“But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men. But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:7-9 NASB1995)
When Jesus Christ lived on the earth, he told his disciples that he was going to be leaving them, and that he was going to prepare a place for them, but that one day he would come back and he would take all his followers (his faithful bride) to be with him for eternity. And that was nearly 2000 years ago. And so there are people who doubt his words, since he has yet to return and to take his faithful ones to be with him for eternity. But just because it has not yet happened, it does not mean that it will not happen.
One day Jesus will return for his faithful bride, and he will take us to be with him for eternity. And the world as we know it will be destroyed with fire, along with all who are ungodly. And who are the ungodly? They are not just all who make no professions of faith in Jesus Christ, but they are all who are living ungodly lives in deliberate and habitual sin against God and in willful and habitual disobedience to his commands. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the ones DOING the will of God.
But just because our Lord has not yet returned, it is not a sign that he will not do what he said he would do, for his timing is not the same as ours. And the reason for his delay is that he is not wishing (willing, wanting) that anyone should perish in their sins, but that all would come to repentance. And repentance is a change of heart and mind resulting in a change of behavior. For it means we die to our old lives of living in sin so that we can now serve our Lord in walks of obedience to his commands, in his power.
So, this is not just about confessing our sins and asking God for forgiveness, but this is us turning away from our sins to now follow Jesus in obedience. And to confess our sins is not just a verbal acknowledgement of sin, but it is agreeing with God about our sin, not just that we sinned, but that Jesus Christ died on that cross to put our sins to death with him so that, by God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in him, we will now die to sin and walk in obedience to our Lord’s commands (see 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6).
For Jesus Christ taught that to come to him we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands, in his power, then we have eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls him “Lord” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (see Luke 9:23-26; Matthew 7:21-23).
For by God-gifted faith in Jesus Christ, which is not of our own doing, we are crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but as slaves to righteousness in walks of obedience to God’s commands. We are no longer to permit sin to reign in our mortal bodies to make us obey its desires. For if sin is what we obey, it results in death. But if obedience to God is what we obey, it results in sanctification, and its end is eternal life with God (see Romans 6:1-23).
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
Send a Revival
An Original Work / June 25, 2011
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
Send a revival to this nation, Lord, I pray.
Bring us to our knees, Lord, humbly today.
Teach us to daily walk in your footsteps.
Guide us in your truth, and may we find rest.
Send a revival to this nation, Lord, I pray.
Bring us to our knees, Lord, humbly today.
Be our desire and our hearts’ pure devotion, Lord.
Make us a people who walk close to you.
Change our hearts to conform to your likeness.
May we love others who are in distress.
Be our desire and our hearts’ pure devotion, Lord.
Make us a people who walk close to you.
Teach us to be an example of your love, Lord.
May we serve others as though serving you.
Keep us in fellowship with you, I pray.
May we obey you in all things today.
Teach us to be an example of your love, Lord.
May we serve others as though serving you.
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But for All to Come to Repentance
An Original Work / November 30, 2025
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
