page of Scripture (Jn 5:39). After His resurrection, He led a blockbuster Bible study explaining how He’s THE Point of the story (Lk 24:27). Just because somebody says they follow Jesus and quote a few verses doesn’t mean a flying flip. It could well be part of the con. As the old saying goes, a verse out of context is a pretext for a prooftext. In other words, just because something is in the Bible, it may not have diddly to do with how it’s being used. Be careful. Be very careful.

The false teachers try to use history as a way to talk smack about what Jesus’ followers believe. Ever since Abe and his boys died, it’s same as it ever was. They even have the gall to back even further than that. “All things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation” (v4). They’re teaching that since no worldwide cataclysm has happened before, there’s no reason to expect one this time. The con artists weren’t afraid of any sort of eternal judgment because they didn’t believe  in the idea of a apocalyptic encore and Jesus’ punishment of evil. They get lots of laughs by making Christ and His followers the butt of the joke. There’s just one little problem with their routine. They’re wrong. Things aren’t the same. Things have happened. God flushed the toilet with a worldwide flood (Gen 6:17; 7:17-24). God also did some urban renewal by knocking over the Tower of Babel and creating all the languages of the world (Gen 11:9). And the biggest thing He did was send His Son on the greatest rescue mission the universe has ever seen. Just because you don’t believe in Noah and the flood, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. Jesus sure believed it happened (Mt 24:37).

But the biggest evidence against these false teachers is that Jesus came once. Even unbelieving historians agree in the fact that the Roman government executed a homeless Galilean Carpenter for claiming to be a king. The hucksters ask, “Where is the promise of His coming?” (v4). It’s in His first appearance. During His earthly ministry, Jesus predicted His betrayal. Check. He predicted His death. Check. He predicted His resurrection. Check. And He predicted His return. That’s the only thing left on His “to do” list. The con artists make jokes that Jesus hasn’t come back. Our Savior made a promise.

So who you gonna believe?