In his sermon titled 'The Word of God Is Our Sure Foundation,' Trent Moody emphasizes the unwavering importance of Scripture as the bedrock of Christian faith. Drawing from 2 Peter 1:16-21, Moody argues that the apostles did not propagate cleverly devised myths but were eyewitnesses to the majesty of Christ. He underscores that the prophecies and teachings of the Bible are not of human origin but divinely inspired, delivered through holy men moved by the Holy Spirit. The sermon contrasts the truth of the Gospel with the fables and philosophies prevalent in both ancient and modern times, urging believers to ground their faith in the Word of God rather than personal experiences or worldly wisdom. Moody stresses that the authority and sufficiency of Scripture are greater than any miraculous experience, and that true transformation comes from applying God's Word to one's life. He calls for believers to be doers of the Word, living out their faith with boldness in Christ's righteousness. The sermon concludes with a prayer for the salvation of souls and the strengthening of believers' faith in the enduring Word of God.

Second Peter chapter 1 beginning with verse 16 through the end of the chapter. Thus says the word of the Lord, for we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His Majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. And we heard his this voice which came from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.

And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Knowing this first that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation for prophecy never came by the will of man but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. Let us pray. Our gracious Father, we come with the words of that last chorus that we just sang upon our hearts. Oh Lord, these words that are ever true, changing me and changing all of these people here.

We just pray, oh Father, that we would stand before your word today and hear it as it is in truth, the very words of God. And Lord, you take this precious gospel, this most valued pearl of great price, and you allow but a boy filthy and in an earthen vessel to carry it. And Lord, I am overwhelmed. I pray, Lord, that all eyes will be turned to the pearl and may you be glorified. Amen.

So as we consider a passage before us this morning, I want you to be thinking upon this theme, the Word of God, our sure foundation. The Word of God, our sure foundation. Much like Peter, and we looked at what Peter said last time in the previous verses, I've not come here this morning with anything new to share with you. I've not come with any unknown insight, but I've come to you just to remind you of those things that you already know. I stand amid the congregation here of people who love God's Word, and really if I've ever preached to the choir, I'm doing it this morning.

I'm here with people who hold to God's Word, who believe God's Word, who study God's Word, and who by God's grace desire to live by God's Word. How much easier could this be? Except that I hold this precious pearl of great price, and I've got filthy hands. Look at the pearl. We read in 2 Timothy chapter 3 verses 16 and 17, a very familiar passage of Scripture where Paul writes this, all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

That's really my desire for each of us this morning, that the Word of God, this all scripture which is given by inspiration of God would be profitable for us this morning. Not just profitable for our minds to think high thoughts but profitable for our lives that we would live holy before a holy God. Because if what we know to be true does not come out in how we live, it is useless and in fact will only make you twice a son of hell. If you do not believe the gospel, because faith without works is dead, It's a dead faith that does not change you just like our brother Mike prayed this morning that his name shall be called Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins. Not only from the penalty of sins but from the power of sin in your life He has come to save us.

So hold on to this word. If I could just stand here all morning and just hold this word up, this book. We are people of the book. Unlike anyone else, there's no one who does This. There are people who stand and speak, but they speak their own thoughts.

I want to stand before you this morning not speaking my thoughts, but speaking the very thoughts of God. That is my desire. No one does anything so unusual as this. We would gather to hear words that were written and prophesied and spoken and preached thousands of years ago and every day since then. But that's what we have come to do this morning.

We have come to hear the Word of God. So I want you to understand that first and foremost the preaching of the Apostles was no fable and I want us to look at this passage of Scripture because I am really timid from veering from the Scriptures. I want to be bound to this book this morning and every time I stand to preach to you. There are many ways that we could look at this text and and many thoughts and ideas that we could come up with and that would be true. But I want to be bound to the text of the Word of God.

I find that the safest place to be. So I will not veer very far from it. It will be, I will be bound to this text and throughout the scriptures. So he says here, regarding these apostles in verse 16, for we, he's speaking here of the apostles and those preachers of the gospel, for we did not follow cunningly devised fables. You see the preaching of the apostles was no fable.

The Apostles preaching was fact, not fable. In this day there were fables all over the place. There were the Greek Gods and all of this nonsense that was going around. There were philosophies. There were all kinds of thoughts.

But they were merely the thoughts of human people, human beings, who were looking at the created world around them and trying to come up with what God was like. They were trying to figure this whole thing out, much like many people are doing today. They're looking around them, they're using their own intellects, and they're trying to figure out what is this all about. And that's why we see the total chaos and utter confusion of everything around us. The apostles were not like this.

They did not come with cunningly devised fables, but they wanted to make known to you the power and the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see this word fable here refers to mythical stories about gods and about miracles. There were many false teachers during these times who went around teaching all sorts of myths and lies in order to garner a following so that they could extort money from them or gain fame and make a name for themselves. Matthew Poole says human figments artificially contrived either to please and gratify men's fancies or to deceive and pervert their judgment. My desire this morning is the exact opposite of that.

I've come this morning with the total purpose of your faith being founded upon this sure Word of God. That in everything you do, your mind first goes to what saith the Lord. Whether it be in your work, whether it be in your marriage, whether it be as you as a child, in your entertainments, everything you do, I want your mind first to say, what sayeth the Scriptures? Because the Scriptures are not fables, but they are facts. Titus, Paul writing to Titus said, for there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not for the sake of dishonest gain.

One of them, a prophet of their own, said, Cretians are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons. This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed to Jewish fables and the commandments of men who turn from the truth. You see, in 2 Timothy, you can turn there, in chapter 4, we see this as well. 2 Timothy 4, verses 2 through 4 we read, preach the word, be ready in season and out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine.

But according to their own desires because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables." What is his warning? But you be watchful in all things and endure afflictions. Do the work of an evangelist to fulfill your ministry as his instruction to Timothy. There are going to be those and there are those, we've seen those all around in our culture that have heaped up teachers for themselves because they have itching ears. I'm sorry, I'm not an ear tickler.

I'm not here to itch your ear. I'm here to tell you the truth of God's Word. And I pray this is such an astounding task that I stand here trying to do before you today because I'm trying to take what I know and believe to be the truth of God's Word and I want to pour it out to you and it's a mysterious work and I don't mean that in a mystical way it's a mysterious work because God takes a earthen vessel and by the power of the Holy Spirit he injects that into your heart. There must be the witness of the Word of God and the Spirit of God before there can be the life of God that is born into your heart. And that is my prayer for every one of you here today.

I don't want anyone to leave here today not believing the Word of God and being transformed by it. I want you to be transformed by the renewing of your minds that God would take His Word and do His great work that only He can do. You see, in 1 Timothy 1, he mentions this as well or like it. He says, I urge you when I went to Macedonia, remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies which cause dispute rather than godly edification which is in faith. This fables here are these false ideologies, these philosophies.

We see this in 2 Corinthians 10 as well where he's talking about these strongholds that are built up in men's minds and hearts. They must be torn down. Robert Irwin notes that the false teachers also taught that the gospel miracles were only allegories and not facts. You know this thought press process did not die in the first century. The denial of the divinity and the majesty and the miracles of Christ was denied by even Thomas Jefferson.

One writer and one author writes regarding Jefferson, he says, Using his clippings, the aged third president created a New Testament of his own, one that most Christians would hardly recognize. This Bible was focused only on Jesus, but none of his mystical works. It didn't include major scenes like the resurrection or ascension into heaven or miracles like turning water into wine or walking on water. Instead Jefferson's Bible focused on Jesus as a man of morals, a teacher whose truths were expressed without the help of miracles or supernatural powers of God. If you remove the miracles of the Bible, you remove the power of the Gospel.

We do not follow Christ simply because he was a good moral teacher. He was. We follow Christ because he is God. He is God the Son. He worked miracles that proves that He is God.

He died an actual atoning death for our sins on the cross. He died on the cross, was buried in God, raised Him from the dead on the third day. He now has ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for you and me, and he is coming back, in which he will judge the world, both the living and the dead. Without the miracles, you have no gospel, you might as well take the clippings that are left and throw it into the garbage. It is the powerful working of God that we have seen in the life, death, burial, and resurrection, ascension, and return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And that is where our faith is. That's where our faith rests upon what God has done in creation above, in, and through, and around. He is outside of the things that we say are natural or scientific. He raises the dead. He calls his blind eyes to see.

He calls the lame man to walk. He calls those who are sick to be made well. He takes a dead sinner and makes him a living saint. This is the powerful working of God. Matthew Henry notes here we have the reason of Peter giving the foregoing exhortation and that with such diligence and seriousness these things are not idle tales or a vain thing but of undoubted truth and a vast concern.

The gospel is not a cunningly devised fable. These are not the words of one who hath the devil nor the contrivances of any number of men who by cunning craftiness endeavor to deceive. The way of salvation by Jesus Christ is eminently the course of God, the most excellent contrivance of the infinitely wise Jehovah. It was he that invented this way of saving sinners by Jesus Christ whose power and coming are set forth in the gospel and the apostles preaching was a making of these things known and know this for certain there is a second coming which it likewise mentions which the ministers of the gospel ought also to make known when he shall come in the glory of his father with all of his holy angels for he is appointed to be the judge both of the quick and the dead. He will come to judge the world in righteousness by the everlasting gospel and call us all to give account for all things that we have done in the body whether good or evil.

First Thessalonians 2, 9-13, Paul writes, For you remember, brethren, our labor and toil, for laboring night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, we preach to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses in God also how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we have behaved ourselves among you who believe. As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his own children that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into his kingdom and glory. For this reason we also give thanks to God without ceasing Because when you receive the word of God, which you heard from us, you welcomed it, not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe. Paul says also in Galatians chapter 1, But I make known to you brethren that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man, for I neither received it from man nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.

You see it is not a fable, It is a fact. So the encouragement here is that when you believe the gospel, you're believing the facts of God's Word. You can have confidence that your faith is on solid ground and not on the imaginations and the sinking sand of the wisdom of men. You stand upon the wisdom of God. This is foolishness to the world, but it is the power of God to salvation to all who believe.

To the Jew first and also to the Greek. You see the Apostles preaching was a divinely communicated fact of the power and coming of Christ notice what he says He says here for we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ this making known here. It was the apostles were preaching and communicating the facts of the power and coming of Christ. I understand this power and coming of Christ to be pointing not only to the power of Christ and his miracles while upon the earth through healing of sickness and causing as I said earlier the blind to see and the dead to be raised, and also to be pointing to a second coming of Christ when we see him and what we'll look at in just a few moments about him on the Mount of Transfiguration when the disciples, those three men, saw his majesty and heard from the excellent glory those precious and wonderful words of who Christ was. You see, some say that this power and coming are two distinct events and others that it speaks in regards to a combination of his power and of his coming and could be understood at Christ's powerful coming or his coming in power.

He was wanting the people to understand that when they spoke the gospel to them they were preaching regarding the power and coming and the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's not a fable that he was coming. It's not a fable that he came. It's not a fable of what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration and let me tell you something it's not a fable that he is returning again. He is coming back and you will stand before God and you will give an account.

You will. What leads me to this conclusion, 2 Peter is written specifically to refute false teachers. One of the false teachings is the denial of Christ's return as seen in 2 Peter 3 verses 1-13. I want to read these because they are so important. Beloved, I now write to you, 2 Peter 3, beloved, I now write to you this second epistle, in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder." There he is again, this this apostle of remembrance.

He is wanting you to remember these things. "...that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior knowing this first that scoffers will come in the last days walking according to their own lust and saying where is the promise of his coming for since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. Where is he? Where is he? For this they willfully forget.

One translation says they are willfully ignorant. You know what that means don't you? That means dumb on purpose. They are willingly ignorant. That by the word of God the heavens were of old and the earth standing out of the water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.

But the heavens and the earth, which are now preserved by the same word, Notice it's the word that preserves all things. They are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. There is going to be global warming. It has not happened yet. It's coming.

But beloved do not forget this one thing that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise as some count slackness, but is long suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with fervent heat. Both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God because of which the heavens will be dissolved being on fire and the elements will melt with fervent heat nevertheless we according to his promise Look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

See the relation there that Peter brings to the book of Revelation. Isn't it beautiful how God brings these two things together? He's teaching you something. He's wanting you to know something. God has brought us to these places at the same time in two different books by two different men.

He's wanting you to know this. Not only that, but consider how many times Peter, in understanding that this is at least pointing to the second coming. He points his readers in 1 Peter to the second coming of Christ. 1 Peter 1, 6 through 7 and really might just want to jot these down. There's a few of them here.

But he says, in this you greatly rejoice. 1 Peter 1, 6 and 7. Though now for a little while if need be you have been grieved by various trials that the genuineness of your faith being much more precious than gold that perishes though it's tested by fire may be found to the praise honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ." He's pointing us to this also in 1st Peter 1 13, therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Also in 1 Peter 4.5, they will give an account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. You see we see the same language in Matthew 24 in verse 30.

Then the signs of the Son of Man will appear in heaven and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." The things that Peter and the apostles were preaching were not fables. They are facts. They are the revelation of God. The purpose of which was to spur us on to love and good works as I mentioned in 2 Peter 3, 14, therefore beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by him in peace without spot and blameless. You see remembering one of the main reasons for Peter's writing is found in 2nd Peter 1, 10, and 11.

He says, Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never stumble. And listen to what he says in verse 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. You see the Apostles preaching was backed by eyes and ears if you will their senses it was an eyewitness account he says but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty, for he received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory. And not only Did they see these things, but they heard God speak?

It's not fables. It's facts. They preached what they saw, and what they saw, they preached. Not only did they see the revealed glory of Christ on the mount, but they also heard the honor and glory bestowed on Christ from the Father. Do you have trouble believing the witness of men regarding Christ?

Do you have trouble believing the witness of men regarding Christ? Well, let me give you comfort. Believe the testimony of God himself. This is my beloved Son. This is my beloved Son.

Hear him. And isn't it interesting that his name is called the Word of God? In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. That is what we are to hear. We are to hear the Son of God.

That's what he is saying here. Not only did they see that revealed glory of Christ, but they heard the very Word of God testifying, this is my Son. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." And let me just stop there just for a moment. He is well pleased in Christ and therefore if you are in Christ, he is well pleased with you. Not because of some thing that is in you, but it is because of who you are in.

You are in Christ. And it's because of that doctrine right there that with Him He is well pleased that we have any hope of salvation. If we were to stand before God in our own righteousness thinking that we could somehow present something to God, it would be as filthy rags. But we come and stand before God boldly because of what Christ has done. We're not bold in us, we're bold in Christ because that exalts, I believe, that our boldness should be to such an extent that we are bold in what Christ has done.

Don't think you're doing something wrong by coming boldly to the throne of grace because you are coming with the perfect righteousness of Christ. How bold should you come? How bold is a son, the son of a king, to walk into the presence of the king. How bold is he? He walks in, he opens the door, and he comes in, and he hops up on the throne.

And I don't mean this disrespectful, but the Son of God is seated at the right hand of God, and he is speaking to the Father regarding you. And if you are in Christ, the Bible says that we are also seated in heavenly places. Do you realize how boldly we should come before the throne of grace? As bold as Christ is righteous because we come in him. You see this voice came to him and for sake of time you know Matthew 17 regarding the Mount of Transfiguration and how this worked and he quotes that here in 2nd Peter.

He speaks about this. He says, for he received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased and we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with him on the Holy Mount. You see I want you to see secondly that the experience of the apostles was secondary to Scripture. You may say how did you come to that conclusion?

Let's look. Verse 19, and so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. You see, we have a sure prophetic word. The way this is written it would seem to say that the experience of the apostles on the mount confirms the prophetic word. Let me tell you something.

That experience on the mount was different than other things because it is inspired experience that they had on the mount. But our experiences do not confirm the prophetic word. The Word of God either confirms or denies your experience. Don't get those things messed up. The Greek construction which you may have noted in the side reference of your Bible.

An alternative reading is this, and we also have the more sure prophetic word, or, and we have more firm the prophetic word. I concur with this commentator who notes that Peter is ranking scripture, the prophetic word, over experience. The prophetic word is more complete, more permanent, more authoritative than the experience of anyone. More specifically, the Word of God is a more reliable verification of the teachings about the person, atonement, and second coming of Christ than even the genuine first-hand experiences of the Apostles himself, " says this commentator. You see, Peter was elevating the authority and the sufficiency of Scripture even higher than his own personal experience on the Mount of Transfiguration.

He testified of the accuracy of the prophecy, but he did not put his experience above it. Miracles are not better than Scripture. Miracles are not better than Scripture. So often people want some experience or some miracle so that they would believe or someone else would believe. You see, this is what Jesus often got onto the Pharisees for.

They always wanted a sign from Jesus to prove that he was the Son of God, but he would not give them a sign. Why? It seems like an easy way from our natural understanding was a hey just show us a miracle and we will believe. But that was not the way of God. I want to draw your attention to a passage in Luke chapter 16.

Go ahead and turn there. Luke 16 verse 27 through 31. I'm gonna pick up somewhat in the middle of this again for times sake because I want you, you know this story, the rich man and Lazarus. And I want you to listen to what is said at the end. So I want to draw your attention here.

Luke 16 verse 27. The rich man is speaking in verse 27. Then he said, I beg you therefore father that you would send him to my father's house, speaking to Abraham here, I beg you that you would send him, him being Lazarus, to my father's house, for I have five brothers that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' Abraham said to him, they have Moses and the prophets. Let them hear them. And he said, No, Father Abraham.

But if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent. They need a miracle, Father Abraham. They need to see someone raised from the dead, Father Abraham. They need to see some great sign and some great wonder, Father Abraham. Then they will repent.

Notice his response, but he said to him, if they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one raise from the dead. And that came true. How many of the Jews who understood and knew that the tomb was empty and offered money to the soldiers and said we will cover for you did not believe and repent. Though one raised from the dead they will not repent. They have the Word of God.

If they do not believe Moses and the prophets and so brothers and sisters what I am talking about here is that this work of you believing the scriptures and believing what they are and what God says they are is a work of the Spirit of God in your heart. It's not a natural belief in something. This is something supernatural. We're not doing something natural this morning. This is supernatural because unless the Spirit of God moves you to believe this word, you will not believe though one raised from the dead.

And that shows the power of God at work in the hearts of people. They will not believe though one raises from the dead. You see, let that sink in. We do not need miracles. What we need and what the lost world needs is to believe the Word of God.

That's what they need. And they need the corporation of the Word of God with the power of the Holy Spirit to quicken them and make them alive so that they can believe. How often did Jesus say that in the Gospel of John. You cannot. That word can is a word of ability.

You don't have the ability to believe unless the Father draws you. So that's what they need. That's what we should pray for. We need to be praying that God would do what only God can do and bring and fulfill the faith of people into the Word of God. You see faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.

Faith does not come by seeing miracles. Note the extreme example that Paul gives in regard to the trustworthiness of the gospel. He says in Galatians 1, 8, and 9, but even if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. So if an angel from heaven split the sky and this ceiling and landed upon this podium and told you a different gospel, What would you do? We should all stand in perfect testimony and say, let him be accursed.

There is no other gospel but the gospel which Paul preached and the Bible declares. This is the Word of God. This is the salvation that we must have and we must hold to. This is the light that shines in a dark place. You see this book, the Word of God, you can trust.

In fact, you are told right here in this verse in 2 Peter, you do well to heed. You do well to hear it with a heart to obey it. He said it's like a light that shines in a dark place. You see Peter encourages his reader not only to believe in the surety of scripture but as James would say, be you doers of the word and not hearers only. You do well to heed this word.

In what way? As a light that shines in a dark place. I see this as having a double meaning, if you will, or at least two possible meanings. This dark place, first of all, could very well, and I believe it is, I think it's both of these things, but I believe it is, partly at least, the dark place of our own understanding. Even though we are saved, even though we have been given the light of the gospel, we are still dim in many ways because of our fallen nature.

You see the Word of God is like this light that shines in a dark place to enlighten our minds and to help us to understand the word of God. You see the more you read the word of God the more you understand the word of God. Psalm 119 verse 105, your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. It's the Word of God that is the lamp unto your feet, not your reasoning, not popular opinion, it's the Word of God. Proverbs 6 23 says, for the commandment is a lamp and the law a light, reproof of instruction, or the way of life.

You want to walk in the way of life? You walk in the way of the Word. You dig into the Word, you stay in the Word, and you keep going back to the Word of God. It is the Word of God. And brothers and sisters, go home today and test what I am telling you.

Be good Bereans. You get into the Word of God and you will see that what these things or what I have said to you are true. But you dig into God's Word. You see, unfortunately, too many people are led by their experiences. Have you ever met these people?

Are you one of these people? We're led by our experiences so often we're led by our feelings. We place our feelings and our experiences above the Word of God. God forbid. It was pretty interesting how the Lord illustrated this point to me this week.

The truth of this passage came straight in front of me when I was in Charlotte. There was a man there, a professed preacher, who was more than a bit on the holiness and church of God side of things. This man seemed to love the Lord, testified of God's goodness in his life, but his main point of confidence was not in God's Word but in his experience. He allowed circumstances to guide his understanding of the Scriptures. Circumstances are a terrible guide for knowing the truth.

You can be feeling all sorts of things right now. Terrible guide. What you feel most of the time is not true. His daughter, the circumstance revolved around something that his daughter did when she was born. His daughter was born one week after his mother died.

And in this situation, they were very sad, not only that his mother died, but because she so desperately wanted to see this baby girl before she died. However, a few years later, I think she was two or three years old, the little girl said something about her grandmother whom she had never met. And the family members looked at her and said, you never met your grandmother, she died a week before you were born." To which little girl said, yes I did meet her, I was in heaven for a million years and saw her before I was born. Upon this one statement from a little girl, this man and his family placed all of their understanding of heaven and some supposed life in heaven before life on earth. And most of what this man hung his theology upon was his personal experiences based upon a little girl.

This is a dangerous way to live. I don't think I need to tell you that. This is a dangerous way to live. This is what one man I knew years ago called alphabet soup theology. Have you ever heard of this?

It's a very interesting theology. How many of you have ever heard of alphabet soup? Oh, there's a few of you. All of you little guys probably don't even know what alphabet soup is anymore. Campbell's Soup Company, you ever heard of them?

You pop the can and in this can of soup what you have is all the noodles are in the shape of little alphabets. You pour this alphabet soup into your pot and you warm it up and then you pour it into your bowl and sometimes you get a word from the Lord in your bowl of soup. Alphabet soup theology. Do not base your theology upon that please. I say that as an extreme example but I want you to know that your guidance and that your understanding on what you see and what you experience is not supreme.

This is. It's not only infallible and inerrant, it is sufficient. Base all of who you are upon the sole authority of God's Word. You see, the knowledge of Christ and of God only comes through the Word of God. What do you know about God and about Christ that you did not learn from the Scriptures.

Whatever it is, throw it in the garbage. If you think you have learned something from this, from your experiences, get rid of it. Matthew Henry says we do well if we take heed to the scriptures. That is apply your minds to understand the sense and our hearts to believe the truth of this sure word. Sure word.

Yea bend yourselves to it that we may be molded and fashioned by it. The Word is that form of doctrine into which we must be cast, Romans 6, 17. That formulation of knowledge by which we are to regulate our thoughts and our sentiments, our words and our confessions, our whole life and conversation. If we thus apply ourselves to the Word of God, we certainly do well in all respects what is pleasing to God and profitable to ourselves. And this indeed is but paying that regard which is due to the oracles of God." You see the dark place is not only between our ears, but the dark place is also outside of these walls.

It is a dark world. The Word of God is a light to guide us through this darkened world. How do you know what to do or what to think about this world without the Word of God to help you and guide you upon your way. We have seen that experience is no good. We have seen that wrong and terrible theology is no good.

You see, we must understand that it is God's Word that gives us the understanding of God's world. You see, in the last two years, I believe that we have seen this demonstrated in this church. We've mentioned this numerous times. How many people have I run into through all of this chaos and craziness that's going on out in this world and they are confused, they are anxious, they are worried, they are troubled, and they don't know what to do. But brothers and sisters, we have been feeding you God's Word over and over and over and over.

And it has been demonstrated because of that sure foundation. I've seen no panic. I've seen no anxieties. I've seen no troubles. I've seen no chaos.

I've seen people walking in the fear of the Lord and with peace and joy in their hearts. That's because of this. It's because you have placed your faith in the Word of God and I want you to continue to do so. You see, we have experienced the comforting peace of God's Word while the world and even many professing churches have been stumbling around in the dark. Peter says in verse 3, as His divine power has given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue." This world is a dark place, but the gospel is a light.

Isaiah 9 says this, verse 2, the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death upon them a light has shined. This light is the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ preached in the gospel according to the scriptures. You see if ever men are made wise to salvation it is by the shining of the word of God into their hearts.

Natural notions of God are not sufficient for fallen men who does at best actually know a great deal less and yet does absolutely need to know a great deal more, one commentator said. It is like a dawning day until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. I believe that this next phrase can also be understood in a few different ways. This can be seen and I'll kind of rush through these. These can be seen in a regard to a person's salvation when the light of the gospel shines into a darkened heart.

We see that in 2nd Corinthians 4.6, for it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. You see, as one man said, when the light of the scripture is darted into the blind mind and dark understanding by the Holy Spirit of God, then the spiritual day dawns and the day star rises in that soul. This enlightening of a dark benign mind is like the day breaking that improves and advances and spreads and diffuses itself to the whole soul till it makes the day perfect. Not only that but I believe that this could be speaking of the darkness that was seen in the Old Testament period of the time when the prophets saw the glory of Christ as though through a glass dimly as if by a candle in the dark and in the New Testament as though a day had dawned. That is where we are and we are blessed for it.

And thirdly, I believe this could also be pointing us to the second coming of Christ throughout the Scriptures. The day, that term, the day, this phrase very often speaks of the day of the Lord here Peter says until the day dawn and the morning star rises in your hearts he's writing to believers here and it's as if he's pointing them to something. And I read all of those passages earlier, not only in 2 Peter, but in 1 Peter, about how Peter was pointing them to the return and the revelation of Jesus Christ. And so looking at the whole context of these two books, these two epistles, I believe there is room to say that he was pointing them to the second coming of Christ and telling his readers that scriptures will be their guide and light until the day of Christ dawns and when he returns they will see all things perfectly. So I hold to all of these things as being true.

In 1 John 3, chapter 1, or excuse me chapter 1, chapter 3 verse 1, he says this, Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us that we should be called the children of God. Therefore the world does not know us because it did not know him. Beloved, now we are the children of God and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when he is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is and everyone who has this hope in himself purifies himself just as he is pure. You see we will see all things clearly Christ will be made known the darkness will be fleeting and we will see Christ We will see him as he is, the Bible says. So I'm not going to be dogmatic on any one of these, but I will be very comfortable with all three of these.

I believe they all point to truths that we see in the Scriptures. Lastly this, the priority of believing in divine origin, in the divine origin of the Scriptures. He says this in verse 20, knowing this first, isn't it interesting how he writes that at the end of chapter one? You would think that would be verse 1. Knowing this first, no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

At Hope Baptist we hold to the second London Baptist confession of faith and in that confession of faith it says these most fitting words in paragraph one regarding the Holy Scriptures And I'm just going to read a couple of sections of that. The Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience. Although the light of nature and the works of creation and providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God as to leave men inexcusable, yet they are not sufficient to give that knowledge of God and His will which is necessary unto salvation. Therefore, it pleased the Lord at sundry times and in diversified manners to reveal himself and to declare that his will unto the church and afterward for the better preserving and propagating of the truth and for the more sure establishment and comfort of the church against the corruption of the flesh and the malice of Satan and the world to commit the same holy unto writing which makes the Holy Scriptures to be the most necessary, those former ways of God, God's revealing his will unto his people being now completed.

And then in paragraph 5 he says this in the latter part of paragraph 5, yet notwithstanding our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority therefore is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts." Now that's a mouthful. Go back and read 2nd London, chapter 1, it's easiest, right at the beginning. Chapter 1 and paragraph 1 and paragraph 5, really all of those paragraphs, and you will be blessed and built up in your belief regarding the Word of God. And this morning our brother read from 1st Peter 1 22 through 25 where it speaks about the Word. The flesh is as grass and withers but the Word of the Lord endures forever.

It endures forever. You have a sure word of prophecy. You see, believing that the Scriptures are the very word of God is of primary importance to each of us. It is the first principle of our faith that the Scriptures are not human inventions but are of divine origin. If you do not believe the scriptures are more than mere inventions of men, you will never be led beyond your own thoughts and what the Bible says.

You'll look at the Bible with your own understanding and you will find a thousand reasons to turn away from it. Because I want you to know this, the Bible, now listen to me, the Bible is full of contradictions in that it contradicts you. It contradicts your lust, It contradicts the murder of your heart. It contradicts your lying and your stealing and everything else. That's why people reject the Word of God because their hearts are darkened and they who love the darkness flee from the light.

But I want you to come to the light. Come to the light of God's word. You see, prophecy is not, as he says here, of private interpretation. It did not originate from the prophets is what he's saying here. There's examples found in Amos and also Jeremiah real quickly.

Amos says, I was no prophet nor was I the son of a prophet, but I was a sheep breeder and a tender of sycamore fruit. Then the Lord took me as I followed the flock and the Lord said to me go prophesy to my people Israel. It was no fable it was a fact. God sent this holy man to write God's holy word and Jeremiah is much the same way You know the story of Jeremiah when he speaks about God before, I formed you in the womb, I knew you before you were born, I sanctified you, I ordained you a prophet to the nations and then said I, O Lord God, behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth. But the Lord said to me, do not say I am a youth for you shall go to all to whom I send you and whatever I command you you shall speak do not be afraid of their faces for I am with you to deliver you says the Lord and then the Lord put forth his hand and he touched my mouth and the Lord said to me behold I have put my words in your mouth." That's what this is talking about.

That is what this is right here for It is not a private interpretation for the prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit of God. You can trust in the Word of God. You see, this is not to say that we cannot interpret the Bible, but that God did not give it to man or man did not come up with it on his own. He was not wise enough, he was darkened, but prophecy came by God moving upon these men. You see, in closing, what is this all for?

Why have I been preaching to the choir all morning? You believe these things, don't you? What is this for? Why do I want you to believe God's Word is God-breathed? I can't say it better than what Matthew Henry said.

He said, this important truth of the divine origin of Scripture, that what is contained in them is the mind of God and not the mind of man. It is to be known and owned by all who will give heed to the sure word of prophecy. That the scriptures are the word of God is not only an article of the true Christians faith but also a matter of science and knowledge as a man not barely believes but knows assuredly that that very person is his peculiar friend or particular friend in whom he sees all the proper peculiar and distinguishing marks and characters of his friends so the Christian knows that book to be the Word of God in and upon which he sees all the proper marks and characters of a divinely inspired book. He tastes a sweetness and he feels a power and sees a glory. It is truly divine.

What does Scott so often say? He speaks about the God's Word when he opens it up and he calls it sweeter than honey. That's what it is to true believers. The Word of God is sweeter than honey to those who love God. And since this is the case, Brothers and sisters, let us give all diligence to this Word of God, not only to be hearers of it, but also to be doers of it.

Let us not only hear the Word, but love the Word, and live the Word. Amen. Father, we thank you and praise you for the word of God, the powerful word of God, the word that is sharper than a two-edged sword. I pray, oh God, that sword has pierced into the very soul of people here this morning. Oh God, do a work that only you can do in the hearts of people.

Lord, we stand here. We have no power to change a heart. We have no power to change a heart we have no power to change a mind the arguments of men stand very weak but we know that the word of the Lord endures forever and it can change hearts and it can turn minds and Lord I pray that you will do that this morning. Bring glory to yourself through the salvation of souls and strengthen the faith of your people in your word so that they will never totter, they will never falter, they will not be like a wave of the sea tossed to and fro but Lord that they will be sure and established in your word I ask it Lord in Jesus name amen