“So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you
do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day
dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19, NASB95)
On the mountain Peter, James and John had seen Jesus with
Moses and Elijah. The presence of Christ had been linked before their eyes with
two key figures who had gone before them to point them to His coming. The words
the prophets had heard and hoped to see realized, were now made even more sure
in front of these disciples.
This event is set up against what follows next in Peter’s
letter, which is a warning of the false prophets to come as the return of
Christ draws ever near. Peter was personal witness to the truth and now as he
was preparing to leave he was bracing them to stand against the lies. By
pointing to Jesus’ encounter with Moses and Elijah, Peter linked the prophets
of the Old Testament with the coming of Christ. They were inseparably linked in
the fulfillment of God’s promised Redeemer. There was no division in them. What
the prophets had foretold Jesus was bringing to pass. God was keeping His Word,
which is the absolute truth.
There were going to be may coming forward who said that they
had the truth or a special insight or new revelation concerning it. But with
each insight or supposed revelation what they put forward would resemble less
and less that truth that the prophets and apostles had taught. This is why
Peter repeated himself. It is that important that they know the truth.
In response, the objection “What is truth?” has been raised
throughout time. It was even rhetorically posed to Jesus on the day of His
crucifixion as He stood before Pilate. Pilate had asked Jesus if He was a king,
to which Jesus responded, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have
been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone
who is of the truth hears My voice.”” (John 18:37, NASB95) And, it was in
response to this that Pilate came off with what was probably that same flippant
response, “What is truth?” It appears that Pilate held truth as something less
than absolute and possibly even not to be grasped. Jesus’ words had no impact
on him, and Pilate did not take seriously Jesus’ affirming that He was indeed a
king just as He was purposed to be through His birth. Pilate didn’t see it. He
did not grasp the significance of truth, and he was ready to set Jesus free
because His opinion really didn’t matter. And, were it not for the cries of the
crowd, Jesus likely would have been released.
But God’s standard is different. He sent His Son as the
truth. Truth is more than what Jesus said. He is the embodiment of truth. It
was through Him that all things came into being and it is through Him that
truth was spoken. Truth is inseparable from Him, and it doesn’t matter how
strongly someone might believe or even proclaim something else, there is no
truth apart from Him.
When Peter wrote, “So we have the prophetic word made more
sure,” he meant just that. What they had been told had been affirmed in Christ
and they were right there when it happened. Sure, there is an aspect to this in
which we are all going to have to trust, but even in that our trust today is
not empty or blind. We have the words of the prophets. We have eyewitness
testimony of the apostles. We have the Words of Christ preserved for us, and we
have the Spirit of God working in us to make it even more sure. We have a great
hope because we have a great God who has made great promises which He has
fulfilled and will continue to fulfill until such time that we enter the
presence of our Lord or He first returns.
The world doesn’t see the light. But neither did we until
God opened our eyes. We have been placed in this interim time by God as vessels
through which His light is to shine. We live with great hope because of His
great assurance, and we have much to share as we are Him ambassadors to those
who only know darkness and no understanding of the real truth found in Christ
and God’s inerrant Word.
“Love never fails; but if there are gifts of
prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if
there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy
in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was
a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child;
when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a
mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know
fully just as I also have been fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:8–12, NASB95)
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