2 Peter 1 v 16 - 21

Peter reminds his readers that the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was no 'Plan B', it was always going to be the way from before the creation of the world. He asserts that this Gospel is not something which has been cleverly invented, it cannot be dismissed capriciously, The Bible contains words from history hundreds of years before Christ came, so who could have invented it? And yet, the Prophets spoke God's words and throughout the Old Testament we read extremely accurate prophecies concerning Christ's character as well as actions. No, the coming of Jesus Christ was always God's plan- as Scripture tells us, He in one sense had been crucified before the creation of the world-Revelation 13 v 8-and the plans of Almighty God find their inevitable fulfilment in real time, which gives us great assurance about the second coming of Jesus Christ. Peter refers here to the occasion when Jesus invited himself and James and John for a walk up a mountain, where He was transfigured and Moses and Elijah appeared and spoke with Him. The fisherman Peter witnesses the transcendent glory of God and hears Almighty Creator's voice! This is recorded in Matthew 17 v 1-8. Let's be clear: the writers of the Gospels and these letters we have been studying were not interested in making a record about a powerful historic person in order to keep his name alive, they wanted to propagate the Good News that Jesus, the Saviour of the world, had died, risen, ascended and was now alive-both in Heaven at His Father's right hand and in believers' hearts. Jesus is alive and is at work in the world in a much greater way than He could be when He was walking the earth! I think that the other thing which speaks to me in this passage is that all comes from God and returns to Him, it is a virtuous circle when God creates someone who grows up to be a Prophet and speaks the Words of God prophesying about events which will be fulfilled because Almighty God has planned them and so their coming is inevitable!