Obeying God's Word

We all love a good story, don't we? If I were to utter the words: "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away…" I doubt that there would be many here who wouldn't know what I was talking about! Or what about this beginning: "It began with the forging of the Great Rings." It is of course the first line in the Lord of the Rings films. And then there's my favourite: "Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy." You got that one? It is of course the opening line of the very first Narnia book. We could say that these fictional movies and novels are modern myths for the 21st Century. Myths are stories dreamed up by men, designed to illustrate life, make analogy to spiritual truth and to entertain. But as much as we love Star Wars, no-one in their right mind believes that Darth Vader really existed in a galaxy far, far, away. And though some fantastical stories like Lord of the Rings & Narnia contain clear intentional parallels to Christian truth, no one really believes in the existence of middle earth or a parallel universe accessed through the back of wardrobe. No, such stories are, for the most part, easily identified as myths.

One of the problems today for Christians is that increasingly many people also park Christianity in the category of myth. They argue that it is a story dreamed up by men. Yes, it illustrates life (but it's a hopelessly outdated illustration); yes, it has some analogy to spiritual, timeless truth (but it's up to you what you take and what you leave); and yes, it does entertain at times (but you know what, it also offends at times because its hopelessly outdated). Maybe you're here this evening and you would share that point of view. Well, part of my task tonight is, with the greatest respect, to try and show you why I'm convinced that point of view is wrong. You see we're starting a new evening series at JPC tonight entitled 'Godly Living'. In other words, what does it look like to live life as a Christian? And our first session tonight is all about the importance of God's word. So if you're here tonight just exploring the faith and asking a few questions – hopefully tonight will show you that what lies at the foundation of the Christian faith is not myth or fable, but objective, God-given truth! And as we look at that, my hope is that those of us who would call ourselves Christians will be encouraged to keep trusting God and living godly lives.

Earlier on we heard part of the Apostle Peter's second letter that he wrote to Christians living in northern Turkey. 2 Peter (as it is known) is an excellent place to go as we start looking at this topic of Godly Living, so please do open it up in your Bibles... and actually what we see here is that this problem of people thinking of Christianity as a myth is not a new one. There is a repeated call throughout this letter for faithful, fruitful action. Peter doesn't want Christians to be ineffective or fall away. He is aware that he is coming to the end of his life. Verses 13-15:

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 after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.

In other words, he wants to leave the believers with some essential reminders to help them live good, godly lives. And what's at the top of his 'essential reminder' list? Look at verse 16:

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.

And verse 19:

And we have something more sure, the prophetic word…

So my first point of three:

1. Don't Forget It's True: Scripture Is The Most Reliable Authority There Is!

How can Peter make this claim? Well just like today in the courtroom, any good argument is built primarily on two kinds of evidence. There's eyewitness testimony and then there's authoritative documents. Peter says: we have both! We have the first-hand experience of people like Peter and we have the Scriptures that he claims are even 'more sure' than his own first-hand experience. That's an incredible claim - so let's trace the reasons why Peter is so convinced of the reliability and truthfulness of scripture:

a) Firstly, It's Based On Historical Eyewitness Testimony

Verses 16-18:

…we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honour and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased", we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain.

What's he talking about? Some will know that Peter is referring here to the time that, along with James and John, he went up a mountain with Jesus. The disciples fell asleep. Jesus prayed. While he was praying his appearance started to change and the disciples woke to find Jesus dazzling white and flanked by two men. They turn out to be two of the greatest Old Testament prophets, Moses and Elijah. Mind blowing stuff. But there's more. As Moses and Elijah go to leave a cloud comes and envelops them all. And they hear a voice in the cloud saying "This is my son, my chosen one, listen to him!" This is the episode that Peter is talking about. And you can dismiss that as hallucination if you want. But there were three men on that mountain who in time all bore witness to the fact. (At first they even kept quiet about it because they feared folk wouldn't believe them). And that is the wonderful thing about Scripture. It is a book rooted in the eye-witness testimonies of people throughout human history. Contrast that to the Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. You can't. Contrast that with the Greek and Roman myths and fables. You can't do it. You can't root Romulus and Remus, Zeus, Hercules, Medusa, Artemis as real historical people. However, as one author writes:

From the very beginning, Christianity tied itself to history. The most important claims of Christianity are historical claims, and on the facts of history the Christian religion must stand or fall."- Kevin DeYoung, Taking God at his Word, p.32

Real people, at a real time in human history, seeing and hearing real things and sharing those experiences with others. From Moses writing down what God revealed to him, to Nehemiah's mission report, to the songs of devotion and despair in the Psalms, to the first hand reports of the death and resurrection of Jesus, to visions of the future….real people, passing on real things that have happened or will happen in human history. Of course, not everyone has had the privilege of being in Peter's position. Not everyone has heard the audible voice of God confirming the truth of the Christian message, which is why Peter transitions from the cast iron reliability of the eye witness apostles to the even more reliable prophetic written word.

b) Secondly, Scripture Is The Inspired Word Of God

Verses 19-21:

And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, 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.

The Greek word that Peter uses here for Scripture in verse 20 comes from a word that means 'to write'. Peter is at pains to point out that every part of Scripture is the written word of God. Every. Last. Word. Every last word in this book is the inspired word of God. Now, admittedly, when the New Testament writers refer to Scripture they most likely had the Old Testament scriptures at the front of their minds, but if you cast your eyes forward to 2 Peter 3:16 there we have evidence that Peter is already viewing the writings of Paul as having the same quality and authority as the Old Testament scriptures. So: many people over many years physically wrote what we call the Bible. At least 40 different authors over 1600 years – but it has a staggering commonality and overall theme. From start to end it is all about the loving actions of a gracious and just God to reverse the effect of human rebellion and establish a new creation. It is God's chosen means by which humans can discover who he is, what he has done and what his will is for his people in every age. And the way that God chose to do that was to use humans. Peter says in 2 Peter 1:21:

…men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit

That doesn't mean that God zapped them into a trance and then dictated word for word what should be written down, but neither does it mean that our Bibles are a result of human ideas or will. No – in most cases the authors were more than likely unaware that they were being carried along by the Holy Spirit, composing and recording inspired words from God. Which leads nicely to my third sub-point here, because as God's very word…

c) Scripture Is Without Error

Let me say it again – Scripture is without error. It's a bold statement – one I'm sure some react against internally! But this is one of the biggest reasons why Scripture is the most reliable authority there is. Put simply, what Peter is saying in these verses is this: Scripture doesn't come from man. It comes from God. If it comes from God all of it must be true because in God there can be no error, deceit or lies. End of! And so, my friends, we can trust Scripture. We may not always like what it says. We may not want to obey. At some points we may not fully understand it. But we can trust it. So don't forget it's true: scripture is the most reliable authority there is. Which leaves us with a massive challenge doesn't it? What are we going to do with this – the most reliable authority there is? Well, Peter urges his readers, and us, to pay attention to it! So my second main point:

2. Pay Attention: Don't Be Misled!

As Peter continues his letter he throws in warning after warning that if we give other sources more authority than scripture it will lead to certain bad things: swift destruction (2 Peter 2:1), the gloom of utter darkness (2 Peter 2:17) and slavery to corruption (2 Peter 2:19). It's a bleak, bleak picture if we don't pay attention, if we allow ourselves to be misled. And how we can be misled. All sorts of things vie for the place of having ultimate authority in our lives: from the prevailing cultural narrative, our own subjective experiences, dreams, feelings, opinions, human law…...if we make those things equal to or treat them as more authoritative than scripture, then we will be misled and fall into error. The problem is, of course, that there are many queuing up to mislead us and promise us that these others sources of authority carry more weight. Nowhere do we see that with man-made religion – whether it be Islam, secularism, consumerism, hedonism - Peter says they will entice us with sensuality and promise us freedom, but in the end they are ways that lead only to death. So we need to pay attention to the word of God. But what exactly does that mean?

Suppose I'm driving down a country road at 60mph and I see a sign that indicates the road is going to be bendy for the next mile and says 'slow', but I think to myself – 'that's fine, bendy road, I'll keep going at 60.' Have I paid attention to that sign? I haven't, have I? To really pay attention to something demands action. In that case it would be wise to obey the sign and slow down. And whether it's paying attention to a sign, or paying attention to someone in the context of a relationship (father, mother, sister, brother, husband, wife), whether it's paying attention to the questions on an exam paper or paying attention to the bills that fall through the letter box onto our doormats - if we're really going to pay attention to something we have to act in response and very often that means complying and obeying. And if we can pay attention to all those things, how much more should we pay full attention to the most reliable authority?

In practice though, how do we do that? Is it just a case of another exhortation to read the Bible more, pray more and come to church more? Well, no, not if that's going to heap a tonne of condemnation on you. Don't get me wrong, that's not to say those things aren't important – they are, they're vital – but Peter knows that it's our hearts that really matter. That's where the change needs to happen. That's why at the end of chapter 3 Peter signs off the letter, not by saying 'Grow in knowledge' but "Grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ." If the truth of head knowledge never gets near our hearts, then we might as well all pack up and go home! You see sadly, it is possible to treat God's word like a textbook and that's all, and not pay proper attention to it. We need to read it differently! We need to treat it and read as the most precious and valuable thing we have. When we understand that Scripture is God's revelation to us, it is him speaking his word to us personally in written form, when we realise that this Word is alive and that the Holy Spirit wants to work in us to change us to be more like Jesus - that's got to affect how we respond, right? Read it and love it. Study it and value it. And know that there are no shortcuts!

It's a bit like a cup of tea! I'm from Yorkshire roots and I love a good, strong cup of tea. Not everyone does, I know that – some people like nothing more than a cup of hot water with a splash of milk! But whether you like strong tea or weak tea, the same ingredients – water and tea – are used for both. The reason one cup of tea is strong and one is weak is all to do with the amount of time that the tea is immersed in the water – the longer the brew, the stronger the tea. In the same way (kind of!), the length of time we spend in God's word determines how much we are affected by it! Just like the tea, the longer the brew, the longer we are in the word, the 'stronger' we become! Yet some of us, to switch analogies, sip the word of God – not like it's a cup of Yorkshire Gold, but more like it's a cup of bad medicine! I love how American Pastor Chuck Swindoll puts this:

We might take in a spoonful during a Sunday sermon or taste a few drops when it is sweetened by an inspiring devotional. But if we take Peter's words about Scripture seriously, we won't sip. We'll guzzle its life-giving truth, letting its cool, clean waters quench our famished souls, satisfy our longing hearts, and cleanse our polluted minds."Chuck Swindoll, Living Insights, p.311

That's paying attention to the truth. Drink it in. Guzzle it down. Don't be misled. But obeying God's word doesn't just have an individual aspect to it. With such valuable and good news, surely we have a duty to thirdly:

3. Tell Others About The Lamp: God's Word Is For All

Now admittedly, this point isn't drawn directly from these verses. I don't think this is Peter's primary intention here. Nevertheless, considering the whole sweep of his book I do think its implied. Back to verse 19 one last time:

And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place…

Peter says that the God's word is like a lamp shining in the dark place of this world. We know that this world is dark. We know that this world is messed up. And the light of God's word is needed by every human being, from Presidents to children. But Peter says, the clock is ticking. The end of that verse says:

…until the day dawns and the morning star rises…

He's talking about the day when Jesus will come back to wrap up human history and the end of his letter is full of anticipation for that day. And so, having gained so great a treasure, we need to share God's word with all, while there is still time. That's partly what we're about at the moment, doing our best to lay on events by which others can benefit from the lamp of God's word. And it is a benefit. God is our creator. He knows what is best for us and he has graciously revealed that to us in this book that we hold in our hands today.

Most of you have probably heard the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty – how in 1787 Captain Bligh and a few loyal sailors were set adrift in the middle of the ocean because the rest of the men didn't want to return to England. Not as many will have heard of the significant role that God's word played in that event though. Let me share that with you as I close. Somehow Bligh survived and was able to tell his story and an expedition was sent to capture those who mutinied. 14 were captured but nine had already found their way to another distant island. There they formed a colony which quickly become degraded and debauched. They learned to distil whiskey from a native plant, and the whiskey, along with other habits, led to their ruin. Alcoholism, murder, disease and other ills took the lives of most of the mutineers and native men, save one. He went by the name of Alexander Smith and Smith found himself the only man on the island, surrounded by a crowd of women and fatherless children. Smith found a Bible among the possessions of a dead sailor. The book was new to him. He had never read it before. He sat down and began to read it through. He believed it and began to pay attention to it. He wanted others to share in the benefits of this book, so he taught classes to the women and the children, and read and taught them God's word. It was 20 years before another ship ever found that island, and when it did a mini utopia was discovered. The people were living in relative decency, prosperity, harmony and peace. There was no crime, little disease, no obvious immorality or illiteracy.

How was that accomplished? By the reading, the believing and the paying attention to the lamp of God's word.