#DailyDevotion Christianity Doesn’t Care About Your Experience or Your Truth

2 Peter 1:16–21 ¹⁶We didn’t follow any clever myths when we told you about the power of our Lord Jesus Christ and His coming. No, with our own eyes we saw His majesty. ¹⁷God the Father gave Him honor and glory when from His wonderful glory He said to Him: “This is My Son Whom I love and with whom I am delighted.” ¹⁸We heard that voice speak to Him from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. ¹⁹And we have, as something more sure, the prophetic Word. Please look to it as to a light shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the Morning Star rises in your hearts.

We live in a such an experiential world today. If we’re lucky meet someone who at least says to you, “You have your truth but I have my truth.” They may say, “This my my truth as I experience it.” There’s a philosophy gaining ground in our society which I guess is close to Pilate’s “What is truth?” for they don’t believe there is any truth, only what is expedient to them at the moment. Nevertheless, for a lot of Christians, they are still very much experience driven concerning their faith. They are looking for some emotional or physical high to validate their faith. But this is not a Christian philosophy but a worldly one. Our faith is not based on our experience or our feelings but on the LORD Jesus Christ.

So we look at this lesson from 2 Peter and I hope I can show this. Peter, James and John were on a mountain top with Jesus. They saw him transfigured, that is, he began to shine with the glory of God which is his by nature. They saw Moses and Elijah, one who had died the other taken up in a fiery chariot centuries ago. Then they heard the voice of the Father speak to them directly, “This is my beloved son, whom I love. Listen to him.” This is what Peter is talking about in these verses. Now if you wanted to have an experience based religion, I think you could say, well yeah, we can base our faith on that!

But what does Peter say? “And we have, as something more sure, the prophetic Word.” You mean seeing Jesus transfigured before your own eyes with Moses and Elijah isn’t more certain? I thought seeing is believing. You mean hearing the Father’s voice with your own ears isn’t more certain and sure? Peter tells us no. What is more sure and certain for Peter and therefore for us? The prophetic word. Now this of course would include the Old Testament as we know it today. Peter references the Pauline epistles so he is probably including those in this. Traditionally, Peter either dictated to Mark much of his gospel or at least read it and approved it. Since he knows of Paul’s writings it is also possible he knew of Luke’s Gospel since Luke is a companion of Paul and Peter and Paul were both in Rome around the same time. Matthew’s Gospel traditionally was written first. No doubt the Church ultimately accepted the Bible as we have it today to be the sure prophetic Word Peter is talking about.

Peter directs us, “Please look to it as to a light shining in a dark place until the day dawns and the Morning Star rises in your hearts.” Look to God’s Word as to what is true, faithful, certain, sure concerning God, Jesus, what they have done, what they have promised, who we are, what Their attitude toward us is, and what we are going to be. Don’t look within yourself. Look to the Old and New Testament. That is sure and certain.

Heavenly Father, give us your Holy Spirit, that we may read your Word and be sure of all you have done for us, are doing for us and promise us in Christ Jesus. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.