What Will You Leave Us This Time
2 Peter 1:12-21
12For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. 13Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, 14knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. 15Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.
16For 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. 17For 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.” 18And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.
19And 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; 20knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
Look at how this passage naturally divides into three sections:
12-15 Peter is stressing the reason for his reminding them.
16-18 Peter is a witness of Jesus Glory and God’s voice affirming Him.
19-21 Peter is pronouncing the surety of Old Testament Prophecy about Christ.
These things are important so that the recipients of this letter have confidence in the message they have received and will maintain faithfulness to the true instruction about Christ.
The next thing Peter tells us (in the second chapter), is the fact of false teachers who are secretly introducing destructive instructions that have the potential of directing them away from Christ. Much of chapter 2 of this little letter sounds like Jude. In fact, many scholars believe that either Jude borrowed from Peter or Peter borrowed from Jude. They both borrowed from the Holy Spirit, so it matters not to me. I have no problem at all with either being true, or neither being true; either way it changes nothing of the importance of the message and the warning within it.
We will look into chapter two next week, Lord willing.
Today we see the heart of Peter for those to whom he writes, the foundation of the authority of Peter’s words, and a certification to the validity of the words of the Prophets of the Old Testament.
Those are the nuts and bolts of the passage. Now lets consider some lessons from the text…
When you think about your walk with God what do you remember most? Do you remember who taught you about Jesus in the first place? Do you remember at what point you came to conviction about Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, who died on the cross for your sins? Do you remember the details of your response to him? What was going on in your heart and mind?
Let me tell you something that is very sad to me. There are many children I know, whose parents are Christians but who have no clue about the details of their own parents obedience to the gospel. Oh, they’ve heard the scriptures about it and that is really the most important thing. At least they’ve heard about the obedience of someone! Maybe it was Saul’s conversion or the 3000 nameless, faceless people on Pentecost. At least they’ve heard about someone’s conviction and conversion story. You see, without these living reminders of real people who came to know and follow Jesus, we would have a lifeless system of doctrine. But, praise God, that’s not the way God teaches us about himself! He uses real people with real and living testimonies that connect us with the life-giving good news of our living Savior, Jesus Christ!
I am amazed at how many times in the scriptures Peter and Paul refer to their own experiences to demonstrate the gospel’s message of truth. Luke recorded an entire book of testimonies of men and women who heard the gospel, believed it, repented of their sins, confessed their faith in Jesus Christ as the Lord, the Son of God, and were baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. Why did he tell all these testimonies of faith and obedience to the gospel? It was to convince and convict Theophilus of the certainty of the truth of the message about Jesus Christ and his Church!
Another important matter raises it’s head in 2 Peter 1:12-15, and that is a question that haunts me sometimes. What will I leave behind when I’m gone? Will my life be a reminder of my Lord to others? Will I have lived so and done so that when others think of my life they will be reminded to be faithful to Jesus Christ and walk in the truth of his word?
What are you going to leave behind? I’ve learned that selfish people who live life to get all they can out of it are soon forgotten. But every now and then some amazing soul lives so unselfishly and sacrificially that they forget themselves into immortality. They live for a cause that rises far above themselves. Their life’s energy is given for the purpose of building and maintaining that for which they hold in honor and reverence. If Jesus Christ is an example of anything, he is an example of self-sacrifice for the glory of God and the salvation of humanity. If this is his example and we are to follow him, how are we doing? Look at the men he influenced. Peter is one of those. Look at Peter. He’s doing it! He’s living like his master! He is giving his life’s energy to the glory of God and the salvation of others! And we remember him, don’t we… Anyone who knows about the Christian faith, knows about Peter.
I wonder how many Galilean fishermen there were in the days of Jesus. The only ones whose names survive are the names of those that followed closest to Jesus. They left their nets and followed him! How about you and me today? Will we leave our TV and follow Jesus to visit a person in need? Will we leave the security of our “comfort zone” and follow Jesus into some service of ministry? How about simply setting down with your family at lunch today and sharing with your family about how you became a Christian and what that means in your life and what you hope to do for him with the rest of the time you have on this earth.
Hey, by the way, the Lord told Peter that he was going to die and Peter tells us that he wants to use the time he has left wisely! How about you? I don’t know if you will die before Jesus comes back, but I know that you only have just so much time before you see him. What will you do with that time? It’s not yours, you know. God made it and he has placed you in it for a purpose. Don’t bury it. Don’t waste it. Use it for God’s glory and the salvation of others! That’s why you have it. Peter wrote in his first letter, chapter one: 17 And if you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each man’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay upon earth;
18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers,
19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
Paul wrote to the Ephesians: 5: 15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil.
Cat Steven’s sang: Oh very young what will you leave us this time, your only dancing on this earth for a short while, and though you want it to last forever you know it never will, you know it never will, and good-bye makes the journey harder still.
What will you leave us this time? Peter left a reminder to follow Jesus Christ faithfully and walk obediently in the Word of God.
The second and third sections here tells us two of the reasons why Peter was so concerned to leave them this reminder.
First, Peter had seen Jesus glorified and had heard the voice of God calling Jesus his beloved Son. This event happened during Jesus’ life before his crucifixion and resurrection. I used to think it was strange that Peter used this instead of the resurrected Christ as an example of Jesus glorified, but it appears that the reason for this example is the voice of God confirming who Jesus is. Jesus resurrection is certain confirmation of Jesus identity, but we don’t have a voice from heaven along with that particular time.
Remember the event? They are on the Mountain where Jesus is transfigured and Moses and Elijah appear with Jesus! Peter spoke up when he saw Jesus standing with Moses and Elijah. He offered to build a shelter for each one of them. That’s when the cloud came down and the voice from heaven spoke. Peter was awe struck. God, the Father in heaven, had spoken! His words were that Jesus was his beloved Son and that they were to listen to him! I still like the wording of the KJV. “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear ye Him!” Peter was more than just impressed. To Peter, this voice confirmed the validity of Jesus identity and also the truth of the Prophets of old.
Truly, Peter had seen and heard a lot! His witness was with his own eyes and ears. His testimony had the authority of heaven. This is important for many reasons. The most immediate reason is to address the problem of false prophets and teachers who have come in among the people of God. There were heretics in the churches and they were having some success in leading people astray. Who will the church listen to? Who will the people follow? Peter steps up to the plate and calls them to attention. This first chapter is an excellent demonstration of apostolic instruction in the church of the first century. This instruction is still needed today.
As we continue our study of this letter of second Peter, we will get a good look at what the false teachers are doing and some of what they are teaching. Read on ahead and see for yourself.
Let’s close the lesson today with this application to what we read in this passage.
I’ve said it earlier, and let me remind you again! I want you to remember this application and put it into practice on a regular basis.
Share your faith by showing God’s word and sharing what the Lord has done for you! Share the gospel by showing what the Bible teaches about God’s love in Jesus Christ, his instructions for life, and also how you personally followed the Lord according to the commandments within the Word. Do it today!
Determine to leave behind a legacy of faith by which others will remember Jesus living in you. Start at home. Start today at lunch. If you are alone, get on the phone. Leave off the TV. Get out of your comfort zone and get into building something that brings glory to God and salvation to others.
If you can’t or won’t do this, you need to ask yourself the hard questions: Am I really following Jesus Christ? Is he really Lord of my life? Will I be welcomed into heaven when I meet him face to face… or not?
Peter has already told us:
His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
He has given us great and precious promises.
He has called us to participate in the divine nature.
He has delivered us from the corruption in the world caused by lusts.
Make your calling and election sure! Get busy adding to your faith. Get busy sharing it with others… while there is still time.
