The Prophetic Word Confirmed
For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.
And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:16-21)
The Apostle Peter in this passage illuminates for our understanding the sure footing on which stands the New Testament as transmitted from the Holy Spirit through the Words of Christ to His chosen instruments. The commands of Christ are known and given to us. We can be sure the orders are from above and they are to be carried out in the Revolution for the Kingdom.
For we did not follow cunningly devised fables. Peter represents the response of an eyewitness to the sure word of Jesus. He knew Jesus. He walked with Jesus. He was instructed by Jesus. Peter and the apostles of our Lord did not follow a fairytale written to present some cunning characteristic of correct living, but rather the true commands and teaching of the Living Word, the Word become flesh in the incarnation. These are not words meant to manipulate for the common good, but rather words meant to inspire complete obedience to our Master Jesus as Paul affirms in 1 Corinthians 1: 17, “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.” See also 1 Corinthians 2:1, 4, and 13. What the New Testament portrays is truth, not mythological object lessons. The New Testament contains marching orders of the Revolution, and as obedient soldiers we are to fulfill those commands.
When we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. As an eyewitness to the power of Christ, Peter and the other apostles can proclaim the power they saw and the coming of their Lord which He taught them. Paul discusses the effect of the power of Christ in Ephesians 1:19-22 in which the authority of our Lord is proven in His death and resurrection. Only by the power of our Messiah can His words be transmitted to us and obeyed. This power and the mission declared through Jesus had been made known through the written Word of the New Testament by His apostles.
We were eyewitnesses of His majesty. The importance of an eyewitness is once again brought up in Scripture, this time by Peter. It was because Peter was an eyewitness that he could be both sure of the message and sure of its source. The testimony of Peter and the apostles is the same: the commands of the Commander in Chief were stated and transmitted by Christ Himself. Peter and the rest were eyewitnesses to Jesus’ majesty. The Greek word for majesty is a word used for greatness, glory, and majesty of deity. It is because Jesus was proved to be Divine in experience that the apostles were able to testify to His words and commands. We too have this assurance through faith and the work of the Holy Spirit in us. We too have experienced the majesty of God and should be willing to submit to the rule of Him who is calling for Revolution.
For He received from God the Father honor and glory. Jesus, it has been established, has been always God, but through His incarnation He received honor and glory from God the Father as witnessed by Peter, James, and John when Jesus was transfigured before them. The Three saw with their very eyes the Deity which was Christ their Lord. And Peter now gives testimony of this fact as an assurance of the transmission to us of the Words of God. In His glory Jesus gives us His commands as the Supreme Authority of the universe. These commands are to be obeyed because there is no higher Authority than God Himself.
When such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” The Transfiguration (See Matthew 17:1-13) was witnessed by Peter (along with James and John) as confirmation to their growing belief in Jesus as the Son of God. Peter references the highest character witness of all: God the Father. In the Transfiguration account the Father gives testimony to the Deity of Jesus and to the call to obedience in which they were entrusted to submit in Matthew 17:5, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him!” Hear Him was Peter’s call to obedience and the New Testament is our call to obedience in the Revolution for the Kingdom.
And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him. The testimony of the apostles is the voice which comes from heaven by which we are called to obedience. The commands are from the top and there is no questioning these orders.
And so we have the prophetic word confirmed. There is no stronger testimony than the eyewitness accounts and testimonies presented by Peter. The words of the New Testament are their own confirmation, holding a higher standing as a witness in the court of heaven, higher than the personal testimony of Peter. The eyewitness of Peter is important and valuable, but the written word is a higher testimony because it comes from God Himself. We are called to follow the Word of God as the commands of the Most High.
Which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Light brings clarity and leads us in the way, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Psalm 119:105).” The Word of God is our light in the darkness of battle for the Revolution. In the midst of battle we can be sure of our footing and the commission which we received. Jesus is the light and we can trust in His Word, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life (John 8:12).” The New Testament is the Truth bearer of the commands of Christ and the standard by which we mark our obedience for the Revolution.
No prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation (or origin). The words of the Bible are not the words of man, but are the very words of God. This is what Peter has established in this passage of Scripture. The Creator spoke to people who were chosen for the transmission of His prophetic (proclaimed) words to man. We have in our possession the commands of God, and as such, we are to study them and be obedient to them. Man can never explain the mysteries and fullness of the Godhead by themselves. The message of God needs to be given by God, not man. Thus, Peter presented his case for the written Word.
Prophecy never came by the will of man. No man chose to express his personal opinions of God but rather specific men were called to speak the words of God. Prophecy is the simple transmission of the words of God to man by the power of the Holy Spirit. The prophets of the Old and New Testaments had no other function but to be the mouthpieces of God. Today we have in written form this transmission of His commands to us in the Bible.
But holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. Holy men, men separated from the natural, where supernaturally inspired to transmit the words of God by the Holy Spirit. God being holy could only transfer His message through the holy instruments chosen for the task. From a holy God to holy men by the Holy Spirit was the chosen and perfect means by which our orders come to us from above.
It is clear the commandments of Jesus include the complete Word of God, the Old and New Testaments. With command in hand we have been enlisted in the battle for the Kingdom Revolution. As men gifted as pastor teachers we need to be obedient to the command to make disciples and to teach all He commanded.