God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My sermon is
entitled Peter’s Letter, Lesson and Life, and my focus is on our Epistle
(2nd Peter 1:16-21). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist
wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the
Lord.’” Now that our feet are standing within your gates, we rejoice to
hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our
hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity.
Amen.
My high school classmate, Joe Letteri, recently made the
news for receiving another Academy Award nomination for his work on Avatar:
The Way of Water. It’s the sequel of the original Avatar, for which
he won an Award in 2009. Joe also won Oscars for his work on The Lord of the
Rings: The Two Towers and its sequel, The Return of the King. Now, we
all know what a sequel is. A sequel – direct from the Latin – is that which
follows. We all have favorite sequels. Some of the most popular include those
that followed the original movies: Godfather, Toy Story, Star Trek and
so on. Some of my favorite sequels are The Good, The Bad and The Ugly,
and Top Gun: Maverick.
The Bible contains eight books or letters that are numbered
Second. Whenever we discuss the second of anything, it is primarily to
determine if the second was written by the same author who wrote the first. And
so, it is for today’s epistle, 2nd Peter. This Epistle is not a
major work in the New Testament, like the Gospels or Paul’s Letters. In fact,
this year, it will be read in church only twice: today and on the Second Sunday
of Advent. That said, let’s examine the Letter, the Lesson and Life.
First, the Letter itself. Although
the Lutheran Concordia Self-Study Bible maintains the author of this letter is
the Apostle Peter, most other texts concur it is a pseudonymous letter. Two
major reasons are that 2nd Peter incorporates Jude, weakening its
claim for authenticity.[1] It also alludes to a
“collection” of Paul’s letters (3:15-16), which did not exist until the end of
the first century. There is no sure evidence that the Church accepted the
Letter before the 3rd century, and some refused to accept it. None
of this means that 2nd Peter is not inspired nor inerrant. So, we
will refer to the author as Peter, and accept the Letter as God’s divinely
inspired word.
This Letter’s style
differs dramatically from 1st Peter. Absent are references to
family, strangers, or “exiles of the Diaspora.” Because no church is
identified, 2nd Peter is listed among the “catholic” or universal
letters. From the 2nd and 3rd chapters, we can
surmise that the congregation is not homogenous, but a mix of Jewish-Christian
and Greek converts. 2nd Peter also refutes those who attacked church
teaching around God’s judgment, which would have been a popular debate among Greek
philosophers (Epicureans) and Jewish heretics who argued that there is no
providence/judgment in God, no afterlife, and no post-mortem rewards and
punishments.
In addition, Peter
used technical intellectual terms familiar to Greeks, such as “divine nature”
(1:4), “eyewitnesses” (1:16), and “Tartarus” (2:4), which was a term used by
Greeks to designate the place where the most wicked spirits were sent to be
punished.[2] His arguments regarding
God’s just judgment resemble those of Greek writings and Jewish commentaries.[3] His descriptions of cosmic
fire and renewal (3:10) sound similar to Stoic teachings. All of that may seem
like Greek to you, but it helps us locate this church in a city where the mixed
population of Jewish and Greek intellectuals gathered for philosophical debates.
And the purpose of Peter’s Letter in this debate was to warn against false
teachers (chapter 2), and to calm Christians’ anxieties because of the delay of
the Parousia, Christ’s Second Coming. With that in mind, let us
move to our second point, the Lesson.
Our passage (1:16-21)
opens with the phrase cleverly devised myths. This is a
warning against Gnostics, intellectually enlightened believers of the day, whose
doctrine of the Second Coming was based not on logical proofs, but on an elaborate
mythological system. We read in chapter three, after explaining the Gnostics’
view, that Christians should keep in mind “that with the Lord one day is
as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to
fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not
wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance”
(see 3:4ff).
Why was Peter taking
pains to refute the arguments of these false teachers by writing this and by
reminding believers “that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s
own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man”?
To answer that, we need to understand that Greeks believed that the older the
teaching, the sounder. Original philosophers were respected and revered. Thales
of Miletus, Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, whose teachings were
hundreds of years old by the time Jesus came along, were the most influential
thinkers in the ancient world. In comparison, who was Peter?!
Peter was an
eyewitness of Jesus Christ, who comes from God the Father, and revealed to him
divine teaching. The Greeks put stock in anyone who was an eyewitness. They
even went so far as to believe in fictional characters who were eyewitnesses of
the ancient world.[4]
Peter was one of a handful of men who gave eyewitness testimony to God’s
revelation from the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry through his
Resurrection. The reference to the Transfiguration in today’s passage is
Peter’s understanding and use of 1st Peter 5:1, where Peter
describes himself as “a partaker in the glory that is going to be
revealed.”
Why did Peter refer to
the Transfiguration rather than the Resurrection appearances? Was it because
(as we read in 3:3-4) this better refuted those who scoffed Christ’s promised
return? Was this kind of appearance more in line with what they were expecting
at the Second Coming as opposed to the Resurrection appearances (Lk 24:34):
that Greeks put more stock in the Transfigured Jesus than the Crucified One? Or
is it because Peter wanted to forcefully reject the Gnostic visionaries who
frequently invoked the risen Christ as their source for their speeches and
false doctrines?
By establishing
himself as a faithful witness, Peter knocked down the false teachings not only
of those outside the Church, but also those false teachers within it. In
chapter 2, we read of the “false teachers among you.” Those of
you who are in our study of Thessalonians know that in that culture where
philosophers won the argument using rhetoric, it was important to discredit the
teachings of your opponent. For example, Paul wrote, “We never came with
words of flattery, … nor with a pretext for greed. Nor did we seek glory from
people, whether from you or from others” (1 Thes 2:5-6). In other
words, Paul tore down those teachers who sought flattery, fortune and fame.
Like Peter, Paul too was commissioned by the Risen Lord to teach the Truth.
False teachers were not. They were simply charlatans in it for the money.
These false teachers
were everywhere. That is why Paul advised Timothy: “As I urged you
when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge
certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves
to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather
than the stewardship from God that is by faith” (1 Tim 1:3-4).
While Peter’s
recollection of the phrase “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am
well pleased,” is not the exact wording of the Evangelists, the
point is made. Peter witnessed this glory, and used the episode to exhort
Christians to remain faithful to the Gospel and be wary of popular false
teachers.
True prophecies (vv.
19ff.) when rightly understood are not comforting and soothing; they are uncomfortable
and threatening. The prophets Jeremiah and Ezekial demonstrated this when they
said: “They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying,
‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jer 6:14). “Precisely
because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace,
and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with
whitewash” (Ezek 13:10).
St. Paul repeated this
when he wrote, “For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of
the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There
is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor
pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in
darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief” (1 Thes
5:2-4).
The false teachers
whom Peter censured were like those of the Old Testament or those repudiated by
Paul in that they twisted words. Peter, an eyewitness, claimed authenticity.
His prophecy regarding Christ’s Second Coming was not subject
to some new, charismatic interpretation. While some would reinterpret verses to
benefit their teaching, Peter was more suited than they to the task of teaching
because he was an eyewitness who received and interpreted that which he
received.
We cite the Gospel of
John where Jesus spoke to Peter and the other Apostles, “The Helper, the
Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things
and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (14:26). He
also said, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all
the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he
will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come”
(16:13). And if there was any doubt that Peter did not understand what he heard
or saw on the mountain of the Transfiguration, because he wanted to make three
tents or booths for Moses, Elijah and Jesus, Acts 3:18-26 counters those claims.
So, what are we to
make of all this? How does Peter’s remembrance of the Transfiguration of Jesus
on a mountain 2,000 years ago factor into your life today? Let me ask some
follow-up questions. When you look at your life, is it attractive or
satisfying? In short, has your life been or is what you want it to be? Are you
searching for something else? Are you searching for something deeper? Something
more meaningful? Are you content with your life today? Can it change in an
instant? Yes. Will it? I do not know.
I could pose a million
questions, but rather than doing that, let me offer this. If you start to look
elsewhere for answers to these sorts of questions, you are not going to find
anything more fulfilling than life in Christ. You can look elsewhere, but
everyone will tell you what you can do, should do or must do to have a more
fulfilling and satisfying life. The trouble with all of that advice is that it
is Pelagian.
If you want to read a
detailed account of Pelagius, an ascetic 3rd-century monk from
Ireland who based his ideas on the teaching of pagan Stoics, I will list a few
sources in my notes. Suffice it to say for this sermon, that Pelagianism today
teaches that we have the ability to conquer sin and to gain eternal life even
without the aid of grace. God takes no active role in human salvation, since
men do not need his grace. Instead, God is a spectator, watching the human
drama from afar but not involving himself in it after setting it on its course.[5]
1600 years after
Pelagian unleashed his false teaching upon the world, our secular culture still
believes in free will to the degree that together humans are able to make the
right choices, do good, and to make things better.[6] Confidence in our ability,
or willingness … to comprehend and follow the truth, apart from God’s
intervention, is misguided. Instead, we need to take a more realistic and
humble view of ourselves, which admits that we need outside assistance [or
divine grace] in order to receive, comprehend, and appropriately respond to the
truth.[7]
The idea of
Pelagianism is so prevalent in our society that it influences our lives as
Christian believers and churches to the degree that we can solve our problems
without the aid of God’s grace. As a young pastor, I saw the needs of all the
people, and with good intentions, aimed to help them find solutions … in
programs. I embarked on creating programs for couples engaged to be married,
for parents seeking baptism for their newborns, for divorced people seeking
guidance, and for every age group known to mankind. I did all that and I
started a capital campaign to pay off our debt and renovate the church
property. I could go on, but suffice it to say, that at times I relied more
upon what I was doing and less on how the Holy Spirit was working. In
hindsight, I should have spent more time in prayer and study of God’s Word and
Christ’s Sacraments than being an ordained Pelagian.
Friends, it is the
Holy Spirit who guides our daily lives more than we know it. It is the Holy
Spirit who guides our church more than we admit. It is the Holy Spirit who will
solve our biggest problem, and that is sin. It’s not my personal program or
professional practice I undertake. It is what God is going to do through me,
through us.
When I first inquired
about being involved in Our Savior Lutheran Church in Livermore, CA in 2011,
and explained to our pastor that I had been a priest for 21 years, he said,
“You can be a pastor!” That was not what I wanted and not what I expected.
When I met with the
District President Robert Newton, he said, “Let me explain the Lutheran
understanding of grace.” He then said something like this. Grace comes to us
from God the Father through Christ’s Cross into our hearts. That is the Holy
Spirit working. All we do … is receive. That struck me as profound, and it’s
why I am here.
Friends, the Holy
Spirit guided Peter to write today’s lesson. The Holy Spirit was at work when
Peter accompanied Jesus onto the mountain where he witnessed through sight and
hearing God’s presence and Jesus’ Transfiguration. If there is something that
you can take from the Transfiguration today it is that if you open yourself to
receiving the Holy Spirit into your life and allow it to reside in your heart
and mind, the Spirit will guide you to where you want to go – straight into the
loving arms of our Risen Lord. You will find no greater joy than the Risen Christ
Jesus standing at his Father’s right hand ready to welcome you into heaven. With
that image, may the peace of God which is beyond all understanding keep your
hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
[1] Compare
2:1-8 with Jude 4-16.
[2] The
Lutheran Study Bible: English Standard Version. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing
House (2009), p. 2160. Also see note on 2:4, p. 2164.
[3]
See the Midrash on Cain and Abel. https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/filling-in-the-gaps/
[4]
Richard Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness
Testimony. Grand Rapids MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (2006), pp.
114-147.
[5] https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/the-by-your-own-bootstraps-heretic
[6] https://www.firstthings.com/article/2019/04/pelagius-the-progressive
[7] https://nickcady.org/2020/08/12/what-is-epistemic-pelagianism/
