2 Peter 3:14

Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

Peter brings prophecy down to street level. Since we are looking for a new heaven and a new earth, how then are we to live now? He says, be diligent that you may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless.

At first that can trouble a tender heart. Because there are believers who love the Lord and long for His coming, yet when they read words like spotless and blameless, they think, That cannot be me. They know their stumbles. They know their drift. They know the places where they have not walked well.

But notice what Peter says. He speaks of being found of Him. That matters. Because everything depends on where a man is found when Jesus comes.

You need to see this. The peace Peter speaks of is not the peace of a man who has performed flawlessly. It is the peace of a man who is resting in Christ. The only way any of us will ever be found spotless and blameless is to be found in the Spotless and Blameless One.

That is the Gospel.

When a person comes to Jesus Christ, he is placed in Christ. His standing changes. His position changes. He is no longer standing before God in the record of his own failure, but in the righteousness of Another. So when the Father looks upon the believer, He sees His Son.

That does not make sin light. But it does make grace glorious.

Think of a little child who wanders away in a crowded place. When she is found, trembling and tearful, what matters most is not that she got turned around. What matters is that in her heart she wants to be back with her father and mother. She wants home. She wants their arms around her. And when she is brought back, loving parents do not greet that child with rejection. They gather her in.

That is a small picture of a much greater truth.

There are believers who have wandered. They know they have made poor choices. They know they have drifted farther than they ever meant to go. But deep down, what do they want? They want the Lord. They want to be near Him. They want to come home. And the Savior receives such people.

Do not miss this. Jesus does not say, Blessed are those servants whom the Lord finds flawless in themselves. He says, blessed are those servants whom He finds watching. In other words, there is blessing upon the one whose heart is turned toward Him, waiting for Him, wanting Him.

That changes the whole tone of the passage.

Peter knew this personally. No man knew better what it was to fail the Lord and still be loved by Him. Peter wandered. Peter denied. Peter pulled back. Peter went places he should not have gone. Yet when Jesus met him again, He did not crush him. He fed him. He restored him. He drew him close.

That is our Lord.

So if your heart today says, Lord, I have wandered in ways I am ashamed of, but what I really want is You, then take courage. The very longing in your heart is evidence that His grace is working in you. The Shepherd is not looking for a reason to cast off one of His own. He is bringing His own to Himself.

Be diligent, then. Not in the sense of frantic striving to make yourself acceptable. Be diligent to abide in Him. Be diligent to keep your heart near Him. Be diligent to live in the peace that comes from knowing your hope is not in your performance but in His finished work.

And as you do, something beautiful happens. The one who rests in Christ begins to walk more steadily with Christ. Peace leads to purity. Assurance leads to nearness. Love leads to obedience.

Beloved, when He comes, He is not coming for strangers. He is coming for His own.

So watch for Him.

Stay near Him.

Rest in Him.

And let your heart say, even through tears if need be, Lord, more than anything else, I want to be with You.