Sermon for Flinders Park Church June 2019
There are two readings for today:
2 Pet 2:3b-9
3 Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping. 4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment; 5 if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless 8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 9 if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.
Psalm 73
NIV Psalm 73:1 A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. 5 They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills. 6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. 7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits. 8 They scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression. 9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. 10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. 11 They say, “How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?” 12 This is what the wicked are like– always free of care, they go on amassing wealth. 13 Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. 14 All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments. 15 If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children. 16 When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. 18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. 19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! 20 They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. 21 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, 22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you. 23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. 24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. 25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. 27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.
Introduction
The average Australian, if such a thing exists, either does not believe in God at all or thinks that religion is pretty much irrelevant to them. They are generally ignoring God; even those who may claim to have a belief in God live however they please, without reference to God. There are so many things that people now do on a regular basis that would not have been acceptable fifty years ago. Marriage is in decline, same-sex marriage is now legal, and violence and drug use are increasing. It is like the book of Judges: “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Jdg. 17:6 ESV). There are wicked people who are doing really well in life. They seem to have no problems and they are happy without God. The unbelievers are contentedly going about their lives and nothing is happening that you would obviously call judgement on the wicked. The question is: does God bring judgement on them for their wickedness, for ignoring him and living however they like? Where is that judgement? Will it ever happen?
As Christian believers we endeavour to do what is right and pleasing in the sight of God instead of doing whatever we see fit. It is doubtful that we always succeed in this. However, the heart of the Christian is towards God instead of against him, but the heart of the ungodly is against God all day long. In Australia at the moment there are more and more political agendas against Christians. Just recently Israel Folau was sacked because of his religious beliefs.[1] Our Christian Prime Minister is being targeted because of his faith.[2] It may seem, like Ps 73, that the wicked get away with being wicked and that God does not rescue his people at all. Again, the question is: Can we rely on God to bring judgment on the wicked or will they get away with it? Will Christians simply be persecuted more and more and never see God do something about this?
The two readings demonstrate that these are perennial questions. Sometimes it seems as if the wicked get away with being wicked and that God stands idly by while they do so. This is exactly the sort of claim that the false teachers in the early church made. Either they said that God would not or could not judge the wicked. Perhaps they claimed that there was no judgement at all, not even the final judgement. On the other hand they may also have said that when judgement came the righteous would also be judged. Effectively, they made claims about the justice of God. The Scripture, however, tells us something different. Both Ps 73 and 2 Peter 2 tell us that God is not ignoring the issue. The wicked will be punished, although it may not be until the day of judgement. The righteous will be delivered. God is not indifferent. He is able to do these things and will in fact do them.
Peter gives three examples of past judgements on the wicked: the angels who left their place; the ancient world and the flood; and Sodom and Gomorrah. Let’s consider each in turn.
Judgement on Wicked Angels
“For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment” (v 4). Compare this with Jude 1:6 – “And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day” (Jude 1:6 NIV). These two verses are probably referring back to Gen 6. “When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose” (Gen. 6:1-2 NIV). Here the sons of God refer to angels. The Bible does not explicitly mention those angels being locked way in a dungeon except in 2 Peter and Jude, but this idea is present in 1 Enoch and other apocryphal books. I assume that if the apostle believed this to be true and recorded it for us, then it is correct.
The words “sent them to hell” are actually a verb tartaroō in Greek. This word is only used once in Bible. Tartarus was mentioned in Greek mythology. It was the “deepest region of the underworld, lower even than Hades” (The Oxford Classical Dictionary, page 1476). In Homer’s Illiad (8:13-14), Zeus says, “I shall take and hurl him into murky Tartarus, far, far away, where is the deepest gulf beneath the earth … as far beneath Hades as heaven is above the earth.” The Greek idea of Tartarus was taken up by Jewish writers and they understood that God was the one who consigned the evil to Tartarus. The evil angels have been consigned to Tartarus in chains. They cannot escape this prison. They are waiting there for the final judgement. Angels do not get away with going against God’s righteous decrees.
Noah and the Flood
The second example is the flood and the salvation of Noah. “if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others” (v 5). There are two parts to this second example: the destruction of the wicked and the rescue of the righteous. Let’s take these one at a time.
First, the people in the ancient world were wicked. Genesis 6:5 tells us, “The LORD saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.” The people of Noah’s time were not concerned about their relationship with God. They just went about their lives, doing whatever they wanted. Jesus observed this about them: “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:26-27 NIV). The people of present-day Australia are no different to the people of Noah’s day. They are blind and indifferent to potential judgement by God.
“But Noah found favour in the eyes of the LORD” (Gen. 6:8 NIV). And the faith chapter of Hebrews tells us “By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith” (Heb. 11:7 NIV). Noah was a godly man. His righteousness was not based on perfection but based on faith. We know that after the flood he planted a vineyard and got drunk, lay about naked and cursed his son (Gen 9:20-27). He was not perfect but he was righteous on the same basis that you and I have received righteousness, by faith. Those people who listen to God and believe that he is in charge and should be obeyed and trusted are the ones who are counted righteous. This is true all through the Bible, not just in the New Testament. Because of this faith God preserved Noah and his family from destruction. Noah did not have to experience the same judgement that the rest of the world experienced.
Sodom and Gomorrah
The third example is a little longer: “6 if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless 8 (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)—”
Sodom and Gomorrah were unrighteous cities. Abraham interceded for them but God could not find even ten righteous people in those two cities, for if he had done so he would have spared them (Gen 18, particularly v 32). What were the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah? The first mention of particular sins is found in Gen 19, where the men of Sodom tried to rape the angels sent to Lot (19:4-5). Jude mentions their sexual sin. “In a similar way, Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding towns gave themselves up to sexual immorality and perversion. They serve as an example of those who suffer the punishment of eternal fire” (Jude 1:7 NIV). There is another kind of sin that God accused Sodom of. This is mentioned in Ezekiel 16:49 – “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy.”
Our society is not unlike Sodom and Gomorrah. In Australia today sexual sin is the norm and there is also a general lack of concern for the poor and needy, by governments as well as individuals. These things are not pleasing to God. And people go about their business as if nothing will happen to them. Jesus also mentioned the destruction of Sodom after he observed the indifference to God in the time of Noah. “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulphur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all” (Luke 17:28-29 NIV). No one was paying attention to the commands of God, and they were oblivious to the coming destruction. The same is true in our society now.
God condemned these cities to destruction by raining down burning sulphur on them (Gen 19:24). This was a judicial act, a condemnation of the guilty. The only people who escaped were Lot and his daughters. Lot’s sons-in-law (probably men betrothed to his daughters rather than married to them) were warned, but were not saved from the judgement on Sodom because they had no faith and would not leave with Lot (Gen 19:14). Lot’s wife would not cut herself off from the wicked completely. She turned back to Sodom and was turned to salt (Gen 19:26). There was no half-leaving Sodom. Faith is the key to righteousness again, just as it was with Noah.
Lot is called a righteous man, who was tormented by the wicked in Sodom. He was tormented by the unrighteous actions of the people around him. We know that Lot did some foolish things; he was morally ambiguous. Lot offered his virgin daughters to be raped by a sexed-up mob (Gen 19:8), and he got drunk and slept with both his daughters after he escaped the destruction of Sodom (Gen 19:30-38). It was only because he was graciously saved by faith that he is declared righteous. Nonetheless, he still experienced distress because the people who lived around him were immoral and irreverent. They did not care what God thought about their actions. They had no concern that judgement would come upon them. They basically lived as people indifferent to God. Lot’s distress is shared by righteous and god-fearing people everywhere. This is true for us in Australia. It is horrible to watch the downfall of our country and see children grow up with a lack of instruction about God. Righteous people are tormented by the ungodly behaviour and attitudes which surround us.
The good news is that God did not leave things that way for Lot. He destroyed the wicked. He will not ignore the wickedness we see around us. Judgement is coming, and according to Romans 1 it is already here. “18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. … 24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonouring of their bodies among themselves … 26 For this reason God gave them up to dishonourable passions. … 28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done” (Rom 1:18-19, 24, 26a, 28). The judgement that Australian people experience in the present is the fact that God has given them over to their sin and to foolishness and futility.
Conclusion
Peter concludes, “if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment” (v 9). The psalmist comes to the same sort of conclusion when he ponders the issue of evil people prospering. “17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. 18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. 19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! 20 They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies. … 27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you” (Ps 73:17-20, 27).
Elsewhere we are assured of the reality of judgement because God has raised Jesus from the dead. In Paul’s speech to the people on Mars Hill, he said, “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30-31 NIV). The Jews expected the resurrection of the dead to be the final action of God before the Last Judgment. Consequently, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead demonstrates that there will definitely be a judgement of all human beings, a judgement which is eternal, a final judgement.
In the past there has been judgment on the wicked and rescue of the righteous. There will certainly be a Last Judgment when every person will be judged by God as either righteous or wicked. The righteous will be eternally “rescued” and welcomed into the kingdom of God (Matt 25:34), where there will be joy everlasting (Matt 25:21). The wicked will be cast into the Lake of Fire (Rev 21:15). Faith is the thing which separates the righteous from the wicked. The most important thing that we can do to be considered righteous by God is to have faith in the person of Christ. Jesus said, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent” (Jn. 6:29 NIV). All righteous actions flow out of that faith.
So we can be sure that there will ultimately be a separation between the fate of the righteous and the fate of the wicked. The wicked may be fine at the moment but theirs is a slippery slope to destruction. Their peaceful lives are temporary. Destruction of the wicked is coming and it will be final and total. There will be no reprieve. They will not be spared. The righteous, on the other hand, may have to be content with trials at the moment, but God is able to rescue us just as he rescued Noah and Lot. He has not forgotten that his people are surrounded by the wicked. He is not impotent in the face of evil.