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You're listening to audio from Faith Church Indie. This spring, we're studying the book of 2 Peter, learning about how we can find our anchor in God during unsteady times. Now here's the teaching.

We're going to read in 2 Peter chapter 1, starting in verse 12, and that is on page 1207 in your black Bibles. Therefore, I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. I think it right as long as I am in this body to stir you up by way of reminder, since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.

And I will make every effort so that my departure, after my departure, you may be able at any time to recall these things. For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was born to him by the majestic glory, this is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.

We ourselves heard this very voice born from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

This is the word of the Lord. Well, there are moments in life when you suddenly realize how much everything depends on what you're trusting in. When our kids were little, we had an opportunity to go out to Colorado.

I was invited to help lead a family camp. We were traveling out from St. Louis, and we had gotten to kind of eastern Colorado, sort of mid-late afternoon. Now, all of a sudden, the sky out in front of us just got pitch dark, and then we could literally see the storm line on the horizon moving towards us very quickly.

And all of a sudden, we were just engulfed in the biggest rainstorm I have ever seen. If I hadn't known God's promise never to flood the earth again after Noah, I would have been there thinking like, man, I wish I'd built an ark. It was that kind of a storm, just wind whipping around everywhere.

You could not see the road in front of you. And I was aware of my responsibility suddenly for five other lives in this van, and I could hear the screaming voices, four kids and me. I think Amelia was fine.

But in that moment, you become aware of how much you depend on whatever it is you're trusting in, trusting in the road markers in front of you, trusting in the headlights, the road signs. You're trusting the engineers who designed the tires and the brakes on your car. And you realize the big question is often, what can I trust right now? Maybe it happens for you when life gets confusing.

You get a diagnosis that you weren't expecting. A relationship is under severe stress. A decision that you're facing that has no easy answers or maybe even no good outcome.

Or you look around at what seems like the world going crazy, and you wonder what is happening. How does any of this make sense? And in those moments, you're faced with that question, what can I stand on? Who can I trust? We live in a world for all the good that the Internet has brought us, all the knowledge, all the access. We live in a world with so many voices competing for our attention, voices online, voices in our culture, voices inside us sometimes even, telling us what matters, what is true, what will lead us to peace and life and joy, what we should follow.

And all of it can make you feel like you're on shifting sand. And you realize you need something stable to stand on. That's exactly why Peter is writing.

He's writing into that kind of a world, one like ours. He's speaking to believers who are facing confusion and pressure and conflict and false teaching and spiritual drift. And into that world, Peter is writing to us something that we need to remember.

You can't live ready if you're not standing on something solid. You can't live ready if you're not standing on something solid. And I think in the passage today, where Peter is bringing it is this.

You live ready by trusting God's truth. Maybe it just sort of sounds obvious, but Peter, I think, really has some great insights for us in that. You live ready by trusting God's truth.

And he wants us to see reasons why God's truth helps us be steady. It's a truth that's one we already know. It's a truth that's rooted in reality.

It's a truth that is higher than any human voices around us. We'll unpack that in a minute. Just a quick reminder, during this Easter season, we're in this book of 2 Peter, where he's writing into a world full of confusion and lies and moral compromise.

And in that, the Apostle Peter is writing to followers of Jesus to encourage them, to encourage us to stand firm, to pursue spiritual maturity as we anticipate the return of Jesus. Now, in the section we looked at last week, Peter, in a sense, is kind of warning us not to let an intellectual agreement or appreciation for Christianity become a substitute for actual application in our lives. He calls us to pursue godly virtue in light of Christ's return, His coming, His kingdom, His judgment.

How do you live ready for that day? You live ready by trusting God's truth. So let's dive into this passage, 2 Peter 1, verses 12 through 21. Turn there in the Bibles in front of you, the Scripture journals.

And here's the first thing that Peter is saying, I think. You trust truth that you already know. You trust the truth that you already know.

Look at what he says in verse 12. Therefore, I intend always to remind you of these qualities or these things, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. You notice something. 

Peter doesn't say, well, you know, given all the challenges that you've got going on, I think you need something new. I think you need something better, something updated, something fresh. No, he's saying, I want to remind you of these things that you already know, that you're established in, that are the grounding of your life.

Why? Because Peter understands something about human nature. We don't fall because we lack information. We usually fall because we lack application.

We lack orientation. We forget what's true. We know that God is faithful, but when the future is scary, we panic, we fear, we stress, we react instead of responding.

We know that Christ has forgiven us. But when we're faced with failure after failure in our lives, we can feel the weight of shame. We know that God's called us to love one another, but somebody hurts me, and so then I'm tempted to strike back, to get even, to let them know.

God has called us, we know, to put on Jesus' character, but it's, you know, easier to listen to voices that say, God cares about your happiness, not your holiness. We know the truth, but we can forget it. Because these are not new believers, right? Peter is saying, you are established in this truth that you already have.

It's a reminder that even people who have been walking with Jesus a long time can drift into doctrinal error, into serious sin. So what does Peter do? What's the response to that? Look in verse 13. I think it right, then, to stir you up by way of reminder.

That phrase, to stir up, means to enliven, to awaken, to rouse, to shake someone out of slumber. Because the truth can become familiar to us and maybe not have the impact in our lives that God intends. Any of you like chocolate milk? All right, yes. 

Powder or syrup? Pat, get out of here with that powder. It's syrup, right? You get the milk, you put the syrup in, and it doesn't look like chocolate milk, right? It looks like milk with maybe a little sludge at the bottom. What do you have to do? You have to stir it up, that's right.

And that's a picture of what Peter is talking about here. You have to do something with the syrup for it to actually make a difference, to have an impact. We can have God's truth in us, but it might not be making an impact in our lives.

So it needs to be stirred up by a teacher, by a friend, by a mentor, by a spouse, even by your own effort. Stir yourself up to listen, to follow, to trust in God's Word. Look at what Peter goes on to say in verse 15.

Now, commentators think that Peter may be referring to this letter itself that he's written. I think there's actually some other options, and we'll try and talk about that in Cut for Time this week. And if you have questions about that or other things in the text, send those questions in, because we'd love to hear that and discuss it in our weekly podcast.

But Peter is saying, essentially, I want to leave you a reminder to guide you when I'm no longer here so that you can keep being reminded. What does this look like in our lives? Any of you ever wake up already burdened for the day ahead of you? You have more to do than you know you can realistically accomplish. You're maybe feeling the weight of an unresolved conflict with someone.

Maybe your chest is tight because you're just facing the reality of going into a job or a boss that's really difficult. And you wonder if what you're doing makes any difference at all. And in those moments, we don't need a new idea.

We don't need a fresh perspective. We don't need a different inspiration. We need to remember.

We need to remember what we already know, right? God is with me. God will give me the grace today for what I'm going to face today. He's not going to give me something where he's setting me up for failure.

I'm not going alone. I'm not going into this into my own power. I matter.

And my life matters. And what I do matters because I'm a child of God. And I have a purpose over my life that God has written into everything that I'm doing and going through.

You remind yourself of the truth. You stir it up and ask God to help you remember and live out that truth. Someone wounds you.

Someone hurts you. Someone slanders you, takes advantage of you, and you're tempted to replay it over and over in your head, right, to nurse it, to nurture it. But truth interrupts that, right? You stir yourself up with the reminder, as Christ has forgiven you, so you must forgive others.

Maybe you don't even have the desire to forgive. So you pray, God, give me the desire to even want to forgive this person. Stir up in me, Jesus, your heart and your perspective and your love.

That is not something new, right? You're asking God to help you bring to mind and put into practice what you already know. Spiritual instability doesn't come from lack of information. It comes from loss of orientation.

We lose perspective. We forget. We drift.

We're leaky. That's why we have to keep coming back and being reminded. That's why we need worship.

That's why we sing truth to one another. That's why we pray. That's why we open God's Word every day to remind ourselves.

That's why we gather in community because we need to be reminded. You stand firm. You live ready by trusting the truth that you already know.

But to paraphrase Hamlet, I, there's the rub. How do I know it's true? How can I count on this? Can I really trust it? That's the second thing Peter is saying. You trust truth that's rooted in reality.

You trust truth that's rooted in reality. Look in verse 16. We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So what Peter wants us to understand, he's contrasting really the message that he has been giving, that he's communicating with these false teachers that we're going to hear more about next week in chapter 2. Because Peter knows that there will always be people who will want to dismiss the Christian faith as a myth, as a story, as an invention, as wish fulfillment. So he says plainly, this is not a fairy tale. This is solid actual reality.

And look what he says. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was born to him by the majestic glory, we were eyewitnesses. Did you see that? I mean, Peter's saying what we call the transfiguration.

This moment in Jesus' earthly ministry when Peter and James and John, his three closest disciples, are up on a mountain, and suddenly his majestic glory is revealed to them. And Peter saw it. He's saying, I was there, and I wasn't the only one.

And then he makes a connection from that glory of Jesus that was revealed to the glory that is going to be revealed when he comes back again. When he reveals fully his power and his glory. But more than that, look in verses 17 and 18.

When he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was born to him by the majestic glory. This rich phrase for the holy presence of God. This is my beloved Son.

With him I am well pleased. We ourselves heard the voice from heaven. For we were with him on the holy mountain.

See what Peter wants us to hear? This is not some guess. It's not some hope. It's not a philosophy.

I'm an eyewitness. I'm giving you firsthand testimony of what I saw and experienced. Others were there.

Peter's saying, look, Christianity is not built on private experience. It's built on public events. Actual, literal reality.

Jesus lived. Jesus died. Jesus rose again.

Jesus is coming again in glory, Peter says. Christian faith is not rooted in philosophical musings or ideas. It's grounded in what God has done in history.

And we need to know that. Because just like in Peter's day, many people are treating Christian faith in our culture as if it's just like some personal preference or an opinion, a voice among many. Well, you know, it's fine if it works for you, if it's inspiring.

But if that's all it is, Christianity is no better than a horoscope, right? Or a motivational poster. Hang in there, baby. You can do it.

No, Peter says, Christianity is not just helpful, it's true. And if it's not true, it doesn't matter if it's helpful. He has authoritative, trustworthy knowledge of Jesus.

So what does that mean for us? I mean, most of us, if we're Christians, we don't wake up wondering like, I wonder if Christianity is a myth. Should I believe Jesus today? No. We sometimes wonder if Christianity is real enough for us to actually trust.

Right? You know what Scripture says about generosity. But fear says, ah, hold that tight. You need that.

You can't let go of that. We know what Scripture says about holiness, about godly virtue. But, you know, desire rises up in us and says, just do what feels right.

Trust your heart. We know what Scripture says about forgiveness. But pain says stay bitter.

Don't let them get away with it. And in those moments, the question is not, do I believe that Christianity is real? The question is, do I believe it's real enough to trust it and to obey? When suffering comes, when prayers seem unanswered, when grief settles in, when disappointment is just hanging over you, when temptation comes along offering you a shortcut, Peter says we saw his glory. It's not a myth.

It's not imaginary comfort. He's the risen Lord. He is the truth that grounds your life.

So living ready means that your life is not built on moods or trends or emotions or the latest social or cultural or political fad or thing, but in what God has done in Jesus Christ. You trust truth that's rooted in reality. But, you know, you could say that's still just Peter's testimony, right? Anyone can say anything.

I mean, that's how cults get created, right? Like, I heard an angel from heaven, and he gave me this special message, and everyone needs to listen and obey. That's why Peter goes on to say, you trust truth higher than every human voice. You trust truth that is higher than every human voice.

Look at verse 19. It's not just eyewitnesses to God's glory. We have the prophetic word more fully confirmed to which you will do well to pay attention.

Peter turns from his own experience, his own eyewitness testimony, to the testimony of Scripture itself. This isn't just Peter's words or beliefs. He's saying, look, what we're telling you about Jesus Christ is exactly what God's word has prophesied.

It's exactly what God's word promised. Even if I were making it up, how could I make it up to fulfill something that was said by a prophetic insight hundreds and hundreds of years ago? And he says, pay attention to it, because it's like a lamp shining in a dark place. Any of you ever been in a cave? Like a real, actual cave? Like, when we lived in Missouri, we went to Meramec Caverns.

You know, there's lights everywhere, and Kate Smith saying, God bless America. Not that. It's like an actual cave.

I had an opportunity when our boys were in scouting. We went underground. Like an actual, there's no lights, there's nothing.

You have a headlamp. And at one point, the leader of the group said, okay, everybody, we're going to turn your lights off for just a minute. That is darkness.

And in that darkness, you can start to get scared. You can start to wonder what that noise was. You start to worry, like, what if the light doesn't come back on? I literally have no way of knowing how to get out of this place.

And in that moment, a light shining in the darkness is a beautiful sight. Peter's saying, that's what Scripture is. That's what God's Word is for us.

It doesn't mean the Bible solves every mystery. It certainly doesn't answer every question that we have, but it gives us light, enough light for the next step, enough light to show the path, to expose danger, to keep us from wandering, and to point us in a clear direction. You will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

Now, when you see the day in Scripture, it's often referring to the day of the Lord. And Peter surely has in mind here the day when Jesus will return in glory to establish His beautiful, glorious kingdom, to finally judge sin and evil and redeem the creation. That's what God's truth is heading you towards.

And Peter's saying, as you keep that in mind, God's light is leading you towards what things will ultimately be, so that you can align your life to that, so that you can keep it in front of you as the focus and the direction of your life. And Peter then goes on to explain how Scripture can guide us in that way, why we can trust it. In verse 20, because no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's interpretation, men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

This is a great kind of insight for understanding what we call the doctrine of Scripture. This is so important, right? Peter is saying these men wrote these things down, right? Their own language, their own style, their own personality, their own content, their own context, and yet God at the same time was working through them, not overriding them, but working through them so that what they write down is exactly what God intends. So that when Scripture speaks, God is speaking.

That's why the Bible carries authority. Not because the church voted on it, not because it's ancient, not because it's inspirational, not because it has some good ideas in it, but because it is actually the word of the living God. This is God's living word.

And when I say authority, I know many of us maybe recoil, especially in our culture today, authority is kind of a dirty word, right? Authority sounds oppressive. It sounds unfair. It sounds restrictive.

But Peter is picturing the authority of Scripture not as chains on free people, but as light leading people out of darkness. That's what Scripture is. And the reality of that is you are already living under authority.

Every one of us. The question is not whether you're going to live under authority. The question is under what authority am I going to live? Because if it's not Scripture, it's your wisdom, it's your feelings, your fears, your desires, your family of origin, it's the approval of others, the spirit of the age, the loudest voice in the room.

Something is always steering your life. But feelings always contradict one another, right? Part of you wants comfort. Part of you wants growth.

Part of you wants character, real character. Part of you wants to satisfy your desires. Culture. 

Culture changes every generation, sometimes every year. We look back at our grandparents or our great grandparents' generation, and we think, oh my gosh, they so missed it. How could they think that? Which means our grandchildren and great-grandchildren are going to look at us and say, oh my gosh, how could they think that? Man, they missed it.

15-year-old you looked at 6-year-old you and thought, man, I was so dumb back then. And then 25-year-old you looks at 15-year-old you and says, man, I was so dumb back then. And 30-year-old you and then 50-year-old looks back.

Every age of our lives, we look at ourselves and say, man, I was a fool. What business do I have trusting myself? People's approval. People's approval is a never-ending treadmill, if that's your foundation.

Peter says there is something better, something steadier than your feelings, something wiser than your desires, something more life-giving than pursuing pleasure. It's Jesus Christ and how He's revealed to us in the Word of God. Living ready means when my emotions are loud, like they want to drive everything, I have to let Scripture frame and filter and process those emotions.

When the culture presses in, I'm going to come back to Scripture to help me define reality and give me perspective. When fear tells me to run, Scripture helps define and guide my next step. You trust a truth that is higher than every human voice, even your own.

And it's not enough to simply know the truth. It's not enough even to agree with it. You trust truth that reaches your heart, that moves your heart.

That's the key thing here. Peter, remember earlier, he wants to stir us up. And that means more than just putting truth into practice.

It means more than just moving by our own effort to say, OK, I know this is what God commands me to do. It means truth moving from head to heart. Because we can affirm biblical doctrine and be ruled by anxiety.

We can agree with the authority of Scripture and still let resentment drive us. We have to be motivated by something more than knowing the truth. That doesn't happen by discipline.

It doesn't happen by trying harder. Archibald Alexander was a theologian at Princeton in the 19th century, and he used this great image. Back then, when people sent letters, they didn't even really have envelopes, you folded up the letter and you sealed it by taking some wax and melting it and then pressing the signet ring into the wax to seal the envelope to verify who the sender was, to verify its authenticity.

And Alexander says, the truth of the Bible is like that signet ring, and the wax is like your heart. Now, if you don't put flame to that wax and you press the signet ring into it, it's going to make a very superficial impression. Or if you keep pressing hard enough, it's going to crack the wax and break it.

And Alexander says, if we just bring God's truth to bear, without heat, without flame, we're going to create superficial appearance of Christianity. Without it actually getting into our heart and our lives. Or if we push hard enough, the truth of God's word will crush us, will break us, because I can't live up to the commands.

I will run from it. I don't want to follow it. I can't follow it.

You have to have the fire to melt the wax of our hearts. And what is the fire? The fire is the gospel. All religions have a God who speaks and commands.

It's only in Christianity that we have a God who actually goes under his own authority. A God who became human. A God who's born as a baby.

A God who obeyed his parents.

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