Eyewitnesses of Majesty
II Peter 1:16-18
Peter writes with a certain sadness in his heart for he expects to die soon. His words are kind of a last will and testament. Peter has some parting words he is longing for the Christian community to hear. Peter is careful to make known the truth and that truth is sure an certain because Peter is an eye witness.
What was he an eyewitness to? The fulfilment of the prophecies that prophesied of Christ’s suffering and death. As Peter states it: “Christianity is not based or founded on ‘cunningly devised fable,’ but on real event that happened in history. The Bible states it and secular history proves that what the Bible says is true. Peter, Peter was an eyewitness to all that the Bible had to say about Christ’s life, suffering, death, and resurrection.
This is why Peter says it was the Spirit of Christ with the Holy Spirit that has revealed to us all that would happen, and we have been a witness to the fact that it did happen.
Matthew, John, Peter, Paul and others make mention to the different names that were witness to the life and suffering of Christ.
Peter left us a record of one special event that he was honored to be listed as one of the three that were witnesses of. This is the transfiguration that took place upon a mountain. Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-8, and Luke 9:28-36 contain all the elements that Peter mention here in II Peter 1:17, 18. Peter, James and John all heard the voice out of heaven the said “This is my Son, My Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” Peter and the other two disciples were eyewitnesses to the ministry of Jesus, which included that extraordinary moment when Jesus was revealed in full Glory as the Son of God. Peter says, because of the experiences with Jesus that I was witness to, has made the prophecies of the prophets of old more sure, more complete, more certain.
Because Peter states that because of his witness to the life of Christ and the fulfillment of the prophecies concerning Christ, of which he was a witness to, that we have a more sure prophecy, which is that Christ will someday return in Clouds of glory all the more certain. Why? Because we have the sure word of prophecy that eyewitnesses saw fulfilled. If these prophecies were fulfilled and verified by witnesses, then any subsequent prophecies are more sure, more certain of fulfillment.
May my Lord and Saviour who has given us His sure word of Prophecy come quickly. Amen
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