2 Peter 2:4-10

For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.

We often look at past performance when attempting to predict how a person might perform in the present and future.  If we want to understand how today’s false prophets and rebellious people will be judged; we can simply look back and see how God has judged in the past.  There are times when we may not understand God and His workings in our world.  It may seem like the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer.  This passage demonstrates God’s history of judging.

GOD HAS JUDGED THE WICKED: God has demonstrated His ability and willingness to judge in a variety of situations.  He judged the angels despite their lofty position in heaven.  He judged the inhabitants of the earth before the flood despite the massive majority of people who were living in rebellion.  He judged the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah despite the presence of Lot in their midst.  The only means of escaping the judgment of God is through faith in Christ.  Powerful positions, the number of people doing the same thing, and knowing or being related to a believer are all false sources of hope.  God has executed massive judgments in the past and will be doing the same in the future.

GOD HAS RESCUED THE RIGHTEOUS: The holy angels, Noah and his family, and Lot are examples of God’s ability to separate between those who are righteous and those who are not.  Noah and Lot were not perfect by any means.  In fact, in reading the Old Testament Lot does not appear favorably at all.  This passage is the main reason we know that Lot was a righteous man.  His foolish choices ended up costing him his family.  Noah’s failures are also seen after the flood.  However, God knows the heart and has demonstrated His ability to distinguish between the rebellious evil and His flawed followers.

GOD KNOWS HOW TO RESCUE AND JUDGE: Peter’s argument is to demonstrate that God’s past judgments should inform us about His future judgments.  A time is coming when God will judge this earth.  We don’t know when this will take place, but we do know that it will take place.  We also know that all those who have trusted Christ will be rescued from this judgment and be eternally saved.  Those who are living in rebellion against God and remain enslaved to their sensual lusts will come under condemnation.  This sobering reality should inform the way we live.

APPLICATION: Warn those who are placing their hopes on anything besides Christ of their impending judgment.  No matter how difficult it is to serve the Lord in this fallen world; we must persist in obedience and hope.  Praise the Lord for his Justice and His grace.