There is a continuous war between God and Satan, between God’s truth and Satan’s lies. At the heart of this battle lies the distinction between truth and heresy—Satan not only promotes outright lies but also invents counterfeit forms of Christianity that challenge the essential truths of the Gospel. Heresy, meaning a teaching that contradicts fundamental Christian beliefs, is not merely a mistake; it attacks the core of the Christian message and poses a direct threat to the work of God’s truth.

Facing heretical teachers and doubts about Jesus’s promised return, early Christians struggled with misleading teachings and immoral influences. Peter aims to encourage believers to trust fully in God’s Word, writing his imminent farewell as a lasting reminder for future generations. He emphasizes his central argument: the Bible is a completely trustworthy foundation for truth and practical living. The rest of the text establishes his authenticity and the credibility of his message.

In both ancient and modern courts, cases are verified through eyewitness testimony and reliable documents. Peter directly appeals to these two forms of evidence—his eyewitness account and the reliability of scripture—as the decisive proof needed to counter false teachers and ground believers in truth.

Eye Witness Accounts: Facts Over Myths (V16-18)

False teachers labeled the return of Christ as a fable, a myth. A myth is a story without a basis in fact, a legend. Peter defended the truth of the return of Christ by appealing to eyewitness testimony. He is referring to an event that occurred in Mark 9:2, and there were multiple eyewitnesses. He says, “We ourselves heard …. we were with him on the holy mountain”. The apostles had walked with Christ; they had talked with Christ. They had experienced His life, His teaching, His miracles, His death, His resurrection. They had seen the living, crucified, risen Christ. His supernatural glory had been seen by them on the Mount of Transfiguration. They were eyewitnesses to what they wrote, and that is the first line of verification about the truth of their letters.

Christianity isn’t based on myths or secondhand stories—it’s grounded in firsthand eyewitness testimony from multiple reliable sources. The four canonical Gospels, the books officially accepted as part of Christian scripture, contain eyewitness accounts or accounts from eyewitnesses that detail events that occurred at specific times and places. The resurrection of Jesus, a central claim of Christianity, is supported by the testimony of numerous individuals who claim to have seen him after his crucifixion. Gospel accounts were all indistinguishable, with no apparent contradictions or differences of any kind. Archaeological findings provide external validation of the historical context described in the Gospels. Early Church fathers and historical sources affirm the Gospel accounts as eyewitness documents.

Reliable Documents: The Word of God (V19-21)

Peter writes, “Apart from our firsthand experience, we have a more sure prophetic word.” The Scripture is a more reliable source than the experience of anybody, even the apostles. Their experience is verified by the Old Testament prophecies. They do not have to depend upon a defense of the reliability of human eyewitness testimony in order to uphold the scripture. The Bible is supernaturally inspired by God and is therefore inerrant. And the Jews believed that everything the prophets taught (the Old Testament) came from God and was more reliable. Given supernatural inspiration, the reliability of natural human eyewitnesses becomes technically irrelevant. This prophetic message is not limited to the Old Testament. The New Testament is an inspired record of the Old Testament being fulfilled in Christ in His first coming. And it assures His Second Coming.

Many skeptics have challenged that the Scriptures merely provide modern readers with myths and literary fictions from the ancient world. Using the undeniable historical, archaeological, and scientific evidence, Christians have already answered the question about the Bible’s trustworthiness. However, the best defense for the Bible’s trustworthiness is in the pages of the Bible itself. The Scripture possesses certain qualities and attributes that attest to its divine origin. Whether someone sees these indicators is a different question altogether, but they are there, and God’s people recognize His handwriting (John 10:27).

  1. Power and Efficacy
    The words in the Bible are pure and excellent, sweet to the ear and nourishing to the soul. The Bible is more than a book of true information. When you read the Bible, you will get to meet the author, for Christ manifests Himself in the pages of the scripture. The Bible is a living book. It is alive as its author is alive. The high moral code set in the scriptures is beyond human invention. It convicts, judges, rebukes, teaches, and can save the sinner, continuing to transform lives.
  2. Consistency and unity
    The Bible is one completed unit, telling one unified story without any internal contradictions from Genesis to Revelation. There is absolute consistency across 66 different books, written on three different continents (Asia, Africa and Europe), in three different languages (Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek), by 40 different authors from different walks of life (kings, generals, fishermen, doctors, tax collectors and historians), on hundreds of various subjects over a period of 1500 years. There is no man-made book found to be in such harmony. Only a divine author could do that.
  3. Fulfilled prophecies
    The Bible contains hundreds of detailed prophecies relating to the future of various nations, certain cities, and all humanity. Other prophecies concern the coming of the Messiah. Some scholars suggest there are more than 300 prophecies about him in the Old Testament that point to His birth, His ministry, His death and resurrection, and His role in the church. These prophecies are specific enough that the mathematical probability of this child fulfilling even a handful of them is staggeringly improbable. Situations like his birthplace, lineage, and method of execution were beyond his control and could not have been accidentally or deliberately fulfilled. Yet these details were clearly laid out before any of them ever found their place in history. Only a divine author could do that.

Every true believer in Jesus Christ can know the Bible is God’s word without having to become an expert in biblical archaeology, ancient manuscripts, or other kinds of historical evidence. The pages of Scripture bear the fingerprints of the maker so that all Christians can know it is from God. It’s the most sure word that functions like a beacon, illuminating the path for believers in a world filled with confusion and spiritual darkness. Let us commit to study, trust, and obey God’s Word daily, sharing its light with those around us until His second coming, when the world will experience a new day!