2 Peter 1:20-21 - The Most Amazing Book Ever Written!
2 Peter 1:20-21 (NLT) Above all, you must
realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from
the prophets own understanding, or from human
initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy
Spirit, and they spoke from God.
INTRODUCTION
1:16-21 This section is a strong statement
on the inspiration of Scripture. Peter affirms
that the Old Testament prophets wrote God's
messages. He puts himself and the other apostles in
the same category because they also proclaim
God's truth. The Bible is not a collection of
fables or human ideas about God.
It is God's very words given through people
to people...
"Those prophets were moved by the Holy
Spirit, and they spoke from God" means that
Scripture did not come from the creative work of the
prophets' own invention or interpretation. God
inspired the writers, so their message is authentic
and reliable. God used the talents, education,
and cultural background of each writer (they
were not mindless robots); and God cooperated
with the writers in such a way to ensure that the
message he intended was faithfully communicated in
the very words they wrote. [Life Application
SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
An Inspired Book
Why are the Scriptures described as a
sword provided by the Holy Spirit? Quite simply,
it is the Holy Spirit who has given us the
Scriptures. They come altogether from Him.
It was the Holy Spirit who inspired men
to write them: "Moved by the Holy Spirit, men
spoke from God" (2Pt 1:21). Again in 2 Timothy
3:16 we read: "All Scripture is inspired by God"
- a statement which assures us that the
Scriptures come from the Holy Spirit.
The Bible is not a mere human document.
The Holy Spirit breathed into men and inspired
them to write the way they did. This does not
mean that the people who wrote the Scriptures did
so mechanically, in the way that a dictating
machine would record someone's dictation. The Holy
Spirit used their natural way of expression but
gave them an additional ability to write without
error.
It is vital, if you are to win the battle
against Satan, that you not only see this truth but
believe it. When you consider how powerful Satan is,
you need something that is even more powerful.
The Bible, the inspired Word of God, is your
strength.
One step further - only the Holy Spirit
can enable us truly to understand God's Word:
"We have not received the spirit of the world,
but the Spirit who is from God, in order to know
what has been freely given to us by God" (1Co
2:12). Without the Holy Spirit, we would be no more
able to understand the Scriptures than a blind
man could judge a beauty contest.
Gracious Holy Spirit, just as You
breathed into the Bible to give it its life and
power, breathe also into my heart today so that I
might know and understand its truth. I ask this in
Jesus' name. Amen. [Every Day With Jesus Bible with
Selwyn Hughes devotional re Deu. 11:18]
COMMENTARY
Soon after evangelist Billy Sunday became
a Christian, an older believer gave him some
advice on how to grow spiritually. He said,
William, there are three simple rules I can give to
you, and if you will hold to them, you will never
write backslider after your name. Take 15
minutes each day to listen to God talking to you;
take 15 minutes each day to talk to God; take 15
minutes each day to talk to others about God.
How does God speak to us? He speaks to us
primarily through His Word, the Bible. Yet a lot of
people arent opening their Bibles today.
Instead, were looking at things like social media.
Every day, 66 percent of evangelical believers are
looking at Facebook, 39 percent are looking at
YouTube, and 32 percent are opening their Bibles.
We have a problem. We need to open up the
Bible and discover what it has to say, because a
successful Christian will be a Bible-studying
Christian. On the other hand, a failing Christian will
be someone who doesnt open the Word of God.
I remember the first time I started to
read the Bible. I couldnt believe that I had
finally found the users manual of life. The words
were so relevant to what I was facing as a
17-year-old, and theyre still relevant to what Im
facing today. Theyre relevant for every phase of
life.
The Bible is the most amazing book ever
written. Its literally Gods message to us.
Technically speaking, its not one book
but actually 66 books written over a span of
1,500 years. The words of Scripture were inspired
by God and written by 40 authors from every
walk of life, including kings, peasants,
philosophers, fishermen, poets, statesmen, and scholars.
And all of them write about Gods redemption
of humanity.
The Word of God is perfect, and its
completely trustworthy. [Greg Laurie from Harvest
Ministries; https://www.harvestdaily.com]
LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS TOPIC
2 Timothy 3:16, 17 - The Bible: Gods Owners
Manual for Life.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210319-1124.html
YOUR COMMENTS
If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in
hearing from you. Thanks in advance and let's keep
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred
Gibbs
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
Most Important Decision in Life:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0
A Man without Equal by Bill Bright:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiVa7UoruIo
Steps to Peace by Billy Graham:
https://stepstopeace.org/
Seeking God Made Real:
http://vimeo.com/31489782
Prayer Made Real:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES
Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies:
http://www.liftingupjesus.net/
Amazing Facts Bible Studies:
http://www.amazingfacts.org/bible-study/bible-study-guides.aspx
Voice of Prophecy Discover Bible Study
Guides:
https://www.voiceofprophecy.com/study/discover
Glow Tract Video Bible Studies:
http://www.bibleresearch.info/
LINKS FOR BIBLE PROPHECY SEMINARS
Unlocking Bible Prophecies by Cami Oetman of
Adventist World Radio: https://www.awr.org/bible
Panorama of Prophecy with Pastor Doug
Batchelor: https://www.panoramaofprophecy.com/
Hope Awakens by John Bradshaw of IIW:
https://itiswritten.tv/programs/hope-awakens
Prophecies Decoded by Pastor Ron Clouzet:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657
Islam and Christianity in Prophecy, The
Third and Final Conflict by Tim Roosenberg:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHSJB-fuHLU&list=PLWhQIHGTHlkaGg5Cwe3NDzWtFX8vNSpsE
