Our Trustworthy Bible (Part B)

When Christ withdraws, I did not say leave. He will not leave His people, but He will withdraw, relative to what we're used to in that sense. I am training myself to say back to God when He does this to me, and He does, I'm not there yet.

I still don't like it. But to train myself, it is an honor for you to do with me as you please, because you are my Lord, and I am your child. This is Cross Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of 2 Peter.

Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross Reference Radio. Specifically, how you can get a free copy of this teaching. Today, Pastor Rick will continue his message called, Our Trustworthy Bible, as he teaches through 2 Peter chapter 1. Always it is the love of Christ. The apostles were told to share it, to go into the world and share it, Mark's Gospel 16. He said to them, go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. You preach every chance you get.

They're not casting pearl before swine. The parameters were put around it in the precepts of the apostles as they went forward, but the idea is that they were to go out and to preach to anyone who would have them preach it. And that stands for each and every one of us who claim Christ as Lord to this day. If you want the gospel, we are more than happy to give it to you. Could these men have written such moral superlatives, such wonderful things about decent behavior while they themselves were immoral and lying about what they saw? Does not stand to reason.

Would anyone genuinely fall for them saying things that could easily be disputed and shot down? For instance, the days of Peter, much of the New Testament was written and circulating. All the gospels were out before he died. Those contradictions that appear to be contradictions that we struggle to reconcile, they were there. The people could have said, Peter, Luke says this, John says that, and Mark says this. How do you reconcile it? He would have went one, two, three, and they would have said thank you, otherwise the gospel would have not continued to be circulated and we would not have over 20,000 fragments and whole documents of the New Testament.

It would have died. But they were there, and they did have their answers ready, and they did reconcile and straighten it out. These men did not say, let's make up a religion that preaches good things, but it really never happened, and then let's die for it. We saw in our lifetime, during the days of the Nazis, we saw Nazis that were so totally taken by Hitler and his rhetoric. And then, afterward, many of them realized he was a lunatic and they were angry, they were enraged, they were ashamed to have ever fallen for it, but they did.

Too much damage was done by then. My point is, when people realize they've been following a fraud, when they become disillusioned by truth, they don't continue to follow it. Those apostles, if they preached Christ rose again, they would not have continued to preach him if he didn't rise again.

They certainly would not have let someone lay their hands on them and abuse them. Well, here, he says, we made known to you, because they are to go out into the world and preach the gospel. That wheat is inclusive of all the apostles and Paul and any other believer preaching the truth, you could say, you could expand it, too. We made known to you the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, that power, dunamis, is explosive power. That is the identical power that is found in Genesis 1-1. In the beginning, God, or God in the beginning, created the universe. Now, again, it's expanded to include all preachers of the gospel, but initially Peter is talking about the apostles that were with him in the upper room, but especially the three, himself, John, and James, who went up the Mount of Transfiguration to come out in a moment. This word, the coming, the power and the coming, it is inclusive of the incarnation, the perpetual presence of Christ, which is here right now. Christ is here right now. He is not blocked out of his universe. He certainly isn't blocked out of his church. Although, the churches that have become apostate, the churches that are turning their backs on him, he stands outside the door and he knocks for entrance because he's not in there.

You say, well, how do you know the ones that he's in and the ones he's not? It comes down to the word. That's why the church at Philadelphia was told, because you stuck to my word, I will spare you. The tribulation is coming on the whole world, the whole planet, the earth. So we do know it's been given to us, the coming, the incarnation, his perpetual presence, and his return. It is all in that Greek word, the presence of Christ. So that when Christ withdraws, I did not say leave, he will not leave his people, but he will withdraw relative to what we're used to in that sense. I am training myself to say back to God when he does this to me, and he does. I'm not there yet.

I still don't like it. But to train myself, it is an honor for you to do with me as you please because you are my Lord and I am your child. Notice I did not say servant. See that inconsistency? Lord's servant, you would expect that would be consistent.

You know, apple, orange, pencil, fruit, and lead. But anyway, because yes, I am his servant. But if that's all I am, I'm missing out. If I only see myself as the servant of the Lord, I miss out that I am his child. You parents with children know what that means. And you children who have had parents, loving parents, you know what that means.

And if I've missed any group, because there are those that have not had loving parents, you have a father in heaven that opens his arms to you and say, I will love you back more than anyone has ever loved you in this life. Will you accept it? Do you believe it?

Will you receive it? Well, it means essentially the power of his coming. He says we were eyewitnesses of his majesty there in verse 16. We are going to get out of verse 16 this morning, but where you got to go? Eyewitnesses, we saw it on the Mount of Transfiguration. As we know it, the Mount of Transfiguration, an undisclosed mountain somewhere in the Middle East, you could say, right?

We don't know it's been hidden because somebody would put a plaque there and charge people to see the plaque. Why did he allow these three, Peter, James, and John? And James, you know, James, the brother of John, you just can't say. The Bible doesn't say much about him.

It doesn't have to. The void says it all, but we're not doing a character study on James. Peter was, why these three? Well, Peter was the first influence among the men. I mean, everybody looked at Peter. Jesus said something that was questionable. They all looked at Peter. What are you going to, what do you think, Peter?

They wouldn't say that out loud, but he was, of course, the natural leader, and they were happy with this. James was the first murdered, so we have the first influence in Peter. We have the first murdered. Do you know what kind of shockwave that sent through the early church when one of the apostles was murdered?

If they're going to kill him, what's going to happen to me? If God doesn't protect James, what's he going to do for me? One of the reasons probably why the Lord allowed it, to shake up the church. And then John. Well, if Peter was the first influence and James was the first martyr, John was the last to write. That influence of that day with these three men, it went a long way and is still going.

What happened on that mountain? Well, the Bible, of course, tells us. There would be no doubt as to who Jesus was in the eyes of these three. They already saw so much. They had no need for more evidence, and Jesus says, yeah, well, I'm going to supercharge it. I'm going to inject into your understanding of who I am something that you will never forget. You won't get it now because you're too dense, but you'll get it later.

Not a wasted investment. That he was not merely a man in touch with God, but that he is God the Son in human form. They saw the prophecies of the Old Testament prophecies. They saw them confirmed in Christ, fulfilled. They had the Old Testament.

They could turn right open to it. They could turn to Isaiah chapter 6 and see the promises. They could turn to Isaiah chapter 9, see the promises. Unto us a child is given.

Wonderful counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the principle. They could turn and they could see that. This amount of transfiguration, it just blew the doors off of doubt. It would come back because that's what doubt does. Look at what victory you have in Christ. Doubt will hunt you down again.

And the same thing is to take place. You face it, you deal with it, and fruit comes out of that. Otherwise, nothing gets done because doubt is everywhere.

We all get our doses of doubt in this life. Well, Peter, James, and John, they witnessed something held back from every other human being on earth. It was held back from everyone else, but they got it.

His majesty, his magnificence, his splendor, what does that mean? Did they not see it when he was healing and teaching and walking on the water? Not like this. Imagine if you had a friend who could do what Jesus could do as far as healing. Teach like he could teach. Open insight to matters that you just never would have thought possible. And then one day with your eyes, with your own two eyes, you saw him glowing.

That's what happened. He's glowing. It's self-created glow. He doesn't have phosphorus smeared all over him or something. He is radiating light.

So clean it was like the sun. This radiance, this glow, this is the splendor, the glory of the sun. Not Mary, not anybody else. Jesus Christ. This is what made the rebuke so potent when Peter said, let's build three tabernacles to honor the moment. And God the Father said, no, this is my beloved son.

This is the man you hear. Well, we look at it in Matthew 17. Now after six days, Jesus took Peter, James, and John. His brother led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as the light. Matthew didn't see that. Peter did.

Whatever Matthew is writing is probably because James, Peter, and John ganged up on the other guys and told them what they saw when they were released to tell because Jesus said, don't tell everybody right away. I don't want this out until I tell you. But you've seen it. But how else do you write about such a moment?

I mean, if I could just flat my arms and start flying right now, it would be pretty spooky, cool for me. How would you tell anybody that when you got home? Well, you say, I wouldn't. I took my camera out real quick. But I had it on off because of the church thing.

So you didn't get it. How would you tell anybody something so incredible? Well, that's how you do it in Matthew 17, verses one through two. His face shone like the sun.

They couldn't even look at him. It was so bright. Imagine you walking up the mountain with this person and he starts glowing as he gets up there. So when Paul says he himself gave some to be, prophets or some apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastor, teachers, and he links this and going somewhere with it, Paul is teaching about Christ, this glowing Christ. He gave to the church this leadership, this hierarchy, if you will, an acceptable one. And he continues in Ephesians 4, verse 12, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry for the edification of the body of Christ, to make the body of Christ, to make the Christians better at being Christians. That's why he's given the church pastors. Not so you can have a second dish after church. I'll have some of the roast beef and a little bit of the pastor.

Let's chew on him for a while. He has given these men as a gift to the church. Anyway, back to this. He continues now in this same section for the edifying of the body of Christ in verse 14, that we should no longer be children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting and endless Internet stuff. That's what Peter is saying.

We didn't follow fables. Paul is saying the same thing. Children tossed to and fro, carried about. And if you find yourself, Ooh, tell me something exciting. Ooh, ooh, it's exciting over here now.

Ooh, go to this church. It's really exciting. You've got to see the music. It's like, oh, man. You make me, I'm tired just saying it. Why can't a simple word of God be sufficient for the children of God?

No, no, you've got a part to see every now and then. Well, Christianity is no myth, and you know, hell knows it. They're trying to keep it the best kept secret.

And they have much success doing it. May we not help them. Verse 17, I told you we'd get out. I'm a prophet. 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. Well, this, of course, distinguishes Christ from every other created being, as I mentioned. And we say it because it's true, and that's why Peter is telling us this. But if you've been a Christian and you start meeting with doubt and apostasy happens, it's promised in Scripture, we see it happen.

And I believe one of the strongest reasons why is because they want more than what Christ has to offer them in this life. And so when you have the doubts come your way and you say, well, I've thrown that at Scripture verses, but this is a big one. I'm having a hard time dealing with this doubt. I would suggest, well, what I have done is I remember the voice. It was the same voice, but not the same moment as these apostles heard. But I remember when I became born again, I heard Jesus speak to me. And I am never going to give that up so long as God helps me. The voice. I love you.

I am here. Have you not heard that? Have you not heard the voice of Christ in your heart that you know in connection to reading the Scripture?

It is Him. Hell has no defense against that, which is not to be. You know, we're not supposed to be so defensive-minded.

We are supposed to be offensive-minded. The gates of hell are not supposed to prevail. We're supposed to bust them down when allowed to by the Lord. That's what Paul did. That's what Peter did. I am still not getting my head around suffering in my life. This is the way it is. And an inconvenience I classify as suffering.

Man, I got to go look it up now on the Internet. I just suffer for Christ. What does that mean?

It's not cookie-cut. Just because Paul suffered this way and Peter suffered that way doesn't mean I'm going to suffer the way they did. It's under this umbrella of suffering and I better understand what my role is when faced with such things.

And it's very simple. The just shall live by faith. Trust me.

Trust me, Jesus says, does not mean you escape that which is inconvenience, distasteful and et cetera, on it goes. Trust means you trust because you've heard the voice. You've seen the face. You've heard the word. You've confessed. You've made the confession. You've been immersed in the water because you believe. Now he wants us to act that way. Should the church be built on something else? Should he have said, you know what?

I'm really looking for a group of imposters that can fake it better than anybody. That when temptation and trouble comes their way, they don't have to adhere to anything. Of course not.

We do not honor such behaviors. Verse 18. Now that Paul is there, there is a difference again, must make this clear. There is a difference between the Christian that wants to do well and struggles. That is not the same thing as the Christian who abandons. So when you see a Christian fall and to commit sin, it doesn't mean, oh, they're going to hell now. It doesn't mean Christ disowns them. And that's why we have such verses as there is now no condemnation, that we have an advocate with the Father. So it's this bittersweet arrangement of constantly moving forward, moved by the Holy Spirit, and dealing with this sinful flesh that I can never excuse.

Yet I'm stuck with it and it's pretty powerful. And there will be times when I will be bruised and blackened. You know, the black and blues, a boy's favorite color.

Black and blue from bruises of the flesh. And so verse 18, And we heard his voice which came from heaven, and we were with him on the holy mountain. See, that's the we, Peter, James, and John. John, you know, here is this brother James. They appear in Scripture to be close enough that where they had a business together, they served the Lord together. There's no reason to think that they were at odds with each other as brother and brother. What happened to John's heart when word got to him, Herod has killed your brother because of Jesus. Lord, could you grant my sons one to sit on your left and one to sit on your right, the sons of thunder. Jesus said, Can you drink from the cup I'm going to drink from?

Oh yeah, we can. Well, you will. You'll get to drink.

You'll have a sip of that cup. And that was it. That was one of it, one of them. And yet John kept following, kept serving, did not say that's it.

Christianity is too much for me. 1 John, writing decades after, Peter is dead by this time. All of them are probably dead and gone by this time when John writes his three letters and his revelation. He said, That which was from the beginning, which we, there is that pronoun again, have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, our eyes, which we have looked upon and our hands have handled concerning the word of life. Five times he references his brothers, the apostles, the we's. We saw him. We touched him. We were with him.

He's saying the same thing Peter's saying. We're not following a fable. We believe this.

We know it's true and there's nothing going to stop us. Real people were on that mountain. Real people heard the voice. Real people saw the Christ glow. Peter is telling the facts like they were because that's the kind of man he was and if it weren't true, he would have had nothing to do with it.

It was an eyewitness speaking, not a false witness. He says, When we were with him on the holy mountain, God, holy mountain is now what I'm addressing, Peter knew that every place that God touches down becomes holy in that instant. When Moses stood up on Mount Sinai at that undisclosed spot, which probably people have walked past and never known that was the spot. It's not holy now, but it was holy when that bush burned and was not consumed. God said, Do not draw near this place.

Take your sandals off your feet for the place where you stand as holy ground. Here's Peter applying that to Jesus Christ. He says, Christ made that ground holy.

He and the Father. He is drawing from that moment in the past in the power of the Holy Spirit. Had Christ not given him the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter would not still be there to preach these things. He says, When we were with him on the holy mountain, verse 19 now, and so we have the prophetic word confirmed, would 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?

I like the alternate translation. We have the prophetic word made more sure. You can trust it. The Bible's trustworthy.

He says, Here's how. The prophecies. Nobody's got them like us. No one has got the prophecies. And they've been preached, and many of them have already come to pass, and as we live, there are prophecies from the book of Revelation and Thessalonians and the Old Testament that are materializing right in front of our eyes.

A cashless society is just one. Daniel 12, knowledge shall increase in the end days. You couldn't say that, or you could relative to what was known 200 years ago, but now, because of what happened 200 years ago, the momentum is extraordinary. Only the Bible calls it. And of course, in our lifetime, how do you account for the nation of Israel? Just do some research on Israel's wars since 1948.

Ain't nobody going to take them out of that land. It's the Bible. That's God's word.

So not only do we say Israel back in their land as promised on schedule, line by line, precept upon precept, not only do we see that, but we also see so many surrounding prophecies being fulfilled. That's all we have time for on today's edition of Cross Reference Radio. You've been listening to Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia as he teaches through the book of 2 Peter. If you'd like to listen to more messages from this series, or if you'd like more information about this program, please visit our website, crossreferenceradio.com. We also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast so you'll never have to miss a program. Just search for Cross Reference Radio in iTunes, Google Play Music, or your favorite podcast app. What a great way to keep God's word with you wherever you go. We hope you'll tune in again next time as Pastor Rick continues studying through the Scriptures, right here on Cross Reference Radio.