The Greater Witness - 2 Peter 1:16-19
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Intro
Intro
Key Observations about the Text
Key Observations about the Text
Before we get into the text, I want to show you some key observations that will help us make sense of Peter’s argument.
Similar to last week, these form the backbone of Peter’s argument here.
1st person plural pronouns
“we” “our” - 8x in 4 verses
4x in v.16; 3x in v.18; 1x in v.19
Sensory words
speech
sight
hearing
whole-body
“eye-witnesses” - note that it’s plural
Peter had just finished writing in vv.12-15 that he was always ready to remind them of the things of God, that he considered it right to stir them up by way of reminder, and that he will diligently make it possible for them to recall to mind what he has written.
The things that he is writing are not merely his own ideas or a manufactured story. And there ought to be no question in the minds of Peter’s audience that what they’re reading is legitimate.
In this text we’re going to see Peter’s defense and the content of the apostolic teaching; the content of their testimony; and the greater witness
Hom.Prop. - We can have confidence that Peter’s teaching about Christ is reliable, verifiable, and true.
Defense of Their Teaching (v.16)
Defense of Their Teaching (v.16)
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
Peter is very quick to defend the authenticity of what he has previously written by now explaining the source for the apostolic teaching.
“we” - identify
Normally to identify pronouns we would need to go back to previous context or verses to see if the antecedent was already identified.
In this letter, if you follow the 1st person pronouns, you end up back at v.1 without a very clear picture of who is being referred to.
In v.16, we need to move forward into the letter to clearly identify who is being referred to with ‘we’.
v.18 gives the first explicit clue as to who Peter is referring when he wrote ‘we’
What Peter is talking about in this verse is what we call the Transfiguration. It appears in Matthew 17, Mark 9, and Luke 9.
Turn to Matthew 17:1-13.
Peter, James, and John (the sons of Zebedee), also called the sons of thunder.
This is the inner circle, the three men that Jesus spent considerable personal time with. They were with Him during significant personal moments, such as the Transfiguration and the Garden of Gethsemane.
Going back to 2 Peter 1, we can now see in v.16-19 that the pronoun ‘we’ is referring to Peter, James, and John - the inner circle of the Apostles.
Going back to vv.1-4, it appears that it is the Apostles who are in view there as well. The authority and unique ministry of the Apostles becomes very clear.
The Apostles function in a similar way to the prophets of the Old Testament. They are the authoritative mouthpiece and representative of Christ for the Church age.
Peter addresses a charge that he and the Apostles were making up stories or tales.
v.16 - NOT THIS - “cleverly devised tales”
“devised craftily”, “concocted slyly”, “formulated or created in an artful way”
The resurrection myth of Matthew 28:11-15 is an example of a cleverly devised tale
Notice also the false teachers (2:1) who introduce destructive heresies
Contrast this accusation with the clear statement in 1:4 - rooted in the ‘promises of God’ - not man’s wisdom/ideas
BUT THIS - “eye-witnesses”
Define - a careful observer; one who has first-hand acquaintance with something, special privilege
Power and significance of an eye-witness
In the Mosaic Law, accusations against a member of the faith community were not admissible as evidence unless there were two or three witnesses.
Deuteronomy 17:6-7
6 “On the evidence of two witnesses or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. 7 “The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.
Deuteronomy 19:15
15 “A single witness shall not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed.
Eye-witness testimony was understood to be a compelling facet of the justice system
Peter explains that he and the other Apostles were eye-witnesses - not just of Jesus in Israel - but specifically of His majesty. They had experienced first-hand the grandeur, glory, majesty, and overwhelming immensity of Jesus.
Peter defends the Apostles teaching as authoritative and reliable, and in the middle of this line he identifies what the Apostles were teaching.
Content of Their Teaching (v.16)
Content of Their Teaching (v.16)
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty.
The content of the Apostle’s teaching - where does it show up, and when was it made known?
‘power of our Lord Jesus Christ’
When did Peter or the Apostles make this known? [PPT - title ‘power of our lord Jesus Christ’, references below]
Acts 2:22 “22 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know—”
Acts 2:24 “24 “But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.”
Acts 2:33 “33 “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”
Acts 3:16 “16 “And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through [Jesus] has given [this man] this perfect health in the presence of you all.”
Acts 4:10 “10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health.”
Acts 4:30 “30 while You [God] extend Your hand to heal, and signs and wonders take place through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.””
Acts 10:38 “38 “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”
There is no doubt that what the Apostles were proclaiming was the name of Jesus - the power of Christ, the authority of Christ to forgive sins, the deity of Jesus, the power of the resurrection and with it - the certain hope of forgiveness of sins.
‘coming of our Lord Jesus Christ’
When did Peter and the Apostles make this known?
1 Peter has 11 references to the coming of Christ. There, Peter uses the word ‘revelation’ or revealing of Christ. Peter has an end-times perspective in his first letter, reminding his readers that the certainty of Christ’s coming ought to motivate them towards holy living.
1 Peter 1:7 “7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”
1 Peter 1:13 “13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
1 Peter 4:7 “7 The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.”
1 Peter 4:13 “13 but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”
1 Peter 5:4 “4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you [Elders who serve well] will receive the unfading crown of glory.”
And remember, Peter says that he and the other Apostles are eye-witnesses of Christ. They were not following cleverly devised tales/myths/fables.
We have looked at Peter’s defense of the Apostle’s Teaching, and the content of the Apostle’s Teaching, now we look at the content of their testimony.
IV. Content of Their Testimony (v.17-18)
IV. Content of Their Testimony (v.17-18)
17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”— 18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.
Remember in v.16 Peter says ‘we were eye-witnesses of His majesty’. We’re going to look a bit more at this testimony.
“we” - Peter, James, and John (Matthew 17)
Peter says that these three Apostles were “eye-witnesses” - six eyes that saw Jesus’ majesty
What did they see?
“For when He [Jesus Christ] received Honor and Glory from God the Father....”
This is the event that we call the transfiguration
the root word here is μεταμορφοω - we get our english word metamorphosis directly from this greek word. It means to be changed, change form, transform
The appearance of Christ was radically changed, so much so that Peter and the others are struck by the splendor and majesty of it.
God in that moment was giving to Christ the honor and glory that was rightfully His, because Jesus is divine! No man could ever receive this - But the Son of God, the unchanging Christ could rightfully receive this honor and glory.
Peter, James, and John had seen Jesus’ miracles, lived with him for no short amount of time by this point, and clearly knew who He was. Just prior to this event Peter makes this marvelous proclamation that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
But now, in a spectacular event similar to what Moses and Elijah had experienced, the glory of God is revealed.
The Apostles were not merely eye-witnesses, but they were also “ear-witnesses”
Remember, there are three Apostles who can testify to what they heard
What did they hear?
‘an utterance such as this was made to Him by the majestic glory’
Peter, James, and John heard a voice out of the cloud - very similar to Mount Sinai, and this voice from heaven had already happened at Jesus’ baptism as well.
When a voice from heaven breaks forth like this there is no confusion in the Scriptures that it is the majestic glory of God Almighty.
And especially with Moses and Elijah present, this event is intended to remind the Apostles of the great movements of God in prior ages.
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased”
This isn’t the first time that a voice came from heaven to confirm the identity and relationship between God the Father and God the Son.
In Matthew 3:17 at Jesus’ baptism God speaks from heaven and says nearly the same thing.
This identity confirmation is not because of confusion on Jesus’ part, but it was given for the benefit of those who heard. God said to Peter, James, and John that this is the Son of God, but He also gave an instruction - ‘listen to Him!’
Again, confirming that Peter and the Apostles are not following cleverly devised tales or myths, but they are listening to and following the Son of God
v.18 says it again in a slightly different way - ‘we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven’
There’s no confusion in the Apostle’s mind who is speaking or what they had just experienced.
Another facet of the eye-witness testimony that Peter identifies is what I call “physical witnesses”
What did they experience? This is another facet of the sensory words coming into Peter’s argument.
v.18 - “with Him; on the holy mountain”
Jesus specifically invited these three men up to the high mountain.
there was a single known mountain that they climbed, and the four of them hiked it together. Likely talking and looking around as they walked.
Peter describes it as a holy mountain - wouldn’t you, if you had just seen Jesus’ glory and a voice from heaven confirming His identity, and then that voice of God telling you to pay attention to Jesus?
These men know where they were when they encountered the glory and majesty of Christ.
Their real physical responses to that real physical interaction
6 When the disciples heard this, they fell face down to the ground and were terrified. 7 And Jesus came to them and touched them and said, “Get up, and do not be afraid.” 8 And lifting up their eyes, they saw no one except Jesus Himself alone.
When this encounter was finished the four men who climbed up the mountain also travelled down the mountain - again, a physical witness that they had been up there with Jesus and experienced this first-hand.
All of this testimony would have been considered legally admissible evidence in the Jewish court [Remember Numbers, Deuteronomy - by the testimony of 2 or 3 witnesses]
There’s no denying that they had this experience. This was a real, lived event in the lives of these 4 men.
Zoom out and come back to 21st century North America
Each of us here have experienced the goodness and grace of God in our lives
You could give testimony and witness to what God has done in your life, when He answered prayer, showed you something in the Word, helped you understand truth in a new and powerful way
You have experienced the conviction of sin that the Holy Spirit brings, and the restoration of Jesus who calls us by name, and the forgiveness of sin that the Father promises to those who come to Him through the Great High Priest Jesus.
You have seen spiritual warfare played out in front of you
You have sensed the guiding of the Spirit as you pray for those that the Lord brings to your mind for prayer
You have walked through incredibly painful and difficult trials in your life, and yet known in a deep and profound sense that God is with you
You have seen the greatest miracle of all, when the Spirit of God opens the eyes of dead people to believe in Christ by faith, receiving the righteousness of Christ for salvation and turning from unrighteousness.
Peter, James, and John had experienced many of these and more as they walked with Jesus, and then saw the birth and spread of the Church.
But their experience, and your experience, is subject to the control and authority of God’s revealed Word
The Greater Witness (v.19)
The Greater Witness (v.19)
2 Peter 1:19
19 and we possess as more reliable the prophetic word,, 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.
The revealed Word of God is even more reliable than Peter, James, and John’s eye-witness testimony, ‘ear-witness’ testimony, and ‘physical-witness’ testimony — though their testimony would be legally admissible evidence in a court....
Even though Peter walked with Jesus, fished with Jesus, ate with Jesus, fought for Jesus, preached for Jesus, suffered for Jesus, wrote these two letters representing Jesus, and eventually died for Jesus -
The revealed inspired Word of God is more reliable, faithful, accurate, and convincing than all of Peter’s lived experiences.
“The grass withers, and the flower fades, but the Word of our God stands forever”
Even back to the very beginning, in the Garden of Eden, the Word of God was to be the control, measure, guide, standard for living.
Adam and Eve were to understand reality and their place in the world by the revealed Word of God. The tragic sin of both Adam and Eve is that they chose to operate by their own lived experience and reasoning, rather than by trusting the more reliable Word of God.
In our lives today - the Word of God is to be the standard, rule, authority, guide, source of wisdom, the words of life
Just as Peter submitted his experience to the revealed prophetic Word, we too must submit our lived experiences to the refinement of the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit who wrote it
Be like the Bereans, who searched the Scriptures to see if Paul’s teachings were true
Evaluate your lived experience through the grid/lense/filter of the Word of God
Since God has given us everything that we need for life and godliness… (v.3)
We must not be ashamed of the Gospel - for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes
It is the Gospel of Jesus Christ that brings to life those who were formerly dead in their trespasses and sins.
It is in the Word of God alone that we understand the Gospel, and it is in the Word of God that we can Know the Savior. It is through the Word of God that we have the power to make Christ known.
It is in the Word of God alone that we are told of God’s love for us in giving the Lord Jesus Christ, and as we celebrate our Savior through communion this morning, we are reminded of the righteousness of Christ that was given to us, and we proclaim His death until He returns in glory and majesty.