What if you knew exactly how the story ends — and it actually gave you hope for today?
That was the question Pastor Josh White left us with in his final sermon before sabbatical, titled “Fire.” Drawing from 2 Peter 3 and a sweep of Old Testament and New Testament passages, Josh walked us through God’s ultimate plan for the Day of the Lord — and why knowing the end should change how we live right now.
The Day of the Lord: Two Purposes
Peter writes in 2 Peter 3:7 that “the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” Just as God once judged the earth with water in the flood, He will one day judge it with fire. Josh walked through what this looks like — and it is sobering.
Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it… I will make people more rare than fine gold, and mankind than the gold of Ophir.
— Isaiah 13:9, 12
Over 300 scriptures reference the Day of the Lord. Revelation chapters 6 through 19 fill in the details — seven seal judgments, seven trumpet judgments, and seven bowl judgments, each worse than the last. One-third of humanity killed after the trumpet judgments alone. And here’s what stunned Josh: most people who live through it won’t repent.
The rest of mankind… did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood.
— Revelation 9:20–21
Not a Accident — A Plan
But this wasn’t the heart of the sermon. The Day of the Lord isn’t just about destruction — it’s about preparation. God will also use that time to restore the earth for the kingdom of Christ.
Josh made a crucial distinction in the Greek. Two words get translated as “new” in the New Testament: neos (new in time or origin — like a newborn baby) and kainos (new in quality or nature — like a renovated house). The “new heavens and new earth” of 2 Peter 3:13 uses kainos. This isn’t a brand-new planet. It’s this earth, restored and renewed — like the original creation after Genesis 1:2, when the Spirit of God (ruach) shaped a formless world into something habitable.
According to His promise, we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
— 2 Peter 3:13
Isaiah 65 gives us a glimpse of what that looks like: no more infant deaths, people living full lives, building and planting and enjoying the fruit of their labor, animals no longer feared — a world where righteousness dwells.
What This Means for Us
Paul writes in Ephesians 1:9–10 that God has revealed His mystery: “as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth.” This is God’s blueprint — and it’s nearing completion.
As Josh challenged the congregation: you cannot speed up God’s plan, and you cannot stop it. But you can share it. While we live in this window of grace — before the Tribulation, before the judgment — we have the privilege and responsibility to tell others about Jesus Christ, who died for sins and offers forgiveness and eternal life.
If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
— Romans 10:9–10
So What?
When you see the news and it feels like the world is spinning out of control — remember: God’s timeline is right on schedule. The judgment coming isn’t evidence that God has lost control. It’s evidence that He hasn’t — and that justice is coming. And the restoration coming isn’t just a distant hope. It’s the confident expectation of every believer.
You who have placed your faith in Christ? First Thessalonians 1:9–10 says you have “the hope of being delivered from the wrath to come.” You will not experience the Day of the Lord. And for everyone else — that’s the urgency of the gospel.
Pastor Josh White will be on sabbatical through June and July. The elders and Pastor Brent Hansen will be preaching through the book of 2 Timothy in his absence. We covet your prayers for Josh and his family as he travels to Israel and rests.
Scripture References
- 2 Peter 3:1–18
- Isaiah 13:9–12
- Revelation 6:3–8
- Revelation 8:6–11:19
- Revelation 16:17–21
- Genesis 7:17–19
- Genesis 8:1
- Romans 8:18–22
- Acts 3:20–21
- Isaiah 65:17–25
- Ephesians 1:7–10
- 1 Thessalonians 1:9–10
- Romans 10:9–10