Read: 2 Peter 3:1-10

Not So Fast

The Lord is not slow about his promise. (v. 9)
Punctuality is a Western virtue. Have you heard the mantra of time management gurus? “If you are not five minutes early, you are late.” We set deadlines and due dates and often manage our calendars down to the last minute hoping to squeeze every moment of productivity out of the day. Time is a commodity to be spent well, and wasting it is a sin. Punctuality is prized, and patience is often in short supply.
God exists outside of time and does not operate on our schedule. The early church in Peter’s day was eagerly awaiting the imminent return of Christ. When Christ had ascended, he promised to return and the church lived in anticipation of that event. Yet, Jesus was taking his time. Days and years went by and Christ had not returned. People became impatient—grumbling and scoffing and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming?” (v. 4).
While God’s timing may appear slow to us, he is not slow “as some count slowness” (v. 9), but is patiently working out his plan of salvation. God’s delay in returning is not tardiness but patience because he “does not want any to perish” (v. 9). Thank God for that!
Just as Jesus Christ came in the “fullness of time” (Galatians 4:4), God works in his perfect timing. He calls us to trust him to bring all that he desires to pass. —Stephen Shaffer

Prayer: Lord, give me a measure of your patience and the wisdom to trust in your timing.

Read: 2 Peter 1:16-21

Bearing Witness

We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven,
while we were with him on the holy mountain. (v. 18)
I was once called to be a witness in a legal proceeding. My friend was accused of a crime, and when the authorities learned I had seen the incident they called me in, sat me down, and questioned me. I was called upon because I knew what had happened.
Peter and the rest of the apostles had witnessed tremendous events. They heard God the Father give Jesus honor and glory both at at his baptism and on the mount of Transfiguration. Peter was there when Jesus healed the lame, cast out demons, and calmed the sea. The disciples heard Jesus’ teachings about the kingdom of God and saw his life, death, and resurrection as the fulfillment of what God had promised long ago. After Jesus’ ascension, Peter was compelled to testify to what he had seen. He witnessed Jesus Christ and then was called upon to be a witness for Jesus Christ because he knew all that had happened.
Like Peter, we are called upon to bear witness. Peter’s testimony to the risen Christ is like a “lamp shining in a dark place” to which we “will do well to be attentive” (v. 19). We remember Christ’s journey to the cross. It is not myth or false witness, but the truth of the gospel. Christ has died, Christ is risen and Christ will come again. —Stephen Shaffer

Prayer: Lord, embolden me to bear witness to Jesus Christ.

Lent Devotions: Day 34

Read: 2 Peter 1:1-15

Corrective Lenses

For anyone who lacks these things is nearsighted and blind. (v. 9)
Poor eyesight is common. In fact, three out of four people in America need vision correction. Whether we use glasses or contacts, corrective lenses function by putting a lens between our eyes and the world. However, there is a new type of contact that corrects vision itself. Worn at night, the contact forms and reshapes the eye to see clearly so that no glasses or contacts are needed during the day. If you stop wearing them, poor vision returns.
Lenten practices like prayer, Bible reading and fasting help shape our lives to focus on Jesus and “his precious and very great promises” (v. 4). These spiritual disciplines are like that new type of contact lenses: they shape our vision. Spiritual disciplines are not easy nor do they provide instant results, but when practiced in faith and with devotion to God, over time we will see Jesus Christ more clearly.
Neglecting these practices, like refusing to wear those eye-shaping contacts, leads to a deterioration of our vision. We become nearsighted and blind, forgetting even that Jesus Christ has forgiven us. By living with our eyes on Jesus, our vision is shifted and corrected. Our “nearsightedness” gives way to the knowledge and love of Jesus Christ. Our faith becomes supplemented with virtue, self-control, godliness, and love. We begin to see Jesus more clearly. —Stephen Shaffer

Prayer: O Lord, correct my vision that I may see you more clearly.

Read: Psalm 117

All Nations and All Peoples

Praise the Lord, all you nations! (v. 1)
During Lent, it can be easy for me to turn inward and contemplate my own sin and my need for a savior. This posture is appropriate; I ought to bow before the Lord in humility and awe, confessing my unfaithfulness to God. And yet I shouldn’t remain kneeling in isolation. At some point, recognizing God’s steadfast love and faithfulness means that I have to stand up and join others in praising God. We can’t forget Easter.
This standing up is what Psalm 117 calls us to do: “Praise the Lord, all you nations! Extol him, all you peoples!” The good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection isn’t addressed only to the individual; it’s meant for whole nations, entire people groups. Moreover, when we experience the steadfast love of God, we should respond by joining with others and praising the Lord.
Worshiping God in that way gives us a taste of worship in the age to come. In Revelation, John sees an enormous gathering, made up of people “from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb…They cried out in a loud voice saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!’” (Rev. 7:9-10). What a marvelous picture of life in the kingdom.
So enter into Easter joy and praise him, all you nations!
—Grace Claus

Prayer: Faithful God, with people from every nation and language, we praise your glorious name!

Read: Isaiah 53

The Righteous Servant

The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous. (v. 11)
“Am I a good person?” A high school friend asks me this question at least once a year. I wonder what my face looks like after she asks, because answering makes me so uncomfortable. I squirm in my seat and fidget as I think of what to say. What exactly is she looking for? Does she want to be justified, to know that the sum of her actions makes her a “righteous” person before God? And does she believe I am fit to provide an answer because I’m a seminary student?
A man asked Jesus, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” Jesus replied, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good” (Matthew 19:16,17). If Jesus wasn’t willing to comment on who and what is “good,” why should we?
Nothing we do or can do makes us “righteous” before God. And as for being good, well, the world is full of “good” people who do bad things and “bad” people who do good things. “Goodness” is irrelevant. The Father embraces us as righteous, not by our works, but because of the righteousness of the suffering servant, Jesus Christ.
The next time my high school friend asks, I hope I have the courage to say this to her. —Garret Szantner

Prayer: Lord God, we give thanks to you that we are not judged according to our effort, but by the plentiful righteousness of Jesus.