Thursday: Faith in the Face of Death
Read 2 Peter 1:12-15. What does Peter mean when he suggests that he is soon to put off his tent/body?
Second Peter 1:12-14 reveals the occasion of the letter. Peter thinks he is about to die, and the letter contains his last message or testament.
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That Peter expects to die soon is revealed by the phraseology, “as long as I am in this tabernacle. . . . Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle,” which is found in 2 Peter 1:13-14. He likens the body to a tent (tabernacle), which Peter will put off as he dies. In fact, it is so clear that Peter means his body when he refers to putting off his tent that modern translators tend to translate these phrases as “as long as I am in this body . . . since I know that my death will come soon” (2 Pet. 1:13-14 NRSV). Nothing in Peter’s language suggests that when Peter “puts off” his tent or body, his soul will survive as a separate entity.
Read 2 Peter 1:12-15 again. How does Peter appear to deal with the reality of his impending death, and what does that attitude teach us about faith?
Second Peter 1:12-15 gives added solemnity to Peter’s words. He writes this in the knowledge that his life will soon come to an end. He knows this because, as he said, the “Lord Jesus showed me.” Yet there seems to be no fear, no worry, no foreboding. His emphasis, instead, is on the well-being of those whom he is leaving behind. He wants them to be firm in the “present truth,” and-as long as he is alive-he is going to admonish them to be faithful.
We can see here the reality and depth of Peter’s experience with the Lord. Yes, he’s going to die soon, and it will not be a pleasant death, either (see John 21:18; Ellen G. White, The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 537, 538), but his unselfish concern is about the benefit of others. Truly, Peter was a man living out the faith that he taught.
| How does our faith help us deal with the terrible reality of death? How can we learn to cling to the wonderful hope we have, even in the face of death, because of what Jesus has done for us? |
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Having had the occasion to face death, I have considered the reality of it and resigned myself to it as long as it is the will of God. Since God has chosen to preserve my life, I accept every day as special, given of God for His purpose to be worked out in my sphere of influence.
Only with the continual work of the Holy Spirit can I accomplish His purpose for me. I realize it is my choice that determines who drives my will.
Amen!
Steve Jobs said that there is no point in being the richest man in the cemetery. He went on to say that it was not the accumulation of wealth that was important, but your contribution to the living. For Christians we sometimes place a lot of emphasis on "the hope" and while I don't want to deny that hope, it should be the basis of how we live and contribute to our circle of influence now. Too many of us concentrate of gaining the "wealth of that hope" without the sharing that comes from living a saved life now. Christianity has never been based on the notion of accumulation, but on sharing and contributing.
Well said!!! "Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me. For whosoever shall desire to save his life shall lose it, but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's shall save it. For what shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his soul? for what should a man give in exchange for his soul? For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him shall the Son of man also be ashamed when he shall come in the glory of his Father with the holy angels." Mark 8:34-38
Blessings!!!
The reference for Acts of the Apostles is strange as it directs one to a scripture passages in Philippians 4 - is this supposed to be?
Dear Annette, The reference works correctly on big-screen desktop computers, and it even works correctly on my phone. But William Earnhardt tells me that what you see is what he sees on his phone. So I must conclude that the Reftagger script we use for Scripture references is generating this error. But how it came up with Philippians 4 is anyone's guess.
If you want to read the passage in Acts of the Apostles, I suggest you use the weekly mobile/BibleGateway edition to click on the link.
It looks like a quirk in the code. My computers also return the Acts of the Apostles reference but my iPad goes to Philippians 4.
It is a very appropriate statement by Peter and Paul to refer to our bodies as a tent. They did not use the word mansion or even a house. I have lived in a tent for long periods when I would go back-packing. It is not a comfortable way to live, but it does make you appreciate a soft bed and substantial shelter.
We can only imagine what it will be like to put on immortality and incorruption when the Lord returns.
The only other time (I can think of) the body is compared to some sort of building is when it is called the temple of the Holy Spirit. Knowing that the Holy Spirit resides in us, the question of Peter rings loud, "what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness...?"
The Bible doesn’t tell us how the apostle Peter died. The most commonly accepted explanation is that Peter was crucified upside-down in Rome. Apparently, Peter felt that he was not worthy to die crucified the same way that Jesus was crucified (Matthew 26:33–35, 69–75). We believe that Peter’s death was prophesied by Jesus in John 21:18–19. “‘Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.’ This the Lord foretold perhaps to prepare him for the circumstances he would face at the end of his life on earth. The text seems to be saying that Jesus said to Peter: “Peter, you said you were willing to go to prison and to death for Me,” [see John 13:36,37] “and you are going to do it. When you were young you went your own way, but when you are old you are going to be bound with chains and taken to prison and death for Me.”