“A Faithful Testimony”
2 Peter 1:16-21
As
Peter opens this paragraph of his letter to these persecuted saints, he will
offer a testimony that they can lean into even as false teaching threatens to
derail them from their faith. He will offer his own eyewitness account of the
Transfiguration. He will follow that testimony with the testimony of the Old
Testament prophet and scriptures. He will conclude his testimonials with the
testimony of the entire Word of God. While there were and will always be
imposters and false teachers, there will also be truth that can be depended on
to fortify the faith of the believer. Let’s see what this portion of Scripture
has for both the ancient and the current reader.
I.
Peter’s
Eyewitness Testimony 2 Peter 1:16-18
a.
Peter’s
most recent teaching in this letter has been in relation to the 2nd
Coming of Christ. He has offered an eschatological insight into the reality of
this event and the utilization of this truth in the continuing growth in the
Christian virtues mentioned in Verses 5-7. He followed up that insight with a
commitment on his part to teach the “precious and magnificent promise” of
salvation until the time of his death, hoping that these truths would even come
to the reader’s mind after his passing.
b.
If
you were going to try to derail a witness’ testimony, you would begin by derailing
the credibility of that witness. Verse
16 begins with a confirmation of the credibility of the witness, as well as
the lack of credibility of the witness of the false teacher that will come into
sharper focus in chapter 2.
c.
In
comparing the witness of Peter himself and the false teachers in general, he
begins by contrasting their information. Peter tells us that the false teacher
of that day, as well as ours, will have “cleverly devised tales” as his
ammunition in this battle. It is noteworthy to see that these tales are
“clever”. They will trick some into a changed mind or at least an ineffective
walk. The enemy is both clever and devious. He will not try to persuade the
believer with silly things. He will use clever half-truths and devious methods
to derail the faith of the believer. How will the believer fend off such
attacks? With the aid of the Holy Spirit and growth in the virtues mentioned
earlier.
d.
Peter,
on the other hand, offers first hand evidence to the reality of the One that he
will be teaching about. The event that is referred to here is the
Transfiguration of Jesus Christ that is recorded in Matthew 17, Mark 9, and
Luke 9. Peter was on hand as an eyewitness to this incredible display of power
and coming of Jesus Christ. In fact, there is a connection being made here
between Peter and the other two apostles that saw this event; James and John.
In this incredible transfiguring of Jesus, there was a demonstration being
offered of what His coming would be like when He returns to establish His eternal
Kingdom.
e.
So
how does Peter’s account give him any credibility when it comes to continued
teaching and preaching? The answer is given in Verse 17 when Peter is demonstrated as not only “there”, but in
agreement with the Father Himself! Peter was now preaching and teaching the
second coming of Christ as a demonstration of both His honor and glory. In that
moment, on what is traditionally noted as Mount Hermon, the Father Himself
articulated both honor and glory for His Son. The Apostle Peter is in complete
agreement with the Father Himself! The false teacher would have little to offer
in discrediting Peter or his Savior based on this scene.
f.
There
are a couple of things that are worth noting before going on. One is the
interesting name noted for the Father in this verse. The “Majestic Glory” is a
name that is only used in the New Testament in this passage, although a similar
reference is made in Hebrews 1:3. The other is actually mentioned in Verse 18. It is the fact that Peter,
James, and John actually heard the “utterance” made from heaven. While there
was much to see that day, it could never
be described except in the most general of terms. But they heard something that
day, even though they were denied the opportunity to share it until after the
Resurrection of Christ, which Peter would not forget and would still be able to
share with accuracy nearly three decades later.
II.
The
Testimony of the Old Testament Prophet and Scriptures 2
Peter 1:19
a.
In
addition to the eyewitness of Peter at the Transfiguration, we now look to the
testimony of the Old Testament prophet and even the entirety of the Old
Testament scripture to give credibility to both the character and the message
of Peter.
b.
With
the testimony of the Transfiguration, Peter was in effect confirming the Old
Testament prophets and scripture by confirming both the honor and glory of the
Savior Jesus Christ. They had announced it in the ancient scriptures; and now
he was in fact offering testimony to the precursor of that event to come.
c.
There
is an interesting charge in Verse 19.
That charge is that we would do well to pay
attention to the Old Testament and the Prophetic Record until the Day of
Christ’s Second Coming (“until the day dawns and the morning star arises in
your heart”). Since that day has not come yet, we are being charged to not only
pay attention to the New Testament for our insights but to also consider the
truths of the Old Testament as important to our understanding of Christ and His
story.
d.
These
insights are also referred to as “a lamp shining in a dark place”. What a
descriptive picture of both the wonderful Scripture and the dark world that it
is to be administered into!
i. Do you see the
Scriptures as a “lamp”? What attributes of a lamp make this an especially
fitting picture? Can you see how the “day dawning” will only make what the lamp
has been illuminating more clear?
ii. Do you see the
World as a “dark place”? What attributes of darkness are found in the world?
Can you see how the “morning star” will offer a light to the darkness that will
expose everything?
III.
The
Testimony of all of Scripture 2 Peter 1:20-21
a.
For
the third witness to the credibility of both Peter and his teaching, we are now
offered the entirety of Scripture as this evidence. While there was no New
Testament in the time of Peter’s writing of this letter, we will see in these
next couple of verses one of the two most insightful verses in the entire Bible
for the Doctrine of the Inspiration of Scripture. (2 Timothy 3:16 is the other)
b.
In
Verse 20, we are given a flag to
follow for the balance of this chapter. That flag is “first of all”; which
means of primary importance. What is that “first thing” to know? It is this: No
prophecy of Scripture is a matter on one’s own interpretation. In a world where
we love to ask the question, “What does this verse mean to you?”, we are given
a rule of true inspiration regarding the whole of Scripture. That rule is that
none of the prophecies came from the personal interpretation of the prophet.
What does this mean?
c.
We
have to wait no longer than Verse 21
for an answer to that question. The answer is that there was no prophecy that
was made by means of the human will. The prophetic record is a result of men
moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. That simple insight gives us our view
of the Inspiration of Scripture and an insight into what we as believers refer
to as Verbal-Plenary Inspiration. What are some of the highlights of this
important doctrine?
i. Scripture is
verbally inspired – That is, the words of Scripture are inspired.
ii. Scripture is
completely inspired – That is, ALL of the words of Scripture are inspired.
iii. Scripture is
divinely inspired – That is, God inspired all of the words of Scripture.
iv. Scripture is
verbally, completely, and divinely inspired AND so are the authors of the
Scripture – That is, while the words are truly human words, the words of
Scriptures, inspired by God, are truly the words of the Divine Author. To sum
it up, the Scripture is the Word of God written in the words of man.
d.
The
idea of Verbal Plenary Inspiration goes as follows:
i. The idea of
verbal-plenary inspiration seeks to view inspiration as extending to all (thus,
the word plenary) portions of Holy
Scripture, even beyond the direction of thoughts to the selection of words
(thus, the word verbal).
ii. While there is a
mystery in this line of thought, it most clearly offers an explanation to the
role of humans in the writing of Scripture.
iii. A wonderful hint
is offered in this verse for this line of thinking. It is the word “moved” or
“carried” by the Holy Spirit. This word has the meaning of “being carried along
like the wind carries a sailboat along”. So, in the production of Scripture,
both God and man were active participants. God was the source of the content of
Scripture, so that what it says is what God has said. But he human author also
actively spoke; he was more than a recorder or one taking dictation. Yet what
he said came from God. Although actively speaking, he was carried along by the
Holy Spirit.
IV.
An
Application For All Of Us: BEAT THAT, FALSE TEACHER!! PETER AND HIS MESSAGE CAN
BE BELIEVED!!!
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