SUNDAY, JULY 11

Scripture: 2 Peter 3:8-10

Peter includes the full panoramic picture of Jesus as both Priest and King when he reminds us of the longsuffering of the Lord because he is not willing that any should perish, but yet proclaims that the day of justice is fast approaching.  He says, “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.  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. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.”  Jesus is first Savior, but ultimately, He is the King.  Because He is the King, He is responsible for justice.  And justice demands a punishment for evil.  When God created the earth, it would only hold so much iniquity.  Whenever a land reaches fullness of iniquity, judgment comes.  Judgment exacts a toll that everyone pays.  Daniel was righteous and found himself in captivity.  When devastation devoured his nation, everyone was dramatically impacted.  Praying the unrighteous perpetrators into God’s justice can avert greater devastation in the land.  The land will only hold so much iniquity.  And unless we can turn people, then justice is inevitable.  It will fall but unfortunately when it does, it falls on both the good and the bad.  When Israel was taken into captivity, both the sinners and the righteous went.  Daniel found himself in the midst of a great trial but still committed to serving God.  And God kept him and used him in that place.  He discovered the day of restoration and began to intercede for it.  While he spent decades in Babylon, he still saw deliverance by faith, embraced it and called it forth.  Jesus hasn’t changed.  He is just as much a Savior and Judge today as He was in Daniel’s time.  We are told in 2 Peter that we can hasten the coming of the Lord.  Recovering our Kingly identity will definitely hasten that day.