In John 14:3, Jesus told his disciples, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (NKJV). Near the end of the Bible, Jesus promises, “Surely I am coming quickly” (Rev. 22:20). Thus, those who believe in Jesus, accept His teaching about His Second Coming. In fact, many of us pray often with John, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus! (Rev. 22:20). However, it has been a long time since Jesus made that commitment to His people, but He has not yet returned. Even in the days of the Apostles, opponents of the Faith were mocking the believers because Jesus had not yet returned. In 2 Peter 3, the Bible gives three answers to the question, “Why does God delay?” Here, we will address the first response.
In 2 Peter 3:5-7, God delays because it is part of His plan to reserve the earth for God’s appointed intervention in judgment. Those who mocked the delay in Jesus’ return used the argument that all things continue as they always have based on the idea of uniformitarianism. But the Apostle Peter responds that this is not true and gives Noah’s Flood as an example. God once before entered into specific judgment in the Flood which destroyed the earth. If those living before the Flood thought that everything would just keep going like it always has, they were wrong. God intervened in history in a catastrophic way to bring major change. In the same way, God’s calendar has a definite appointment to judge the world in the future. Once the judgment was by water; in the future, it will be by fire. Jesus will come at the appointed time and the process will be ushered in that will execute this judgment.