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2 Peter 1:19-21 - And 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. 20But know this first of all,
that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, 21for no
prophecy was ever made by an act of the human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke
from God.
Once again the school year has begun. Football and field hockey have replaced free time
and foreign travel on the priority list! Course assignments are already backlogged.
Everything about the campus is in full swing. Unfortunately, another characteristic of the
fall season is a renewed attack on the Bible in the classroom. As the students turn on the
brain power again, the Enemy is waiting to "plug in" any way he can. By means of
ridicule (The Bible is a crutch for the gullible student!); or ignorant statements (The
Bible is a bunch of old wives' tales and full of mistakes!); or guilt-by-association
techniques (The Bible is used by crackpots!); or deceptive questions (How do you explain
the myths of the Bible in light of the facts of science?); and by many other
approaches, the Miracle Book is attacked and torn apart in the classroom.
Against the attack stands the claim of the Bible to be a revelation in
written human words from the one and only true God of the universe. What an audacious
claim! How should a wavering Christian handle such a claim? Just the way we should handle
any other claim: take a careful look at the claim and at the One making the claim, and
then see if the Claimer lives up to His claim. For example, if I told you that I was the
world's greatest football quarterback, you could easily squash my claim by either looking
up my "track record" (there isn't any!), or by putting me to a simple backyard
test! The Bible has an excellent "track record," and when put to the test, the
Bible consistently proves itself to be more than a human book. The problem with many
"Bible demolition experts" is that they haven't taken a close enough look at the
Book making the claim, and they haven't taken enough time to put this Book to the test.
(How much of the Bible has the opposition even read?)
In 2 Peter 1:19-21 the Bible makes a few claims about itself. First of
all, it claims to be the sure prophetic word from God Himself. Let's take a closer
look at this claim and see if this Book is living up to the claim. In verses 16-18 of this
chapter, Peter discusses his "Mount of Transfiguration" experience (Matthew
17:1-8). There on the slopes of Mount Hermon in northern Israel the divine glory of the
Lord Jesus was seen by three of His disciples. They also heard the approving voice of God
the Father from heaven. What an experience! Then in verse 19 Peter says that "we have
the prophetic word made more sure." What does this mean? There are two possibilities.
It may mean that the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus, the Messiah, being the Son of
God were confirmed ("made more sure") by what the disciples saw and heard on the
"holy mountain." However, it may mean that although the disciples had been
privileged to actually see the glorified Christ with their own eyes and hear the voice of
God with their own ears, the written prophetic Scripture was even "more sure."
Maybe the vision-seekers and sign-seekers of today should read this verse! Notice that in
either of the above cases prophetic Scripture is being proclaimed as sure word. It
is firm and steadfast, trustworthy and reliable, certain and indisputable--it is sure!
Has the Bible lived up to this claim? Just a cursory examination of the Dead Sea Scrolls
should be enough to convince any hard-nosed skeptic that something supernatural is going
on. The scrolls are manuscript copies of almost the entire Old Testament Scriptures
(including specific messianic prophecies and other prophecies that have definitely been
fulfilled), positively dated to over 100 years before Christ.
There are a number of reasons why this "sure word" claim
should not be limited only to specific Old Testament prophecies. All of the Old
Testament is "prophetic word" in that it lays the groundwork for the coming
Christ. Furthermore, when Peter speaks of the "prophetic word" he is probably
thinking not only of isolated prophetic texts in the Old Testament. Most likely he is
thinking of all the words written by the prophets--namely, all of the Old Testament
Scriptures. The Jews of Peter's day considered all of the Old Testament writers as
prophets to one degree or another--even the writers of the Psalms (see Matthew 13:35 and
Psalm 78:2). What about the New Testament? Based on what Peter goes on to say in chapter
3, the "sure word" claim can be very reasonably applied to the New Testament
Scriptures as well. Notice that in 2 Peter 3:2 the words of the New Testament apostles are
given the same status and authority as the words of the Old Testament prophets. Notice
further that in 2 Peter 3:15-16 the New Testament writings of Paul are already recognized
by Christians as Scripture. They are given the same position and rank as the Old Testament
("the rest of Scripture"). The "sure word" claim applies to all of the
Bible, and when put to the test, all of the Bible lives up to this claim. The Bible has
proved itself to be reliable and trustworthy, not only in matters of "faith and
practice" but in historical and geographical matters as well. Recent archaeological
finds (Have you read about the Ebla tablets?) continue to confirm even the details of
Scripture. The higher critic is forced, time and time again, to back down and alter his
destructive theories about the Bible. Faced with mounting evidence, he finds it harder and
harder to deny that there is something supernatural about the sure Word.
A second claim which the Bible makes about itself is found in verse 19.
The Bible is a "lamp shining in a dark place." The idea here is that this world
is in spiritual darkness, but God has given His Word as a light so that people may see and
understand things as they really are. Apart from the light of Scripture we grope in
darkness. Without revelation from God, one person's speculative philosophy is as valid as
another's. If it's only guess-work, it doesn't really make any difference whether your
philosophy is reincarnation or "you only go around once." "Whatever works
for you" may feel like it brings "enlightenment," but without the
foundation of Scripture it's only a leap in the darkness. Does the Bible live up to its
claim of being a lamp shining in a dark place? If it doesn't, it certainly puts up a
perfect "front"! The Bible sheds light on all areas and "tells it like it
is." It gives the history of the material universe as well as knowledge of the
immaterial world. It relates the origin of mankind as well as what life is all about. It
tells us of the past, present and future. No wonder it's called the "prophetic
word." Like no other book, the Bible gives us the what, where, when, why and Who!
Specifically, the Bible ties it all together by giving us the focus of human
history--Jesus Christ and His redemptive work.
Many disagree with the Bible's world view, but everyone (including
teachers and professors of every classroom) must agree that the Bible, consistently and
without compromise, sheds light on everything--even the hard questions like miracles and
the problem of evil. Its philosophy holds together and does not break down at some point,
as do other philosophies. Where is judgment for ultimate evil in the philosophy of
existentialism, for example? The main reason why unbelievers don't want to accept the
Bible's philosophy is that they must then admit that they are guilty before a holy God!
The skeptic must also agree that without the Judeo-Christian contribution (which is
obviously based on the precepts and principles of the Bible) to mankind's history of
thought, the world would certainly be more "in the dark." Wherever the light of
the Bible has penetrated around the world, it has the effect of helping people to see and
understand things as they really are. Those who have searched for the light in
countless other ways finally "see" when they come to the Bible. Little wonder,
then, that we are exhorted to "pay attention" to the light of Scripture (see
Psalm 119:105) while it is still dark. When Christ returns in glory, the "day will
dawn" and all will clearly see that the lamp of Scripture was "right on" in
its revelation. At present, Scripture is the means by which we come to know the living
presence of the Lord in our lives. He is the Morning Star--the Star which pledges
daybreak! (See Revelation 22:16.)
In verses 20-21 we have a third claim which the Bible makes about
itself: the Scriptures are one Book because their origin is the Spirit of God. The
argument proceeds as follows. As the Christian pays attention to the lamp of Scripture, he
must understand that no Scripture is of "one's own interpretation." This doesn't
mean that the Bible is so complicated that the individual Christian must rely on
theologians for interpretation! No, the idea is that we can't interpret any one Scripture
without taking all Scripture into account. Every Christian should be aware, first of all,
of the danger of pulling a Scripture out of the context of the whole Bible. No Scripture
explains itself, but must be interpreted in the light of all Scripture. Why? Because the
Bible is not just 66 different books by different authors, but one book written by one
Author. You can't get the full picture and interpret properly apart from the whole Book.
The Bible is not like a patchwork of isolated "units of truth." It is more like
a tapestry designed and woven by God Himself. Yes, He used human weavers, but they were
"moved by the Holy Spirit." Has the Bible lived up to this claim of being one
Book? Does mankind know of any other work of literature with the unity of the Jewish and
Christian Scriptures? The Bible was written over a period of 1600 years by more than 40
different authors from all walks of life under all kinds of conditions on many
controversial subjects--yet it is one Book in theme, purpose, structure and agreement. The
Bible is uniquely unified--it is a Miracle Book!
David R. Reid
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