But

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, 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 the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” (2Pe 3:9-10 AV)

We often use verse 9 as a revelation of the heart of God to all souls.  Not Calvinism here.  There isn’t a soul God created with express purpose of damnation in mind. The Bible does not teach this anywhere.  God has an infinitely large heart for the lost souls of people.  He sent His Son so that we might have forgiveness of sin.  He gave us the gift of His Son because He created us to know and love us.  This is the God who is creator of everything.  He is not a God of evil, vengeance or destruction as the ultimate motive.  Not at all.  He is a God of love and grace first.  His first and greatest desire is that all souls might repent of their sins and love Him by faith.  In our passage above, there is one little word that is very important.  The word ‘but’ shows the balance between God’s love and God’s holiness.  God will not relax His standard of holiness for anyone.  Christ came and died that we might receive His holiness.  If we turn our back on His holiness, that is on us.  The word ‘but’ shows us that God’s grace has limits.  Yes, He wishes all souls would repent and not perish.  Yet because they will not, He must exercise righteous judgment.  The word ‘but’ is a very sobering thing.  Surprisingly, God’s grace in balance with justice is a comforting thought.

This scenario will sound familiar.  You are at a restaurant.  As you sit and enjoy your meal, a family with a small child sits across the aisle from you.  You know what is about to happen.  Your meal is going well, but the small child is not patient.  Mom and dad try to do the best they can.  They give snacks. They distract with crayons and a work page.  It works most of the time.  But this child is smart to their attempts.  He is having none of it.  He is out of control.  There is nothing that will please him.  Even when the food comes, he is still pitching a fit.  As you try to enjoy date night, your patience wears thin.  You rush your meal and get out of there as soon as you can.  While you leave, you are irritated.  You feel resentment that such a family thought it was a good idea to come to a public place and disrupt everyone else because they would not discipline their child.  A bit later, on your way home, you realize just how much damage those parents were inflicting upon their child.  It is not love to allow their child to act out.  If that child does not learn self-discipline, he will never amount to anything.  At some point, grace must end and justice must begin.

Our own nation has turned this balance on its ear.  Those who are corrupt are allowed to roam free.  On the misunderstanding that allowing offenders to roam free is more compassionate that incarcerating them is misguided.  Our nation is doing no good for our nation, nor for the offender.  Justice is necessary as part of the growth process.  Unless we learn there are consequences for our choices, we will continue a downward spiral into total anarchy.  Justice must balance grace.  Otherwise, ungodliness and wickedness reign.  As a nation, we better figure this out quickly.  If not, society will digress into more and more evil.  It is not a kindness to forgive and free at all times.  Not a good thing at all.  There is a reason spiritual fruit is common among the incarcerated.  Because they are held accountable for their actions, they can not think on what they have done, confess their faults, and try to make it right.  The LORD is not slack.  Or the LORD does not flippantly offer grace.  No, He offers it time and again.  But if mankind refuses thousands of years of mercy, what choice does He have?  He will start over in a creation where sin does not exist.  ‘But’ is very sobering.  ‘But’ should drive us to repentance and reconciliation.  If lost, ‘but’ should compel us to seek salvation in Christ.