“And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;” (2Pe 3:15 AV)
We often wonder why the LORD is so
longsuffering. Why doesn’t He rain
justice on all the evil of the world?
Or, more practically, why doesn’t the LORD quickly judge my wrong
actions, intents, or disposition? Why is
it the LORD is slow to exercise righteous judgment? Is He tolerant of wickedness and doesn’t take
it nearly as seriously as we think He should?
Is He waiting for one day wherein the entirety of His wrath comes upon
all disobedience? Why is it the LORD is
so patient even though we rebel so often?
Peter is making the application above to mankind in general. The theme of the chapter is the longsuffering
of God compared to the eventual destruction and recreation of the earth in
holiness and true righteousness. In
short, the LORD is longsuffering that mankind will have every opportunity
towards salvation. As this principle can
be applied to the saint, the LORD may withhold chastening that we might choose
to do the right thing.
Mercy is a great way to influence
people towards doing right. It doesn’t
always work out that way. Mercy is also
an attribute of authority to limit or negate all charges of unfairness. When a judge shows mercy, he may be doing so
out of a heart of compassion. Or, he may
show mercy in the hope his mercy would humble the defendant enough to stir him
to a better life. The defendant that
ignores the mercy of the judge and uses that mercy as an opportunity to commit
more crime is a fool. In my experience,
I have met more of the former than the latter.
As a pastor, I have counseled many who had made one wrong choice too
many. They knew they had done wrong and
once forgiven, they never went back there again. We tend to forget these types of people far outnumber
those who ignore the mercy of God. I
think of the young man who made a habit out of rebellion against God. He spent time in jail. He fathered a child out of wedlock. He got into drinking and smoking. God chastened him for these things, but far
less than he deserved. As a result, he turned
his life around and is not attending church.
Then there was the homeless drunk who accepted Christ but could never
fully conquer the liqueur. He would eventually
pass away from complications due to his drinking, but the LORD was merciful to
him and allowed him to live several years in the hope he would say no to the monster
that plagued him. All too often we seem
to remember or dwell upon those who never do turn. We forget the vast majority of us do.
When this principle applies to the
lost world, just the opposite is true.
Regardless of how much longsuffering and mercy God shows to mankind, the
vast majority will still reject. The
lesson we can take away from this is simple.
If we are impatient with God’s longsuffering, we must realize He is no respecter
of persons. The longsuffering He shows
to us, He also desires to show towards all.
If we are agitated at the condition of the world and are perplexed as to
why the LORD hasn’t returned, remember, the mercy He shows towards us is the
same mercy He desires to show towards His enemies. The above verse makes this clear. His mercy towards rebellious mankind has
salvation as its target. God is withholding
His hand of wrath and justice to give mankind more opportunity to accept His
free gift of salvation. I, for one,
think the return of Christ is right around the corner. I truly believe His return will be in my
natural lifetime. It may be longer. But I believe His return is sooner rather
than later. With this hope, and knowing
what will happen once the Church is carried away, I can understand why the LORD
is longsuffering. If we can plug into this
truth, we will become aggressive and consistent soul-winners. The reason that God-hating drunk who curses
you as you visit the neighborhood is still alive is that perhaps the mercy of
God will end with his salvation.
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