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Rescues

             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; 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; 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; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless  (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 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. This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the flesh and despise authority. (II Peter 2:4-10)

How many minutes, days, or years passed between when the angels sinned and when they were sent to hell? Using the genealogies listed in Genesis, about 1600 years passed between the creation of the world and the flood, but it was only about 100 years between when God decided to destroy the world and when it came about. It’s not unreasonable, then, to suggest that God may have waited as long as 1500 years before judging the earth. There were roughly 400 years between Noah and Abraham, meaning that the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah were likely not punished for something that had only begun ten minutes before the fire and brimstone fell. The pattern is clear. God can and does sometimes punish immediately, but He also can and does withhold punishment for a long time, to give people the chance to repent on their own. “Not immediate” does not mean “never.”

The other thing Peter points out is that when God is dealing with humans, He doesn’t completely wipe them out. He kept Noah safe. He kept Lot safe. He saved Peter several times, finally achieving everlasting safety through Peter’s crucifixion.

We’ve never faced an apocalypse, so when God rescues us, it generally isn’t as dramatic as His rescue of Noah, Lot, Peter, or most of the other rescues depicted in the Bible. We might not even realize we’ve been rescued. And the false teachers may seem to be getting everything they want, but what they want is what will destroy them.

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