Church Order: Worship, Sacraments, and the Lord's Supper

The Present Truth

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: Church Government

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2015-07-26

Synopsis: John Weaver expounds 2 Peter 1:12–15, emphasizing the vital principle of 'the present truth.' He explains that truth must be heard repeatedly to be established, and that 'present truth' refers to the truth God is emphasizing for His people in their current context—not new revelation, but the progressive illumination of Scripture by the Holy Spirit. Weaver illustrates this with historical examples and urges believers to receive preaching as God's Word, to discern where the battle rages, and to be established in the truth for their time.

[John Weaver] 2 Peter 1. Verses 12 through 15. The title of the message is the present truth, the present truth, so notice 2 Peter 1. And verse. 12. Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet as long as I'm in this tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance, knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me. Moreover, I will endeavor that you may be able to after my decease to have these things always in remembrance. Let me begin by saying Peter instructs us in a very vital and important principle in verse 12. That vital principle is the present truth. So I want to call your attention to verse 12 again. Look at it. He says, wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth.

[John Weaver] Now, there's a wonderful point here that needs to be emphasized. And that point is this first, that truth needs to be heard over and over. And Peter says, I'm not going to neglect my duty in not repeating this truth to you. So it's only as we hear the truth over and over that we're grounded and settled and established in the truth. Rehearsing truth forces us to continually analyze and reinforce that truth in our lives.

[John Weaver] It enables us to examine ourselves according to 2 Corinthians 13 and verse 5, where Paul commands us, examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know you're not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except you be reprobates. So he says, here's the opportunity to know yourself and to prove yourself. So first, we're told that this truth needs to be heard over and over.

[John Weaver] Secondly, We must understand the principle that repetition aids learning. So it was not onerous to Peter then to teach his hearers that which they already knew. He was well aware of the fact that they were well instructed in the truth. They knew the truth, but yet, he said, they needed to hear the truth again. So the fact that they already knew the truth did not deter him from faithfully preaching and repreaching the same truth again. So here's another principle that we must grasp, and that is this, that the more you hear the truth, the more you understand the truth. And one of the reasons we are so forgetful and so neglectful of truth is that we do not hear it repeated often enough. And Peter saying, repetition aids learning. Thirdly, I want to point out that undoubtedly Peter learned this method of instruction from the master teacher, the Lord Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] Let me just read to you Mark 10 and verse 1. Listen carefully. And he, that is Christ, arose from Thessalonians and cometh into the coast of Judea by the father's side of Jordan. And the people resort to him again. And as he was once He taught them again. So I want you to note that the people resort to Him again. In other words, it was the same people. And as He was want or as He was accustomed to, He taught them again. He may have been communicating some of the same truths that He had preached and taught them earlier.

[John Weaver] In all probability, He did so because of the word again. So we must hear truth repeatedly. That is why Hebrews two and verse one says this. Now, listen. Therefore, we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard less than any time we should let them slip. So I want you to note the past tense. He said we should give more earnest heed to the things which we have heard and which we've already heard them. It's in the past, but we have to give more earnest heed to these things, lest at any time we should let them slip. So it's easy then for truth to slip away from us if we do not constantly re-hear it and have it re-preached us. Now, I want you to look at verse 12, because that is basically the message today. He says, Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you in remembrance of these things, though you know them. and be established in the present truth.

[John Weaver] Now the things that he's talking about primarily are the truths from verses 1 through 11. But he goes on to say in verse 13, as long as he's alive, he wants to stir them up by putting them in remembrance. And verse 14, he knows shortly that he's got to die, that he's going to put off his tabernacle. And then in verse 15, he says, I want you to always have these things in remembrance. So therefore, he is reteaching and repreaching these truths again before he dies. Now, in verse 12, he says, I want you to be established in the present truth. Now, the Greek word for established here is the word steirizo. And it literally means to be steadfast, to be fixed, to be constant, to be confirmed, be established in one's mind. Now, listen carefully. We're going to be looking at a number of scriptures.

[John Weaver] I'm trying to save a little time just by quoting some scriptures. But here's this statement. It is God's will that you be established in truth. It is God's will that you be established in the present truth, which I'm going to teach you just a little bit later. But the Bible says in Colossians 2 and verse 7, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith as you have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. So very clearly, then, it is indeed the will of God that you be established in truth. Now, let me just tell you that there are indeed benefits to be established in the truth. I want you to hold second, Peter, and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Psalm 112. I wish I had time just to preach from this Psalm today, but I want you to look at it. And in Psalm 112, You can find various and multitudinous benefits of being established in the truth. So in Psalm 112, beginning there with verse one, the Bible says this, Praise ye the Lord.

[John Weaver] Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon the earth. The generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house, and his righteousness endureth forever. Unto the upright there riseth light in the darkness. This is the man that's established now. He is gracious and full of compassion and righteous. A good man showeth favor and lendeth.

[John Weaver] He will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely, here it is, surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteousness, the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. Look, he shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established and he shall not be afraid. until he see his desires upon his enemies. He had dispersed, he had given to the poor, his righteousness endured forever, his horn shall be exalted with honor, the wicked shall see it and be grieved, he shall gnash with his teeth and melt away, the desire of the wicked shall perish. But notice if you would, here's this man that is established in the truth.

[John Weaver] His seed is going to be mighty. Wealth and riches are going to be his. Light is going to rise unto him. He's not going to be moved. He's not going to be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed. He is established. So there are a multitude of benefits and blessings of being established in the faith. We certainly need to concentrate on being established in the faith. Now, you have to understand that the opposite of being established in the faith is being double-minded.

[John Weaver] You remember the Bible says in James 1, verses 5-8, If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth it all men liberally, not braideth not, and shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways." So if you're not established in the faith, obviously you're going to be a double-minded man. So in 2 Peter 1, verse 12, Peter wants his hearers to be established. Moreover, he wants them to be established in the present truth. Now, what is the present truth? Well, the Greek word for present here is the word perene. It literally means to be at hand, to be by, or to be present. Now, let me explain it like this. The present truth literally means that truth which is right in front of you.

[John Weaver] Hold first, second Peter chapter one, and I want you to go first of all, the Luke 13 and then the second Corinthians chapter 10, because I want to show you how this word presence is used in the scripture. Obviously, it cannot mean anything else other than that truth, which is right in front of you. So if you look in Luke chapter 13 and verse one, Now, I preached on this passage not too long ago, but look at it. Here's the word present. Luke 13, verse one, there were present at that season, some that told him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. There were some present. Who told him? Well, what does it mean they were present? Well, they were standing right in front of him.

[John Weaver] They were talking to him. So if you are present in front of someone talking to someone, You are there, and that's what the word presently it means that which is right in front of you. So if you look in your Bibles to 2nd Corinthians chapter 10 and look at verse 11, because here the Apostle Paul says it like this. Watch carefully 2nd Corinthians 10 verse 11. He writes the Corinthians and he says that such in one thing this that such as we are in word by letters. When we are absent, such will we be also indeed when we are present. So Paul says, look, when I'm standing right in front of you, I'm going to be exactly the same as I am when I'm absent from you and writing to you. So when you look at the word present, it means that which is present. It means that which is right in front of you. Now, when you look back at second Peter one in verse 12, You have to understand that Peter understood that his hearers were well fixed and established and constant in the present truth.

[John Weaver] That is. They had not only heard the truth, they understood the truth and they applied the truth. So we are now talking about the present truth. Let me tell you, first of all, what I do not mean by this phrase, the present truth. Okay? First of all, I do not mean that truth is relative and that it changes with situations, conditions, circumstances, or the progress or the erosion of society.

[John Weaver] God's law does not change. His definition of sin has not changed. And man cannot change that which is unlawful, sinful, wicked, and rebellious into that which is lawful and just, no matter which century he lives in. So what was sin in the first century is still sin in the 21st century. What was good and righteous and holy in the first century is still good, righteous, and holy in the 21st century.

[John Weaver] When I talk about the present truth, I'm definitely not speaking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth changes with the situation. No. God's Word is constant. God's Word is fixed. That's why the Bible says in Psalm 119 in verse 89, Forever, O Lord, is thy word settled in the heavens. That's why our Lord said in John 17, 17, sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth. So when I'm talking about the present truth. I'm not talking about nor am I saying that truth is relative or the truth changes. That is not what is meant by the term the present truth. Secondly, I am not saying that there is such a thing as new truth. Listen carefully. The phrase the present truth does not imply new truth. Here it is. Listen carefully. If a revelation is new, it is not true. For there is no such thing as new truth.

[John Weaver] We must remember that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation of God. Turn over in your Bibles, oh, back just a few pages, to Hebrews chapter 1. Hebrews chapter 1, and let's look there at the first three verses. Hebrews chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Notice if you would, he says this, God, who at sundry times in diverse manners, that is, at different times in different ways, spake in time past in the fathers by the prophets.

[John Weaver] It's true in the Old Testament and sometimes in the New Testament. God used visions and dreams. Watch this. But he hath in these last days spoken to us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds. who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and the upholding of all things by the word of His power, when He hath by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." So the Bible tells us God in times past spoke in different ways to the prophets. But He said that God hath in these last days spoken to us by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now listen. For someone, therefore, to believe in new truth, he has to deny that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation and truth. So there is no new truth. Once you begin saying, I've got a new truth, you are denying the completeness of God's Word and you're denying the person of Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] So let me put it like this. There is no need for visions, dreams, horoscopes, astrological forecasters, false prophets, faith and spurious religious writings or anything that is over, above and beyond the Word of God and the Lord Jesus Christ. So it is absolute blasphemy to ascribe anything or anyone above the full and final and complete revelation of God in Jesus Christ and in his word. So when someone comes along and says there's a new truth, it is a denial of Christ. It is a denial of scripture. So, when I speak about the present truth, I'm not talking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth is relative. Nor am I saying there is such a thing as a new truth. Well, what in the world do I mean, then, when I talk about the present truth? Well, if you understand the present truth, you have to understand, when God gave us the Bible, listen carefully, God just simply did not duck truth on us all at one time.

[John Weaver] Did you know the Bible was written over a period of 1,600 years by 40 different authors? 1,600 years. Even when the Bible was being written, there was a progressive unfolding of the truth. Let me just read to you Isaiah 28 verses 9 and 10. Listen, listen carefully. Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breast. Here it is.

[John Weaver] For a precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little. So what did God do when he gave us the Bible? He gave us line upon line. precept upon precept, hear little, dare little.

[John Weaver] Now, we're going to be looking at some scriptures in just a moment, but I want you to listen to me right now because I want to show you what I'm talking about when I refer to progressive revelation or progressive unfolding of the truth. So if we take no one else other than the Lord Jesus Christ, This should explain it for you. Don't turn there. But if you were to go to Genesis chapter three and verse 15, that is the prote evangelium.

[John Weaver] That is the first promise of the Messiah in the Bible. It is there that God says that the seed of the woman is going to crush the serpent's head. And the serpent will bruise his heel. So the very first thing you find out about the Messiah in Genesis chapter three and verse 15, he is going to be born of a woman and he is going to be victorious. Do you realize that's Genesis 315? It was only in Genesis chapter 12, verses one through three, particularly that we discover that the Messiah is going to come from the seed of Abraham. We weren't told that in Genesis 3 and verse 15. It was only later in Genesis 49 and verse 10 that we find out that the Messiah is going to be born, not just simply the tribe of the seed of Abraham, but of the tribe of Judah. And then it was many years later after that revelation, that it was revealed in 2 Samuel chapter 7 verses 12-13 that the Messiah was going to be the seed of David.

[John Weaver] And do you understand it was a multitude of years later in Isaiah 7-14 when we discover that the Messiah is going to be born of a virgin. And it was still a multitude of years later in Micah 5 and verse 2 where we found out that the Messiah is going to be born in Bethlehem of Judea. So, here you have Genesis 3.15 all the way to Micah 5.2 and there is a progressive unfolding of the truth. God did not reveal everything about Messiah at one time. God did not reveal all of His truth at one time. And each stage of this revelation, this progressive unfolding of truth, would be classified as a present truth.

[John Weaver] I want you to turn in your Bibles, holding 2 Peter chapter 1, but go in your Bibles to Acts chapter 18. Acts chapter 18, and let me show you another illustration of what we mean by present truth. Look in Acts chapter 18, and let's begin reading there with verse 24. Acts 18 verse 24. Watch carefully. And a certain Jew named Apollos, born in Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

[John Weaver] So his knowledge was limited. Watch what happens. Verse 26, And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue, whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. And when he was disposed to pass unto Achaia the brethren, wrote exhorting the disciples to receive him. who when he was come helped them much which had believed through grace.

[John Weaver] For he mightily convinced the Jews and that publicly showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ. So here was a mighty preacher, a man that was eloquent. But all he knew was the baptism of John. He hadn't heard anything since then. And when Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they said. You need to visit with us. There's a lot that has been transpiring and that has transpired since you heard about the baptism of John.

[John Weaver] Let me tell you about the present truth. Let me tell you what has really happened concerning the Messiah, how he was crucified, buried, resurrected, and is seated in the right hand of the Father. So they instructed him more fully in the truth that had been revealed at that time. Look in Acts chapter 19. Let's begin there with verse 1. Watch. And it came to pass that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper coast, came to Ephesus.

[John Weaver] And finding certain disciples, he said unto them, Have you received the Holy Ghost since or when you believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were you baptized? And they said unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him that is on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. So what did Paul do? Paul filled them in on the present truth. He filled them in on that which had been revealed at that particular time which they had not heard. So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth now without me, without me going into detail.

[John Weaver] Do you remember Acts chapter 10, Cornelius, the Roman centurion who sent to Peter and told him to come? And you remember it was in Acts chapter 10 that God gave vision That vision to Peter of the sheep descending from heaven with all kind of unclean things on it, or all kind of beast on it. And he tells Peter to rise and eat, and Peter says, not so, Lord, for I've never eaten anything common or unclean. And our Lord said, that which God has cleansed, not that called thou common or unclean.

[John Weaver] It was done three times. And when he saw the dream, the vision, He went down and immediately three men were knocking at the door. Come with us. And the Holy Spirit told him to go. And when he got to Cornelius's house, what did he say? You know that it is unlawful for a man. To come into and to eat with those who are considered unclean or a Gentile or Greek or Roman.

[John Weaver] But he said, God has showed me something. And he went in and preached, and of course, the household of Cornelius was converted. So you see, there's a progressive unfolding of the truth. And when you get to Acts chapter 11, when he tells everyone what happened in Jerusalem, they say in verse 18, that if God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life. So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth while the Bible was being written. Now, Now that the Bible is complete, listen carefully, there is no more progressive revelation. In fact, there is no more revelation, period. Revelation has ceased. God is not and will not reveal anything above and beyond His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation has ended. However, that does not mean there is not such a thing as the present truth. Listen carefully. If revelation is ended.

[John Weaver] How can there be a proof? How can there be a present truth? Well, the answer is very simple. Because there is a progressive illumination of the truth. Do you understand God did not give his word all at one time? And God does not give us understanding all at one time. Now, listen to me. Revelation is the act of God whereby God reveals truth never known before to the human mind.

[John Weaver] A good illustration of that is Genesis chapters 1 through 3. Moses wrote those chapters. My question is, how did Moses know what happened in creation? He wasn't there. He hadn't even been born. How does he know what happened in creation? And the answer is, God revealed it to him. OK, that's revelation. That's why I'm saying revelation has ceased. God's not revealing anything over and above the Lord Jesus Christ or anything over and above his word.

[John Weaver] And if somebody is looking for visions and dreams and trances, they they're in trouble. You might get something like that, but it's not coming from God. But now here's illumination. Listen carefully. Illumination is the act or the ministry of the Holy Spirit of God, whereby He enlightens our mind or illuminates our mind that we might understand previously revealed truth. So just like God did not reveal the truth all at one time, God does not enable us to understand the truth all at one time. Just like there was a progressive unfolding of the truth in Revelation, there is a progressive Illumination and an understanding of the truth. You have to also remember the God that is sovereign in salvation is equally sovereign in illumination. He's the one that determines what I understand and when I understand it. So we have a progressive illumination, let me say it again. No man understands all truth and no man certainly does not understand it. At one time.

[John Weaver] Now, in the book of Mark, chapter four, verses 33 and 34. Here's what the Bible says, and with many such parables, faith be the word unto them as they were able to hear it. You know what God's going to do? He's going to teach you as you're able to hear it. The Bible says, but without a parable spake he not unto them. And when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples. So if you really want to understand scripture, you have to get alone with Jesus Christ because he's the author of his word and he can expound and explain that word. But notice, if you would, he only spoke the word to them as they were able To hear it now, if you look in your Bibles to the book of John, chapter 16, and let's begin reading there with verse 12, John 16 and verse 12. Look at what the Bible says concerning the Holy Spirit, John 16, verse 12. Our Lord says to his disciples, I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

[John Weaver] How be it when he, the spirit of truth, has come, he will guide you into all truth. For he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you. Note, if you would, our Lord said when the Holy Spirit is come, who he's going to send, he will guide us into all truth, in the words It is the ministry of the Holy Spirit to enlighten our minds, to illuminate our minds, to guide us and enable us to understand the Scripture.

[John Weaver] Now, let me explain something to you. If you understand the doctrine of illumination, and if you understand that God is sovereign in illumination, it will teach you to be patient with each other.

[John Weaver] Now, I could look at Ed, and I could say, Ed, let me tell you something. And I could explain it to him right down the line. I could give him chapter and verse. And I could be just as clear as the sun is on a bright and shiny day. But, if God does not open his mind, he is not going to understand it. And what good would it do me to get mad at him and say, what's wrong with you? Are you just stupid? Are you dumb? What's wrong with you, Ed? Why would I get angry with him? If he can't see truth, what I understand is only God can open our minds, enable us to see truth.

[John Weaver] So the point I'm trying to make is this. If we understand that God must teach us. And he must illuminate our minds, We can be patient with each other and say, well, look, Ed, you don't see it right now. I'll pray for you. Hey, you want me to explain it to you again tomorrow? I'll do it. You want me to explain it to you three times the next day? I'll do it. Until God opens your eyes. Now, it is true that Ed would have a responsibility to study because the Bible says in 2 Timothy 2, verse 7, study to show yourselves approved unto God. And he said, Paul told Timothy, consider what I say, and the Lord give the understanding of all things, 2 Timothy 2.7, 2.15, it says study so you're self-approved unto God. But the point I'm trying to make is God is not going to give you understanding without studying. But unless you study and seek understanding, if God doesn't open your eyes, you're not going to understand anything.

[John Weaver] So it'll teach us then to be patient with each other. Now, here's one of our problems as Christians. We are not accustomed to receiving truth as the present truth. I'm going to explain that. You see, we are comfortable with our salvation and we are comfortable with our limited knowledge and understanding of scripture. Everyone in this room would say, yes, God created this earth and God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh.

[John Weaver] You have no problem with that. You understand salvation by grace through faith alone. You have no problem with that. In other words, we may be grounded and established in a few points, but we're not necessarily grounded and established in the present truth. And the way I can prove that is we do not place much emphasis upon the preached word of God. And we place almost no importance to the amount of study and preparation and prayer that goes into preparing of a message. For instance.

[John Weaver] I've been working on three or four messages, which I'm going to be bringing and not to the future. For weeks. Literally for weeks. I have not kept an account of the time that I logged into studying and searching the scripture and coming up with these messages, but all I'm trying to say is this, you hear me preach and you have no idea of the study that went into it, or the preparation that went into it, or the prayer that went into it, and consequently all you want to do is just hear the preaching.

[John Weaver] Now, the point I'm trying to make is this, if we understood what the Bible means by the present truth, We would receive the preaching and teaching of God's word eagerly and readily. And we would also understand our desperate need for that truth. Now, let me just show you some illustrations of what I'm going to call the present truth, OK? If you were alive in the first century during the cult of emperor worship in the Roman Empire, the present truth at that time would be the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If you were alive in the first century, you would both serve and worship either Christ or Caesar. In other words, there is an application of your daily life to the present truth. You would have to choose between Christ or Caesar. If you were alive in Germany in the 1500s, the present truth would be justification by faith alone. And you would either side with Luther and the Reformers, or you would hold to salvation by works as taught by the Roman Catholic Church. It was the present truth in the 1500s.

[John Weaver] If you were alive in France or Geneva, Switzerland in the 1500s, especially during the middle of that era, the present truth would have been the sovereignty of God. You would either join with Calvin and the Reformers, in believing in preaching and teaching the sovereignty of God, or you would hold to a humanistic position on the divine right of kings. If you were alive in Scotland during the 1500s, the present truth would be the kingship of Christ. You would either stand with Sean Knox and reformers, or you would hold to a statist position.

[John Weaver] You follow what I'm saying? If you were alive in the 1700s in England, The present truth would be the purity of the church. So you would either be holding with the Puritans who wanted to purify the church, or you would be holding with those who were content and satisfied with the wickedness and the unbiblical things that were going on in the church. Moreover, if you were alive in England in the 1700s when the church did not purify itself, There came the separatists who drew out of that local church and wanted a pure worship. And so they said, or the state church. And so they said, we are going to separate ourselves from this church that will not purify itself. So you would either hold with the separatists then, or once again, you would be holding with the established church and having an impure worship. Now watch.

[John Weaver] Here we are in 2015. And once again, the present truth not only involves the Lordship of Christ, but the superiority of his word. Listen carefully, you will either serve, worship and obey Jesus Christ and the Bible, or you will follow the humanists in sodomy, fornication, adultery, aborticide, socialism, communism, Marxism, and all the other social and governmental sins. In other words, you will either fight for truth and liberty and freedom, or you will be swallowed up by the tyrannical and despotic governments that abound today. There's the present truth. I want you to listen to what Martin Luther said. Martin Luther certainly understood the heat of the battle. Listen carefully, Martin Luther wrote. If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ. However boldly I may be, professing Christ, where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldiers proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

[John Weaver] Did you hear what he just said? He said, I can profess the truth loudly with the clearest expositions in every area except that one area where the battle is raging. And if I do not profess the truth in that area, I have effectively denied Christ and denied the Word of God. This statement of Martin Luther reveals a present truth. The truth has to be professed where the battle is raging. We need to profess the truth concerning the Confederate battle flag. We need to profess the truth concerning Southern history. We need to profess the truth concerning the word of God. We need to profess the truth concerning the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We need to profess the truth of the superiority of the word of God. And where we have to do this is where the battle is raging. Now, here's my question. How do we ascertain? What the present truth is.

[John Weaver] Well, let me give you two answers. First, it is a truth from God's word that is under attack by the humanist liberals and unbelievers. So all I can say is look around you. See where the attacks are directed. That is the spot where you need to stand. That is the spot where you need to lift your standard and say, I'm sorry, you're wrong. The Word of God says this. So just look and see. What is being attacked? There is where you need to stand. The second way I would answer that question, how do we discern present truth? If I would answer that the present truth is that which is being proclaimed by God's men, listen carefully, from God's word as necessity is laid upon them in the providence of God. Mind you, I'm not referring to mama called and papa sent ear tickling preachers, but to real genuine men of God. OK, I want to show you look in your Bibles.

[John Weaver] to the book of Titus chapter 1. Titus chapter 1. 1st and 2nd Timothy and then Titus. Titus chapter 1 and let's begin looking there at verse 1. Titus 1 verse 1. Here it is. Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness. in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began."

[John Weaver] Well, who did he promise it to? Well, to Jesus Christ and those who were in Jesus Christ. But watch,"...but half in due times manifested His word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Savior." Did you hear what I just read? Paul said Jesus Christ was promised salvation of his people and God promised salvation before the world ever began. How do we know all of it? Because he said it was now manifested through preaching of the word of God. Do you know the Bible says the name of three in verse seven, surely the Lord God will do nothing but he revealed his secret unto his servants, the prophets.

[John Weaver] In other words, whatever God's going to do, In God's providence, he's going to burden his preachers. To warn his people. And to direct and encourage and bless his people with the truth. Let me give you an illustration. Recently, Alice and I went to a chaplains conference up in Virginia. I was the first speaker. After me, there were probably five others that spoke. And before I went up there, I knew what I was going to preach. I preach the message to those people that I preach to you. I preach that message when God has had enough. And remember, I was preaching to preachers. And to a lot of other folks that were there, too. Do you realize The next five speakers got up, all good and godly men. And each one of them brought a message on the judgment of God. There were six different messages on the judgment of God. Now, I would think. We never planned these messages, I never spoke to any of them, they never spoke to me, we never spoke to each other.

[John Weaver] But each of us preached almost exactly the same truth. Which would leave you or at least should leave you scratching your head and asking, is God trying to tell me something? Should I be making some preparations? Of course, this is what I mean. The present truth is that which is being. Expounded and explained from his word by his preachers. Let me just remind this to you. And I'm not talking about the opinions of men. I'm not talking about you ask me my opinion or what I think. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about expounding the word of God. Let me just read it to you. Nehemiah chapter 7. Chapter 8 it is. I'm sorry. Nehemiah 8 verses 7 and 8. I'm picking up in the middle of the verse. Listen carefully.

[John Weaver] And the Levites caused the people to understand the law. and the people stood in their place. So they read in the book of the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. So here's what real preaching is. It is exposition, explanation, and application. When you are expounding and explaining and applying the Word of God, that is a far cry from your opinion or what you think. You have to understand that the present truth is not the decrees of courts.

[John Weaver] It is not the ravings of lunatic lawyers, nor is it the acts of a legislative body. No, it is a truth of God's Word that is laid upon the hearts of His servants to proclaim to God's people for their benefit, blessing and warning. That's the present truth. I mentioned this the other day. I've mentioned it here before, but it serves to illustrate my point. When I went to boot camp, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I went into the mess hall for breakfast and they were serving cream beef on toast.

[John Weaver] Now all the soldiers have a name for that, which I'm not going to repeat. And I looked at that stuff. It was so unappetizing. And you have to remember, I came off a farm. We had real eggs, grits, biscuits, gravy, potatoes, meat. And here they want to give me some kind of slop like that. I refused to eat it. I said, I'm not going to eat that stuff. And I didn't.

[John Weaver] But, you know, what I did not know is they had planned for us that day a five-mile hike with full field packs on. And you know, by 9 o'clock in the morning, that cream beef on toast got to looking real appetizing in my mind. I wish I'd eaten that stuff.

[John Weaver] Now, the point I'm trying to make is this. Listen carefully. I didn't get to choose my menu for breakfast at boot camp. Somebody else chose it for me. They decided. Because they knew what they were going to train us in that particular day. They knew we needed the protein. And so that is what they gave us. Do you realize the same thing is true spiritually? God sets before His people exactly that which they need.

[John Weaver] For He knows your tests, your trials, your tribulations, and your tasks for the coming week. And if you turn your nose up at what God gives you, you're going to do without. You're going to do like I did. You're going to be marching down with your stomach growling. Hungry as all get out saying, I wish I'd eaten something. I wish I'd eaten something. And you'll be saying, if only I'd listened. If only I'd listened. If I'd only taken that and applied it to my life. I want you to turn in your Bibles. To the book of Jeremiah, chapter three, I want to show you. Here's one of the promises that God gives to his people. Look what he said. Jeremiah, chapter three, and let's begin reading there with verse 14. Jeremiah three. Verse 14. God says.

[John Weaver] Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord, for I am married unto you, and I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I'll bring you to Zion. Ah, but look what God is going to do for those people. And I will give you pastors. According to my heart. Which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. What did he say? I'll give you pastors according to my heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. The present truth is that exposition, that explanation and that application that's being preached to you on a weekly basis from the word of God. So here are my applications, the first one is this, are you established In the present truth. Do you have any idea what the present truth really is?

[John Weaver] Are you content with that which you know or that which you think you know? You have to understand. That when God. Gives you a message from his word. That is when he's saying this is what I want you to have. This is what you need. The present truth right now for this message is the present truth. You have to learn to receive God's word as the present truth.

[John Weaver] It's not the opinions of men. It is an exposition from the word of God.

[John Weaver] Now, let me tie this together with a second application. What is your attitude toward the preached word of God? I can tell you what the attitude of a lot of people. Happens to be a lot of people's attitude is, oh. And some have the attitude, well, let's hurry up and get this over with, I've got to get on my life. I've got to get the dinner. So here's the question. Do you view the preaching of the word of God? As it really is the word of God, Or do you merely regard it as the word of man?

[John Weaver] Let me show you, I want you to look in your Bibles to First Thessalonians, chapter two, First Thessalonians, chapter two. Here's an amazing and marvelous verse, First Thessalonians, chapter two, and look, if you would please, at verse 13. First Thessalonians two, Verse 13. The Apostle Paul writes the Thessalonians, and he says this, For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when you receive the word of God, which you heard of us. You received it not as the word of man, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe. So these Thessalonians, when they heard Paul preach, they didn't say, that's just Paul's idea. That's Paul's opinion. No. When they heard Silas or Barnabas preach, they didn't say, well, they're just up there saying things. No. They received it as the word of God and not as the word of men. So the question is, how do you receive the preaching of the word of God? Do you say this is God's will? This is God's Word for my life.

[John Weaver] It's the present truth. It's what God would have me to understand right now. It's what God would have me to apply to my life right now. It's what I should be living right now. Or do you think it's just oratory? What did he say? For this cause also, thank we God without ceasing, because when you receive the word of God, which you heard of us. You received it not as the word of men. But as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe. If you want the word of God to work effectually in you. You need to receive it as the word of God and not as the word of men. So Peter said, I want you to be established in the present truth. What truth was that? The truth that Peter was preaching at that time.

[John Weaver] He said, you already know some things. Fine, I'm going to remind you of them. And I want you to be established because you need to hear what God says over and over and over again. Let's pray. Father, we thank you in the name of Jesus Christ for your word, for your truth. We ask that you would help us, build us up in the most holy faith and give us, Lord, the courage to stand and to be that which we should be for your honor and glory. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

The Present Truth

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	101915167563
Subject	Church Government
Course	Church Order: Worship, Sacraments, and the Lord's Supper
Genre	Sermon
Date	2015-07-26
Dictation Name
Book	Book 039: Church Order and Worship - Volume 1 — Chapter 11
Source Timed Segments	67

Formatted Transcript

Introduction and Text

Reading of 2 Peter 1:12–15 and introduction of the vital principle of 'the present truth.'

2 Peter 1, verses 12 through 15. The title of the message is "The Present Truth." So notice 2 Peter 1, verse 12:

Scripture Reading — 2 Peter 1:12-15

"Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet as long as I'm in this tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance, knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me. Moreover, I will endeavor that you may be able to after my decease to have these things always in remembrance."

Let me begin by saying Peter instructs us in a very vital and important principle in verse 12. That vital principle is the present truth. So I want to call your attention to verse 12 again. Look at it. He says, "Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth."

The Necessity of Repeated Truth

Truth must be heard over and over to be grounded and established; repetition aids learning, as modeled by Christ.

Now, there's a wonderful point here that needs to be emphasized. And that point is this: first, that truth needs to be heard over and over. And Peter says, "I'm not going to neglect my duty in not repeating this truth to you." So it's only as we hear the truth over and over that we're grounded and settled and established in the truth. Rehearsing truth forces us to continually analyze and reinforce that truth in our lives. It enables us to examine ourselves according to 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5, where Paul commands us,

Scripture Reading — 2 Corinthians 13:5

"Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?"

So he says, here's the opportunity to know yourself and to prove yourself. So first, we're told that this truth needs to be heard over and over.

Secondly, we must understand the principle that repetition aids learning. So it was not onerous to Peter then to teach his hearers that which they already knew. He was well aware of the fact that they were well instructed in the truth. They knew the truth, but yet, he said, they needed to hear the truth again. So the fact that they already knew the truth did not deter him from faithfully preaching and re-preaching the same truth again. So here's another principle that we must grasp, and that is this: that the more you hear the truth, the more you understand the truth. And one of the reasons we are so forgetful and so neglectful of truth is that we do not hear it repeated often enough. And Peter is saying, repetition aids learning. Thirdly, I want to point out that undoubtedly Peter learned this method of instruction from the master teacher, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let me just read to you Mark 10, verse 1. Listen carefully. "And he," that is Christ,

Scripture Reading — Mark 10:1

"arose from thence and cometh into the coast of Judea by the farther side of Jordan. And the people resort to him again. And as he was wont, he taught them again."

So I want you to note that the people resort to Him again. In other words, it was the same people. And as He was wont, or as He was accustomed to, He taught them again. He may have been communicating some of the same truths that He had preached and taught them earlier.

In all probability, He did so because of the word "again." So we must hear truth repeatedly. That is why Hebrews 2, verse 1 says this. Now, listen. "Therefore, we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 2:1

" So I want you to note the past tense. He said we should give more earnest heed to the things which we have heard—and we've already heard them. It's in the past, but we have to give more earnest heed to these things, lest at any time we should let them slip. So it's easy then for truth to slip away from us if we do not constantly re-hear it and have it re-preached to us. Now, I want you to look at verse 12, because that is basically the message today. He says, "

Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and be established in the present truth."

Being Established in the Present Truth

Explanation of 'established' (stērizō) and the benefits of being fixed in truth, contrasted with double-mindedness.

Now the things that he's talking about primarily are the truths from verses 1 through 11. But he goes on to say in verse 13, as long as he's alive, he wants to stir them up by putting them in remembrance. And verse 14, he knows shortly that he's got to die, that he's going to put off his tabernacle. And then in verse 15, he says, "I want you to always have these things in remembrance." So therefore, he is re-teaching and re-preaching these truths again before he dies. Now, in verse 12, he says, "I want you to be established in the present truth." Now, the Greek word for "established" here is the word "stērizō." And it literally means to be steadfast, to be fixed, to be constant, to be confirmed, to be established in one's mind. Now, listen carefully. We're going to be looking at a number of scriptures.

I'm trying to save a little time just by quoting some scriptures. But here's this statement: It is God's will that you be established in truth. It is God's will that you be established in the present truth, which I'm going to teach you just a little bit later. But the Bible says in Colossians 2, verse 7,

Scripture Reading — Colossians 2:7

"Rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving."

So very clearly, then, it is indeed the will of God that you be established in truth. Now, let me just tell you that there are indeed benefits to being established in the truth. I want you to hold 2 Peter, and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Psalm 112. I wish I had time just to preach from this Psalm today, but I want you to look at it. And in Psalm 112, you can find various and multitudinous benefits of being established in the truth. So in Psalm 112, beginning there with verse 1, the Bible says this, "Praise ye the Lord."

"Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon the earth. The generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house, and his righteousness endureth forever. Unto the upright there riseth light in the darkness." This is the man that's established now. "He is gracious and full of compassion and righteous. A good man showeth favor and lendeth."

"He will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely," here it is, "surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. Look, he shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established and he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies. He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor, his righteousness endureth forever, his horn shall be exalted with honor. The wicked shall see it and be grieved, he shall gnash with his teeth and melt away, the desire of the wicked shall perish." But notice if you would, here's this man that is established in the truth.

His seed is going to be mighty. Wealth and riches are going to be his. Light is going to rise unto him. He's not going to be moved. He's not going to be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed. He is established. So there are a multitude of benefits and blessings of being established in the faith. We certainly need to concentrate on being established in the faith. Now, you have to understand that the opposite of being established in the faith is being double-minded.

You remember the Bible says in James 1, verses 5-8,

Scripture Reading — James 1:5-8

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways."

So if you're not established in the faith, obviously you're going to be a double-minded man. So in 2 Peter 1, verse 12, Peter wants his hearers to be established. Moreover, he wants them to be established in the present truth. Now, what is the present truth? Well, the Greek word for "present" here is the word "pareimi." It literally means to be at hand, to be by, or to be present. Now, let me explain it like this. The present truth literally means that truth which is right in front of you.

Defining 'Present Truth'

The Greek word pareimi means 'at hand' or 'right in front of you'; it is not relative truth or new truth.

Hold 2 Peter chapter 1, and I want you to go first of all to Luke 13 and then to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, because I want to show you how this word "present" is used in the scripture. Obviously, it cannot mean anything else other than that truth which is right in front of you. So if you look in Luke chapter 13, verse 1—now, I preached on this passage not too long ago, but look at it. Here's the word "present." Luke 13, verse 1:

Scripture Reading — Luke 13:1

"There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices."

There were some present who told him. Well, what does it mean they were present? Well, they were standing right in front of him. They were talking to him. So if you are present in front of someone, talking to someone, you are there, and that's what the word "present" means—that which is right in front of you. So if you look in your Bibles to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, and look at verse 11, because here the Apostle Paul says it like this. Watch carefully 2 Corinthians 10, verse 11. He writes to the Corinthians and he says, "Let such an one think this, that such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present." So Paul says, look, when I'm standing right in front of you, I'm going to be exactly the same as I am when I'm absent from you and writing to you. So when you look at the word "present," it means that which is present. It means that which is right in front of you. Now, when you look back at 2 Peter 1, verse 12, you have to understand that Peter understood that his hearers were well fixed and established and constant in the present truth.

That is, they had not only heard the truth, they understood the truth and they applied the truth. So we are now talking about the present truth. Let me tell you, first of all, what I do not mean by this phrase, "the present truth." Okay? First of all, I do not mean that truth is relative and that it changes with situations, conditions, circumstances, or the progress or the erosion of society. God's law does not change. His definition of sin has not changed. And man cannot change that which is unlawful, sinful, wicked, and rebellious into that which is lawful and just, no matter which century he lives in. So what was sin in the first century is still sin in the 21st century. What was good and righteous and holy in the first century is still good, righteous, and holy in the 21st century.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 119:89

When I talk about the present truth, I'm definitely not speaking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth changes with the situation. No. God's Word is constant. God's Word is fixed. That's why the Bible says in Psalm 119, verse 89, "Forever, O Lord, is thy word settled in the heavens." That's why our Lord said in John 17:17, "Sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth." So when I'm talking about the present truth, I'm not talking about nor am I saying that truth is relative or that truth changes. That is not what is meant by the term "the present truth." Secondly, I am not saying that there is such a thing as new truth. Listen carefully. The phrase "the present truth" does not imply new truth. Here it is. Listen carefully. If a revelation is new, it is not true. For there is no such thing as new truth.

We must remember that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation of God. Turn over in your Bibles, oh, back just a few pages, to Hebrews chapter 1. Hebrews chapter 1, and let's look there at the first three verses. Hebrews chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Notice if you would, he says this,

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners,"

that is, at different times in different ways,

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets."

It's true in the Old Testament and sometimes in the New Testament, God used visions and dreams. Watch this.

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"But hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high."

So the Bible tells us God in times past spoke in different ways to the prophets. But He said that God hath in these last days spoken to us by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now listen. For someone, therefore, to believe in new truth, he has to deny that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation and truth. So there is no new truth. Once you begin saying, "I've got a new truth," you are denying the completeness of God's Word and you're denying the person of Jesus Christ.

So let me put it like this. There is no need for visions, dreams, horoscopes, astrological forecasters, false prophets, faith in spurious religious writings, or anything that is over, above, and beyond the Word of God and the Lord Jesus Christ. So it is absolute blasphemy to ascribe anything or anyone above the full and final and complete revelation of God in Jesus Christ and in His Word. So when someone comes along and says there's a new truth, it is a denial of Christ. It is a denial of Scripture. So, when I speak about the present truth, I'm not talking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth is relative. Nor am I saying there is such a thing as a new truth. Well, what in the world do I mean, then, when I talk about the present truth? Well, if you understand the present truth, you have to understand, when God gave us the Bible—listen carefully—God just simply did not dump truth on us all at one time.

Progressive Revelation in Scripture

God revealed truth progressively over 1,600 years; examples from Messianic prophecies and Acts show unfolding truth.

Did you know the Bible was written over a period of 1,600 years by 40 different authors? 1,600 years. Even when the Bible was being written, there was a progressive unfolding of the truth. Let me just read to you Isaiah 28, verses 9 and 10. Listen, listen carefully. "Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breast. Here it is.

Scripture Reading — Genesis 3:15

"For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little." So what did God do when He gave us the Bible? He gave us line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little. Now, we're going to be looking at some scriptures in just a moment, but I want you to listen to me right now because I want to show you what I'm talking about when I refer to progressive revelation or progressive unfolding of the truth. So if we take no one else other than the Lord Jesus Christ, this should explain it for you. Don't turn there. But if you were to go to Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, that is the protevangelium. That is the first promise of the Messiah in the Bible. It is there that God says that the seed of the woman is going to crush the serpent's head, and the serpent will bruise his heel. So the very first thing you find out about the Messiah in Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, is He is going to be born of a woman and He is going to be victorious. Do you realize that's Genesis 3:15? It was only in Genesis chapter 12, verses 1 through 3, particularly, that we discover that the Messiah is going to come from the seed of Abraham. We weren't told that in Genesis 3, verse 15. It was only later in Genesis 49, verse 10, that we find out that the Messiah is going to be born, not just simply of the seed of Abraham, but of the tribe of Judah. And then it was many years later after that revelation that it was revealed in 2 Samuel chapter 7, verses 12-13, that the Messiah was going to be the seed of David.

And do you understand it was a multitude of years later in Isaiah 7:14 when we discover that the Messiah is going to be born of a virgin. And it was still a multitude of years later in Micah 5, verse 2, where we found out that the Messiah is going to be born in Bethlehem of Judea. So, here you have Genesis 3:15 all the way to Micah 5:2, and there is a progressive unfolding of the truth. God did not reveal everything about Messiah at one time. God did not reveal all of His truth at one time. And each stage of this revelation, this progressive unfolding of truth, would be classified as a present truth. I want you to turn in your Bibles, holding 2 Peter chapter 1, but go in your Bibles to Acts chapter 18. Acts chapter 18, and let me show you another illustration of what we mean by present truth. Look in Acts chapter 18, and let's begin reading there with verse 24. Acts 18, verse 24. Watch carefully. "And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John."

So his knowledge was limited. Watch what happens. Verse 26, "And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace." "For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ." So here was a mighty preacher, a man that was eloquent. But all he knew was the baptism of John. He hadn't heard anything since then. And when Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they said, "You need to visit with us. There's a lot that has been transpiring and that has transpired since you heard about the baptism of John."

"Let me tell you about the present truth. Let me tell you what has really happened concerning the Messiah, how he was crucified, buried, resurrected, and is seated at the right hand of the Father." So they instructed him more fully in the truth that had been revealed at that time. Look in Acts chapter 19. Let's begin there with verse 1. Watch.

Scripture Reading — Acts 19:1-5

"And it came to pass that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper coasts, came to Ephesus." "And finding certain disciples, he said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus."

So what did Paul do? Paul filled them in on the present truth. He filled them in on that which had been revealed at that particular time which they had not heard. So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth. Now without me going into detail—

Do you remember Acts chapter 10, Cornelius, the Roman centurion who sent to Peter and told him to come? And you remember it was in Acts chapter 10 that God gave that vision to Peter of the sheet descending from heaven with all kind of unclean things on it, or all kind of beasts on it. And he tells Peter to rise and eat, and Peter says, "Not so, Lord, for I've never eaten anything common or unclean." And our Lord said, "That which God has cleansed, that call not thou common or unclean." It was done three times. And when he saw the vision, he went down and immediately three men were knocking at the door. "Come with us." And the Holy Spirit told him to go. And when he got to Cornelius's house, what did he say? "You know that it is unlawful for a man to come into and to eat with those who are considered unclean or a Gentile or Greek or Roman."

Revelation Ceased, Illumination Continues

Revelation has ended with Christ, but the Holy Spirit progressively illuminates believers to understand Scripture.

But he said, "God has showed me something." And he went in and preached, and of course, the household of Cornelius was converted. So you see, there's a progressive unfolding of the truth. And when you get to Acts chapter 11, when he tells everyone what happened in Jerusalem, they say in verse 18, "Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life." So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth while the Bible was being written. Now, now that the Bible is complete—listen carefully—there is no more progressive revelation. In fact, there is no more revelation, period. Revelation has ceased. God is not and will not reveal anything above and beyond His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation has ended. However, that does not mean there is not such a thing as the present truth. Listen carefully. If revelation is ended,

how can there be a present truth? Well, the answer is very simple. Because there is a progressive illumination of the truth. Do you understand God did not give His Word all at one time? And God does not give us understanding all at one time. Now, listen to me. Revelation is the act of God whereby God reveals truth never known before to the human mind.

A good illustration of that is Genesis chapters 1 through 3. Moses wrote those chapters. My question is, how did Moses know what happened in creation? He wasn't there. He hadn't even been born. How does he know what happened in creation? And the answer is, God revealed it to him. Okay, that's revelation. That's why I'm saying revelation has ceased. God's not revealing anything over and above the Lord Jesus Christ or anything over and above His Word.

And if somebody is looking for visions and dreams and trances, they're in trouble. You might get something like that, but it's not coming from God. But now here's illumination. Listen carefully. Illumination is the act or the ministry of the Holy Spirit of God, whereby He enlightens our mind or illuminates our mind that we might understand previously revealed truth. So just like God did not reveal the truth all at one time, God does not enable us to understand the truth all at one time. Just like there was a progressive unfolding of the truth in revelation, there is a progressive illumination and an understanding of the truth. You have to also remember that the God that is sovereign in salvation is equally sovereign in illumination. He's the one that determines what I understand and when I understand it. So we have a progressive illumination. Let me say it again. No man understands all truth, and no man certainly understands it at one time.

Now, in the book of Mark, chapter 4, verses 33 and 34, here's what the Bible says: "And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it." You know what God's going to do? He's going to teach you as you're able to hear it. The Bible says, "But without a parable spake he not unto them. And when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples." So if you really want to understand Scripture, you have to get alone with Jesus Christ because He's the author of His Word and He can expound and explain that Word. But notice, if you would, He only spoke the Word to them as they were able to hear it. Now, if you look in your Bibles to the book of John, chapter 16, and let's begin reading there with verse 12. John 16, verse 12. Look at what the Bible says concerning the Holy Spirit. John 16, verse 12. Our Lord says to His disciples, "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now."

"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth. For he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you." Note, if you would, our Lord said when the Holy Spirit is come, whom He's going to send, He will guide us into all truth. In other words, it is the ministry of the Holy Spirit to enlighten our minds, to illuminate our minds, to guide us and enable us to understand the Scripture.

Now, let me explain something to you. If you understand the doctrine of illumination, and if you understand that God is sovereign in illumination, it will teach you to be patient with each other. Now, I could look at Ed, and I could say, "Ed, let me tell you something." And I could explain it to him right down the line. I could give him chapter and verse. And I could be just as clear as the sun is on a bright and shiny day. But, if God does not open his mind, he is not going to understand it. And what good would it do me to get mad at him and say, "What's wrong with you? Are you just stupid? Are you dumb? What's wrong with you, Ed?" Why would I get angry with him if he can't see truth? What I understand is only God can open our minds, enable us to see truth.

So the point I'm trying to make is this. If we understand that God must teach us, and He must illuminate our minds, we can be patient with each other and say, "Well, look, Ed, you don't see it right now. I'll pray for you. Hey, you want me to explain it to you again tomorrow? I'll do it. You want me to explain it to you three times the next day? I'll do it. Until God opens your eyes." Now, it is true that Ed would have a responsibility to study because the Bible says in 2 Timothy 2, verse 7, "Study to show thyself approved unto God." And he said—Paul told Timothy—

Scripture Reading — 2 Timothy 2:7, 15

"Consider what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding in all things."

2 Timothy 2:7, 2:15, it says study to show thyself approved unto God. But the point I'm trying to make is God is not going to give you understanding without studying. But unless you study and seek understanding, if God doesn't open your eyes, you're not going to understand anything.

Historical Examples of Present Truth

In various eras, present truth was the Lordship of Christ, justification by faith, sovereignty of God, etc.; today it is the superiority of God's Word.

I've been working on three or four messages, which I'm going to be bringing in the future, for weeks. Literally for weeks. I have not kept an account of the time that I logged into studying and searching the Scripture and coming up with these messages, but all I'm trying to say is this: you hear me preach and you have no idea of the study that went into it, or the preparation that went into it, or the prayer that went into it, and consequently all you want to do is just hear the preaching. Now, the point I'm trying to make is this: if we understood what the Bible means by the present truth, we would receive the preaching and teaching of God's Word eagerly and readily. And we would also understand our desperate need for that truth. Now, let me just show you some illustrations of what I'm going to call the present truth, okay? If you were alive in the first century during the cult of emperor worship in the Roman Empire, the present truth at that time would be the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If you were alive in the first century, you would both serve and worship either Christ or Caesar. In other words, there is an application of your daily life to the present truth. You would have to choose between Christ or Caesar. If you were alive in Germany in the 1500s, the present truth would be justification by faith alone. And you would either side with Luther and the Reformers, or you would hold to salvation by works as taught by the Roman Catholic Church. It was the present truth in the 1500s.

If you were alive in France or Geneva, Switzerland in the 1500s, especially during the middle of that era, the present truth would have been the sovereignty of God. You would either join with Calvin and the Reformers in believing and preaching and teaching the sovereignty of God, or you would hold to a humanistic position on the divine right of kings. If you were alive in Scotland during the 1500s, the present truth would be the kingship of Christ. You would either stand with John Knox and the Reformers, or you would hold to a statist position. You follow what I'm saying? If you were alive in the 1700s in England, the present truth would be the purity of the church. So you would either be holding with the Puritans who wanted to purify the church, or you would be holding with those who were content and satisfied with the wickedness and the unbiblical things that were going on in the church. Moreover, if you were alive in England in the 1700s when the church did not purify itself, there came the separatists who drew out of that local church and wanted a pure worship. And so they said, "We are going to separate ourselves from this church that will not purify itself." So you would either hold with the separatists then, or once again, you would be holding with the established church and having an impure worship. Now watch.

Here we are in 2015. And once again, the present truth not only involves the Lordship of Christ, but the superiority of His Word. Listen carefully, you will either serve, worship, and obey Jesus Christ and the Bible, or you will follow the humanists in sodomy, fornication, adultery, aborticide, socialism, communism, Marxism, and all the other social and governmental sins. In other words, you will either fight for truth and liberty and freedom, or you will be swallowed up by the tyrannical and despotic governments that abound today. There's the present truth. I want you to listen to what Martin Luther said. Martin Luther certainly understood the heat of the battle. Listen carefully, Martin Luther wrote: "If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ. However boldly I may be professing Christ, where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

Discerning and Applying Present Truth

Present truth is where the battle rages; it is proclaimed by God's true servants. Believers must receive preaching as God's Word and be established.

Did you hear what he just said? He said, "I can profess the truth loudly with the clearest expositions in every area except that one area where the battle is raging. And if I do not profess the truth in that area, I have effectively denied Christ and denied the Word of God." This statement of Martin Luther reveals a present truth. The truth has to be professed where the battle is raging. We need to profess the truth concerning the Confederate battle flag. We need to profess the truth concerning Southern history. We need to profess the truth concerning the Word of God. We need to profess the truth concerning the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We need to profess the truth of the superiority of the Word of God. And where we have to do this is where the battle is raging. Now, here's my question. How do we ascertain what the present truth is?

Well, let me give you two answers. First, it is a truth from God's Word that is under attack by the humanists, liberals, and unbelievers. So all I can say is look around you. See where the attacks are directed. That is the spot where you need to stand. That is the spot where you need to lift your standard and say, "I'm sorry, you're wrong. The Word of God says this." So just look and see what is being attacked. There is where you need to stand. The second way I would answer that question, how do we discern present truth? I would answer that the present truth is that which is being proclaimed by God's men—listen carefully—from God's Word as necessity is laid upon them in the providence of God. Mind you, I'm not referring to mama-called-and-papa-sent, ear-tickling preachers, but to real genuine men of God. Okay, I want to show you—look in your Bibles

to the book of Titus chapter 1. Titus chapter 1. 1st and 2nd Timothy and then Titus. Titus chapter 1, and let's begin looking there at verse 1. Titus 1, verse 1. Here it is. "Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began."

Well, who did he promise it to? Well, to Jesus Christ and those who were in Jesus Christ. But watch, "...but hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour." Did you hear what I just read? Paul said Jesus Christ was promised salvation of His people, and God promised salvation before the world ever began. How do we know all of it? Because he said it was now manifested through preaching of the Word of God. Do you know the Bible says in Amos 3, verse 7, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."

In other words, whatever God's going to do, in God's providence, He's going to burden His preachers to warn His people and to direct and encourage and bless His people with the truth. Let me give you an illustration. Recently, Alice and I went to a chaplains conference up in Virginia. I was the first speaker. After me, there were probably five others that spoke. And before I went up there, I knew what I was going to preach. I preached the message to those people that I preach to you. I preached that message "When God Has Had Enough." And remember, I was preaching to preachers and to a lot of other folks that were there, too. Do you realize the next five speakers got up, all good and godly men, and each one of them brought a message on the judgment of God? There were six different messages on the judgment of God. Now, I would think—we never planned these messages, I never spoke to any of them, they never spoke to me, we never spoke to each other.

But each of us preached almost exactly the same truth. Which would leave you, or at least should leave you, scratching your head and asking, "Is God trying to tell me something? Should I be making some preparations?" Of course, this is what I mean. The present truth is that which is being expounded and explained from His Word by His preachers. Let me just remind this to you. And I'm not talking about the opinions of men. I'm not talking about you ask me my opinion or what I think. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about expounding the Word of God. Let me just read it to you. Nehemiah chapter 7—chapter 8 it is, I'm sorry. Nehemiah 8, verses 7 and 8. I'm picking up in the middle of the verse. Listen carefully.

"And the Levites caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place. So they read in the book of the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading." So here's what real preaching is. It is exposition, explanation, and application. When you are expounding and explaining and applying the Word of God, that is a far cry from your opinion or what you think. You have to understand that the present truth is not the decrees of courts. It is not the ravings of lunatic lawyers, nor is it the acts of a legislative body. No, it is a truth of God's Word that is laid upon the hearts of His servants to proclaim to God's people for their benefit, blessing, and warning. That's the present truth. I mentioned this the other day. I've mentioned it here before, but it serves to illustrate my point. When I went to boot camp, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I went into the mess hall for breakfast and they were serving creamed beef on toast.

Now all the soldiers have a name for that, which I'm not going to repeat. And I looked at that stuff. It was so unappetizing. And you have to remember, I came off a farm. We had real eggs, grits, biscuits, gravy, potatoes, meat. And here they want to give me some kind of slop like that. I refused to eat it. I said, "I'm not going to eat that stuff." And I didn't.

But, you know, what I did not know is they had planned for us that day a five-mile hike with full field packs on. And you know, by 9 o'clock in the morning, that creamed beef on toast got to looking real appetizing in my mind. I wish I'd eaten that stuff. Now, the point I'm trying to make is this. Listen carefully. I didn't get to choose my menu for breakfast at boot camp. Somebody else chose it for me. They decided because they knew what they were going to train us in that particular day. They knew we needed the protein. And so that is what they gave us. Do you realize the same thing is true spiritually? God sets before His people exactly that which they need.

For He knows your tests, your trials, your tribulations, and your tasks for the coming week. And if you turn your nose up at what God gives you, you're going to do without. You're going to do like I did. You're going to be marching down with your stomach growling, hungry as all get out, saying, "I wish I'd eaten something. I wish I'd eaten something." And you'll be saying, "If only I'd listened. If only I'd listened. If I'd only taken that and applied it to my life." I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Jeremiah, chapter 3. I want to show you here's one of the promises that God gives to His people. Look what He said. Jeremiah chapter 3, and let's begin reading there with verse 14. Jeremiah 3, verse 14. God says,

"Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord, for I am married unto you, and I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion." Ah, but look what God is going to do for those people. "And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." What did He say? "I'll give you pastors according to my heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." The present truth is that exposition, that explanation, and that application that's being preached to you on a weekly basis from the Word of God. So here are my applications. The first one is this: Are you established in the present truth? Do you have any idea what the present truth really is?

Are you content with that which you know or that which you think you know? You have to understand that when God gives you a message from His Word, that is when He's saying, "This is what I want you to have. This is what you need." The present truth right now for this message is the present truth. You have to learn to receive God's Word as the present truth. It's not the opinions of men. It is an exposition from the Word of God.

Now, let me tie this together with a second application. What is your attitude toward the preached Word of God? I can tell you what the attitude of a lot of people happens to be. A lot of people's attitude is, "Oh." And some have the attitude, "Well, let's hurry up and get this over with, I've got to get on with my life. I've got to get the dinner.

Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 2:13

" So here's the question. Do you view the preaching of the Word of God as it really is—the Word of God—or do you merely regard it as the word of man? Let me show you. I want you to look in your Bibles to 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. Here's an amazing and marvelous verse. 1 Thessalonians 2, verse 13. The Apostle Paul writes to the Thessalonians, and he says this: "

For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." So these Thessalonians, when they heard Paul preach, they didn't say, "That's just Paul's idea. That's Paul's opinion." No. When they heard Silas or Barnabas preach, they didn't say, "Well, they're just up there saying things.

Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 2:13

" No. They received it as the Word of God and not as the word of men. So the question is, how do you receive the preaching of the Word of God? Do you say, "

This is God's will. This is God's Word for my life"?

It's the present truth. It's what God would have me to understand right now. It's what God would have me to apply to my life right now. It's what I should be living right now. Or do you think it's just oratory? What did he say? "For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." If you want the Word of God to work effectually in you, you need to receive it as the Word of God and not as the word of men. So Peter said, "I want you to be established in the present truth." What truth was that? The truth that Peter was preaching at that time.

He said, "You already know some things. Fine, I'm going to remind you of them. And I want you to be established because you need to hear what God says over and over and over again." Let's pray. Father, we thank you in the name of Jesus Christ for your Word, for your truth. We ask that you would help us, build us up in the most holy faith, and give us, Lord, the courage to stand and to be that which we should be for your honor and glory. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

Repetition of Truth

Summary: Truth must be heard repeatedly to be established; repetition aids learning and prevents truth from slipping away.

Evidence: Peter says, 'I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them' (2 Peter 1:12).

Establishment in Truth

Summary: God's will is for believers to be steadfast, fixed, and confirmed in the truth, which brings blessings and stability.

Evidence: The Greek word stērizō means to be steadfast; Psalm 112 lists benefits of being established.

Present Truth Defined

Summary: Present truth is the truth God emphasizes for His people in their current context, not relative or new truth.

Evidence: The word 'present' (pareimi) means 'at hand'; truth does not change with situations.

Progressive Revelation and Illumination

Summary: God revealed truth progressively in Scripture; now the Holy Spirit progressively illuminates believers to understand it.

Evidence: Isaiah 28:9-10 shows line upon line; John 16:12-13 promises the Spirit will guide into all truth.

Discerning the Battle

Summary: Present truth is where the battle rages; believers must stand on God's Word where it is under attack.

Evidence: Martin Luther quote: 'If I profess... except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ.'

Receiving Preaching as God's Word

Summary: Believers must receive the preached Word not as man's opinion but as God's Word, which works effectually in them.

Evidence: 1 Thessalonians 2:13: 'ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God.'

Key Arguments

Truth Requires Repetition

Summary: Peter insists on reminding believers of known truth because repetition grounds and establishes them.

Evidence: 2 Peter 1:12: 'I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance... though you know them.'

Present Truth Is Not New Revelation

Summary: Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation; claiming new truth denies His completeness.

Evidence: Hebrews 1:1-3: God has spoken in these last days by His Son.

God Revealed Truth Progressively

Summary: The Bible was given over 1,600 years with progressive unfolding, as seen in Messianic prophecies.

Evidence: From Genesis 3:15 to Micah 5:2, details about the Messiah were revealed gradually.

Illumination Is Progressive

Summary: The Holy Spirit enlightens believers to understand Scripture progressively, not all at once.

Evidence: John 16:12-13: 'I have yet many things to say... but ye cannot bear them now... the Spirit will guide you into all truth.'

Present Truth Is Where the Battle Rages

Summary: Believers must confess Christ precisely where truth is under attack, or they deny Him.

Evidence: Martin Luther: 'where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved.'

Preaching Is God's Means of Manifesting Truth

Summary: God manifests His Word through preaching, and His servants proclaim present truth as He burdens them.

Evidence: Titus 1:1-3: 'hath in due times manifested his word through preaching.'

Scripture References

2 Peter 1:12-15

Context: The primary text; Peter's commitment to remind believers of truth and his desire for them to be established in the present truth.

2 Corinthians 13:5

Context: Paul's command to examine ourselves, used to show that rehearsing truth enables self-examination.

Mark 10:1

Context: Jesus taught the people again, illustrating the principle of repetition.

Hebrews 2:1

Context: We must give earnest heed to things we have heard lest they slip, emphasizing the need for repeated truth.

Colossians 2:7

Context: Believers are to be rooted and built up in Christ and established in the faith.

Psalm 112:1-10

Context: Describes the blessings of the man who fears the Lord and is established, including stability and lack of fear.

James 1:5-8

Context: The double-minded man is unstable; contrast to being established.

Luke 13:1

Context: Usage of 'present' (pareimi) to mean 'standing right in front of you.'

2 Corinthians 10:11

Context: Paul uses 'present' to mean being physically present, illustrating the word's meaning.

Psalm 119:89

Context: God's Word is forever settled in heaven, showing truth is constant.

John 17:17

Context: Jesus said, 'Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.'

Hebrews 1:1-3

Context: God has spoken finally by His Son; no new revelation beyond Christ.

Isaiah 28:9-10

Context: Precept upon precept, line upon line; God teaches progressively.

Genesis 3:15

Context: First promise of the Messiah; seed of woman will crush serpent's head.

Acts 18:24-28

Context: Apollos knew only John's baptism; Aquila and Priscilla expounded the way of God more perfectly, illustrating present truth.

Acts 19:1-5

Context: Disciples at Ephesus knew only John's baptism; Paul taught them about Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

John 16:12-13

Context: The Spirit will guide into all truth; progressive illumination.

2 Timothy 2:7, 15

Context: Study to show thyself approved; the Lord gives understanding.

Titus 1:1-3

Context: God manifests His Word through preaching committed to Paul.

1 Thessalonians 2:13

Context: Believers received Paul's preaching as the Word of God, not man's word.

Historical References

Martin Luther and the Reformation (1500s Germany)

Context: Present truth was justification by faith alone; Luther's quote on confessing Christ where the battle rages.

John Calvin and Geneva (1500s)

Context: Present truth was the sovereignty of God; choice between Calvin's teaching and humanistic divine right of kings.

John Knox and Scotland (1500s)

Context: Present truth was the kingship of Christ; stand with Knox or statist position.

Puritans and Separatists (1700s England)

Context: Present truth was purity of the church; Puritans sought reform, Separatists left impure churches.

Cult of Emperor Worship (First Century)

Context: Present truth was the Lordship of Jesus Christ; choice between Christ and Caesar.

Important Quotes

If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ. However boldly I may be professing Christ, where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.

Significance: Martin Luther's statement powerfully defines present truth as the truth under attack, demanding confession precisely there.

I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth.

Significance: The key verse of the sermon, highlighting Peter's commitment to repetition and the concept of present truth.

For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little.

Significance: Isaiah 28:9-10 quoted to illustrate God's method of progressive revelation.

For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

Significance: 1 Thessalonians 2:13 emphasizes the proper reception of preaching as God's Word.

Discussion Questions

Why does Peter emphasize reminding believers of truths they already know? How does this apply to our need for repeated teaching?

Context: Based on 2 Peter 1:12 and the principle that repetition aids learning.

What does it mean to be 'established in the present truth'? How can we discern what the present truth is for our time?

Context: From the definition of 'established' and the explanation of present truth.

How does the concept of progressive illumination affect our patience with other believers who may not yet understand certain truths?

Context: From the discussion on God's sovereignty in illumination and the example of being patient with Ed.

In what areas is the battle raging today where we must confess Christ and His Word?

Context: From the application of Luther's quote and the list of contemporary issues.

How can we cultivate an attitude that receives preaching as the Word of God and not merely the word of man?

Context: From 1 Thessalonians 2:13 and the application about our attitude toward preaching.

Applications

Be Established in Present Truth

Summary: Believers should seek to be grounded and fixed in the truth God is emphasizing for their time, not content with limited knowledge.

Evidence: Peter's desire that they be 'established in the present truth' (2 Peter 1:12).

Receive Preaching as God's Word

Summary: We must receive the preached Word not as human opinion but as God's Word, which works effectually in us.

Evidence: 1 Thessalonians 2:13: 'ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God.'

Stand Where the Battle Rages

Summary: Believers must confess Christ and His truth precisely where it is under attack in society, not flinching.

Evidence: Martin Luther's quote: 'where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved.'

Value Repetition of Truth

Summary: We should not despise hearing truth repeatedly, as it grounds us and prevents truth from slipping away.

Evidence: Hebrews 2:1: 'lest at any time we should let them slip.'

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T17:38:26Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T08:49:03Z

Clean Transcript

The Present Truth

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

2 Peter 1, verses 12 through 15. The title of the message is "The Present Truth." So notice 2 Peter 1, verse 12: "Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet as long as I'm in this tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance, knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me. Moreover, I will endeavor that you may be able to after my decease to have these things always in remembrance." Let me begin by saying Peter instructs us in a very vital and important principle in verse 12. That vital principle is the present truth. So I want to call your attention to verse 12 again. Look at it. He says, "Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth."
#1 | 0:01 to 1:15 | cleaned
Now, there's a wonderful point here that needs to be emphasized. And that point is this: first, that truth needs to be heard over and over. And Peter says, "I'm not going to neglect my duty in not repeating this truth to you." So it's only as we hear the truth over and over that we're grounded and settled and established in the truth. Rehearsing truth forces us to continually analyze and reinforce that truth in our lives.
#2 | 1:16 to 1:51 | cleaned
It enables us to examine ourselves according to 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5, where Paul commands us, "Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" So he says, here's the opportunity to know yourself and to prove yourself. So first, we're told that this truth needs to be heard over and over.
#3 | 1:52 to 2:23 | cleaned
Secondly, we must understand the principle that repetition aids learning. So it was not onerous to Peter then to teach his hearers that which they already knew. He was well aware of the fact that they were well instructed in the truth. They knew the truth, but yet, he said, they needed to hear the truth again. So the fact that they already knew the truth did not deter him from faithfully preaching and re-preaching the same truth again. So here's another principle that we must grasp, and that is this: that the more you hear the truth, the more you understand the truth. And one of the reasons we are so forgetful and so neglectful of truth is that we do not hear it repeated often enough. And Peter is saying, repetition aids learning. Thirdly, I want to point out that undoubtedly Peter learned this method of instruction from the master teacher, the Lord Jesus Christ.
#4 | 2:23 to 3:33 | cleaned
Let me just read to you Mark 10, verse 1. Listen carefully. "And he," that is Christ, "arose from thence and cometh into the coast of Judea by the farther side of Jordan. And the people resort to him again. And as he was wont, he taught them again." So I want you to note that the people resort to Him again. In other words, it was the same people. And as He was wont, or as He was accustomed to, He taught them again. He may have been communicating some of the same truths that He had preached and taught them earlier.
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In all probability, He did so because of the word "again." So we must hear truth repeatedly. That is why Hebrews 2, verse 1 says this. Now, listen. "Therefore, we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip." So I want you to note the past tense. He said we should give more earnest heed to the things which we have heard—and we've already heard them. It's in the past, but we have to give more earnest heed to these things, lest at any time we should let them slip. So it's easy then for truth to slip away from us if we do not constantly re-hear it and have it re-preached to us. Now, I want you to look at verse 12, because that is basically the message today. He says, "Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and be established in the present truth."
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Now the things that he's talking about primarily are the truths from verses 1 through 11. But he goes on to say in verse 13, as long as he's alive, he wants to stir them up by putting them in remembrance. And verse 14, he knows shortly that he's got to die, that he's going to put off his tabernacle. And then in verse 15, he says, "I want you to always have these things in remembrance." So therefore, he is re-teaching and re-preaching these truths again before he dies. Now, in verse 12, he says, "I want you to be established in the present truth." Now, the Greek word for "established" here is the word "stērizō." And it literally means to be steadfast, to be fixed, to be constant, to be confirmed, to be established in one's mind. Now, listen carefully. We're going to be looking at a number of scriptures.
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I'm trying to save a little time just by quoting some scriptures. But here's this statement: It is God's will that you be established in truth. It is God's will that you be established in the present truth, which I'm going to teach you just a little bit later. But the Bible says in Colossians 2, verse 7, "Rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving." So very clearly, then, it is indeed the will of God that you be established in truth. Now, let me just tell you that there are indeed benefits to being established in the truth. I want you to hold 2 Peter, and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Psalm 112. I wish I had time just to preach from this Psalm today, but I want you to look at it. And in Psalm 112, you can find various and multitudinous benefits of being established in the truth. So in Psalm 112, beginning there with verse 1, the Bible says this, "Praise ye the Lord."
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"Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. His seed shall be mighty upon the earth. The generation of the upright shall be blessed. Wealth and riches shall be in his house, and his righteousness endureth forever. Unto the upright there riseth light in the darkness." This is the man that's established now. "He is gracious and full of compassion and righteous. A good man showeth favor and lendeth."
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"He will guide his affairs with discretion. Surely," here it is, "surely he shall not be moved forever. The righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. Look, he shall not be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. His heart is established and he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies. He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor, his righteousness endureth forever, his horn shall be exalted with honor. The wicked shall see it and be grieved, he shall gnash with his teeth and melt away, the desire of the wicked shall perish." But notice if you would, here's this man that is established in the truth.
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His seed is going to be mighty. Wealth and riches are going to be his. Light is going to rise unto him. He's not going to be moved. He's not going to be afraid of evil tidings. His heart is fixed. He is established. So there are a multitude of benefits and blessings of being established in the faith. We certainly need to concentrate on being established in the faith. Now, you have to understand that the opposite of being established in the faith is being double-minded.
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You remember the Bible says in James 1, verses 5-8, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways." So if you're not established in the faith, obviously you're going to be a double-minded man. So in 2 Peter 1, verse 12, Peter wants his hearers to be established. Moreover, he wants them to be established in the present truth. Now, what is the present truth? Well, the Greek word for "present" here is the word "pareimi." It literally means to be at hand, to be by, or to be present. Now, let me explain it like this. The present truth literally means that truth which is right in front of you.
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Hold 2 Peter chapter 1, and I want you to go first of all to Luke 13 and then to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, because I want to show you how this word "present" is used in the scripture. Obviously, it cannot mean anything else other than that truth which is right in front of you. So if you look in Luke chapter 13, verse 1—now, I preached on this passage not too long ago, but look at it. Here's the word "present." Luke 13, verse 1: "There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices." There were some present who told him. Well, what does it mean they were present? Well, they were standing right in front of him.
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They were talking to him. So if you are present in front of someone, talking to someone, you are there, and that's what the word "present" means—that which is right in front of you. So if you look in your Bibles to 2 Corinthians chapter 10, and look at verse 11, because here the Apostle Paul says it like this. Watch carefully 2 Corinthians 10, verse 11. He writes to the Corinthians and he says, "Let such an one think this, that such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present." So Paul says, look, when I'm standing right in front of you, I'm going to be exactly the same as I am when I'm absent from you and writing to you. So when you look at the word "present," it means that which is present. It means that which is right in front of you. Now, when you look back at 2 Peter 1, verse 12, you have to understand that Peter understood that his hearers were well fixed and established and constant in the present truth.
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That is, they had not only heard the truth, they understood the truth and they applied the truth. So we are now talking about the present truth. Let me tell you, first of all, what I do not mean by this phrase, "the present truth." Okay? First of all, I do not mean that truth is relative and that it changes with situations, conditions, circumstances, or the progress or the erosion of society.
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God's law does not change. His definition of sin has not changed. And man cannot change that which is unlawful, sinful, wicked, and rebellious into that which is lawful and just, no matter which century he lives in. So what was sin in the first century is still sin in the 21st century. What was good and righteous and holy in the first century is still good, righteous, and holy in the 21st century.
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When I talk about the present truth, I'm definitely not speaking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth changes with the situation. No. God's Word is constant. God's Word is fixed. That's why the Bible says in Psalm 119, verse 89, "Forever, O Lord, is thy word settled in the heavens." That's why our Lord said in John 17:17, "Sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth." So when I'm talking about the present truth, I'm not talking about nor am I saying that truth is relative or that truth changes. That is not what is meant by the term "the present truth." Secondly, I am not saying that there is such a thing as new truth. Listen carefully. The phrase "the present truth" does not imply new truth. Here it is. Listen carefully. If a revelation is new, it is not true. For there is no such thing as new truth.
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We must remember that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation of God. Turn over in your Bibles, oh, back just a few pages, to Hebrews chapter 1. Hebrews chapter 1, and let's look there at the first three verses. Hebrews chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Notice if you would, he says this, "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners," that is, at different times in different ways, "spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets."
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It's true in the Old Testament and sometimes in the New Testament, God used visions and dreams. Watch this. "But hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." So the Bible tells us God in times past spoke in different ways to the prophets. But He said that God hath in these last days spoken to us by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Now listen. For someone, therefore, to believe in new truth, he has to deny that Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation and truth. So there is no new truth. Once you begin saying, "I've got a new truth," you are denying the completeness of God's Word and you're denying the person of Jesus Christ.
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So let me put it like this. There is no need for visions, dreams, horoscopes, astrological forecasters, false prophets, faith in spurious religious writings, or anything that is over, above, and beyond the Word of God and the Lord Jesus Christ. So it is absolute blasphemy to ascribe anything or anyone above the full and final and complete revelation of God in Jesus Christ and in His Word. So when someone comes along and says there's a new truth, it is a denial of Christ. It is a denial of Scripture. So, when I speak about the present truth, I'm not talking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth is relative. Nor am I saying there is such a thing as a new truth. Well, what in the world do I mean, then, when I talk about the present truth? Well, if you understand the present truth, you have to understand, when God gave us the Bible—listen carefully—God just simply did not dump truth on us all at one time.
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Did you know the Bible was written over a period of 1,600 years by 40 different authors? 1,600 years. Even when the Bible was being written, there was a progressive unfolding of the truth. Let me just read to you Isaiah 28, verses 9 and 10. Listen, listen carefully. "Whom shall he teach knowledge? And whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breast. Here it is.
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"For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little." So what did God do when He gave us the Bible? He gave us line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little.
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Now, we're going to be looking at some scriptures in just a moment, but I want you to listen to me right now because I want to show you what I'm talking about when I refer to progressive revelation or progressive unfolding of the truth. So if we take no one else other than the Lord Jesus Christ, this should explain it for you. Don't turn there. But if you were to go to Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, that is the protevangelium.
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That is the first promise of the Messiah in the Bible. It is there that God says that the seed of the woman is going to crush the serpent's head, and the serpent will bruise his heel. So the very first thing you find out about the Messiah in Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, is He is going to be born of a woman and He is going to be victorious. Do you realize that's Genesis 3:15? It was only in Genesis chapter 12, verses 1 through 3, particularly, that we discover that the Messiah is going to come from the seed of Abraham. We weren't told that in Genesis 3, verse 15. It was only later in Genesis 49, verse 10, that we find out that the Messiah is going to be born, not just simply of the seed of Abraham, but of the tribe of Judah. And then it was many years later after that revelation that it was revealed in 2 Samuel chapter 7, verses 12-13, that the Messiah was going to be the seed of David.
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And do you understand it was a multitude of years later in Isaiah 7:14 when we discover that the Messiah is going to be born of a virgin. And it was still a multitude of years later in Micah 5, verse 2, where we found out that the Messiah is going to be born in Bethlehem of Judea. So, here you have Genesis 3:15 all the way to Micah 5:2, and there is a progressive unfolding of the truth. God did not reveal everything about Messiah at one time. God did not reveal all of His truth at one time. And each stage of this revelation, this progressive unfolding of truth, would be classified as a present truth.
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I want you to turn in your Bibles, holding 2 Peter chapter 1, but go in your Bibles to Acts chapter 18. Acts chapter 18, and let me show you another illustration of what we mean by present truth. Look in Acts chapter 18, and let's begin reading there with verse 24. Acts 18, verse 24. Watch carefully. "And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John."
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So his knowledge was limited. Watch what happens. Verse 26, "And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace."
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"For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ." So here was a mighty preacher, a man that was eloquent. But all he knew was the baptism of John. He hadn't heard anything since then. And when Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they said, "You need to visit with us. There's a lot that has been transpiring and that has transpired since you heard about the baptism of John."
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"Let me tell you about the present truth. Let me tell you what has really happened concerning the Messiah, how he was crucified, buried, resurrected, and is seated at the right hand of the Father." So they instructed him more fully in the truth that had been revealed at that time. Look in Acts chapter 19. Let's begin there with verse 1. Watch. "And it came to pass that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper coasts, came to Ephesus."
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"And finding certain disciples, he said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus." So what did Paul do? Paul filled them in on the present truth. He filled them in on that which had been revealed at that particular time which they had not heard. So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth. Now without me going into detail—
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Do you remember Acts chapter 10, Cornelius, the Roman centurion who sent to Peter and told him to come? And you remember it was in Acts chapter 10 that God gave that vision to Peter of the sheet descending from heaven with all kind of unclean things on it, or all kind of beasts on it. And he tells Peter to rise and eat, and Peter says, "Not so, Lord, for I've never eaten anything common or unclean." And our Lord said, "That which God has cleansed, that call not thou common or unclean."
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It was done three times. And when he saw the vision, he went down and immediately three men were knocking at the door. "Come with us." And the Holy Spirit told him to go. And when he got to Cornelius's house, what did he say? "You know that it is unlawful for a man to come into and to eat with those who are considered unclean or a Gentile or Greek or Roman."
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But he said, "God has showed me something." And he went in and preached, and of course, the household of Cornelius was converted. So you see, there's a progressive unfolding of the truth. And when you get to Acts chapter 11, when he tells everyone what happened in Jerusalem, they say in verse 18, "Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life." So there was a progressive unfolding of the truth while the Bible was being written. Now, now that the Bible is complete—listen carefully—there is no more progressive revelation. In fact, there is no more revelation, period. Revelation has ceased. God is not and will not reveal anything above and beyond His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation has ended. However, that does not mean there is not such a thing as the present truth. Listen carefully. If revelation is ended,
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how can there be a present truth? Well, the answer is very simple. Because there is a progressive illumination of the truth. Do you understand God did not give His Word all at one time? And God does not give us understanding all at one time. Now, listen to me. Revelation is the act of God whereby God reveals truth never known before to the human mind.
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A good illustration of that is Genesis chapters 1 through 3. Moses wrote those chapters. My question is, how did Moses know what happened in creation? He wasn't there. He hadn't even been born. How does he know what happened in creation? And the answer is, God revealed it to him. Okay, that's revelation. That's why I'm saying revelation has ceased. God's not revealing anything over and above the Lord Jesus Christ or anything over and above His Word.
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And if somebody is looking for visions and dreams and trances, they're in trouble. You might get something like that, but it's not coming from God. But now here's illumination. Listen carefully. Illumination is the act or the ministry of the Holy Spirit of God, whereby He enlightens our mind or illuminates our mind that we might understand previously revealed truth. So just like God did not reveal the truth all at one time, God does not enable us to understand the truth all at one time. Just like there was a progressive unfolding of the truth in revelation, there is a progressive illumination and an understanding of the truth. You have to also remember that the God that is sovereign in salvation is equally sovereign in illumination. He's the one that determines what I understand and when I understand it. So we have a progressive illumination. Let me say it again. No man understands all truth, and no man certainly understands it at one time.
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Now, in the book of Mark, chapter 4, verses 33 and 34, here's what the Bible says: "And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it." You know what God's going to do? He's going to teach you as you're able to hear it. The Bible says, "But without a parable spake he not unto them. And when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples." So if you really want to understand Scripture, you have to get alone with Jesus Christ because He's the author of His Word and He can expound and explain that Word. But notice, if you would, He only spoke the Word to them as they were able to hear it. Now, if you look in your Bibles to the book of John, chapter 16, and let's begin reading there with verse 12. John 16, verse 12. Look at what the Bible says concerning the Holy Spirit. John 16, verse 12. Our Lord says to His disciples, "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now."
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"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth. For he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you." Note, if you would, our Lord said when the Holy Spirit is come, whom He's going to send, He will guide us into all truth. In other words, it is the ministry of the Holy Spirit to enlighten our minds, to illuminate our minds, to guide us and enable us to understand the Scripture.
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Now, let me explain something to you. If you understand the doctrine of illumination, and if you understand that God is sovereign in illumination, it will teach you to be patient with each other.
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Now, I could look at Ed, and I could say, "Ed, let me tell you something." And I could explain it to him right down the line. I could give him chapter and verse. And I could be just as clear as the sun is on a bright and shiny day. But, if God does not open his mind, he is not going to understand it. And what good would it do me to get mad at him and say, "What's wrong with you? Are you just stupid? Are you dumb? What's wrong with you, Ed?" Why would I get angry with him if he can't see truth? What I understand is only God can open our minds, enable us to see truth.
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So the point I'm trying to make is this. If we understand that God must teach us, and He must illuminate our minds, we can be patient with each other and say, "Well, look, Ed, you don't see it right now. I'll pray for you. Hey, you want me to explain it to you again tomorrow? I'll do it. You want me to explain it to you three times the next day? I'll do it. Until God opens your eyes." Now, it is true that Ed would have a responsibility to study because the Bible says in 2 Timothy 2, verse 7, "Study to show thyself approved unto God." And he said—Paul told Timothy—"Consider what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding in all things." 2 Timothy 2:7, 2:15, it says study to show thyself approved unto God. But the point I'm trying to make is God is not going to give you understanding without studying. But unless you study and seek understanding, if God doesn't open your eyes, you're not going to understand anything.
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So it'll teach us then to be patient with each other. Now, here's one of our problems as Christians. We are not accustomed to receiving truth as the present truth. I'm going to explain that. You see, we are comfortable with our salvation and we are comfortable with our limited knowledge and understanding of Scripture. Everyone in this room would say, "Yes, God created this earth and God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh."
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You have no problem with that. You understand salvation by grace through faith alone. You have no problem with that. In other words, we may be grounded and established in a few points, but we're not necessarily grounded and established in the present truth. And the way I can prove that is we do not place much emphasis upon the preached Word of God. And we place almost no importance to the amount of study and preparation and prayer that goes into preparing of a message. For instance,
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I've been working on three or four messages, which I'm going to be bringing in the future, for weeks. Literally for weeks. I have not kept an account of the time that I logged into studying and searching the Scripture and coming up with these messages, but all I'm trying to say is this: you hear me preach and you have no idea of the study that went into it, or the preparation that went into it, or the prayer that went into it, and consequently all you want to do is just hear the preaching.
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Now, the point I'm trying to make is this: if we understood what the Bible means by the present truth, we would receive the preaching and teaching of God's Word eagerly and readily. And we would also understand our desperate need for that truth. Now, let me just show you some illustrations of what I'm going to call the present truth, okay? If you were alive in the first century during the cult of emperor worship in the Roman Empire, the present truth at that time would be the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If you were alive in the first century, you would both serve and worship either Christ or Caesar. In other words, there is an application of your daily life to the present truth. You would have to choose between Christ or Caesar. If you were alive in Germany in the 1500s, the present truth would be justification by faith alone. And you would either side with Luther and the Reformers, or you would hold to salvation by works as taught by the Roman Catholic Church. It was the present truth in the 1500s.
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If you were alive in France or Geneva, Switzerland in the 1500s, especially during the middle of that era, the present truth would have been the sovereignty of God. You would either join with Calvin and the Reformers in believing and preaching and teaching the sovereignty of God, or you would hold to a humanistic position on the divine right of kings. If you were alive in Scotland during the 1500s, the present truth would be the kingship of Christ. You would either stand with John Knox and the Reformers, or you would hold to a statist position.
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You follow what I'm saying? If you were alive in the 1700s in England, the present truth would be the purity of the church. So you would either be holding with the Puritans who wanted to purify the church, or you would be holding with those who were content and satisfied with the wickedness and the unbiblical things that were going on in the church. Moreover, if you were alive in England in the 1700s when the church did not purify itself, there came the separatists who drew out of that local church and wanted a pure worship. And so they said, "We are going to separate ourselves from this church that will not purify itself." So you would either hold with the separatists then, or once again, you would be holding with the established church and having an impure worship. Now watch.
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Here we are in 2015. And once again, the present truth not only involves the Lordship of Christ, but the superiority of His Word. Listen carefully, you will either serve, worship, and obey Jesus Christ and the Bible, or you will follow the humanists in sodomy, fornication, adultery, aborticide, socialism, communism, Marxism, and all the other social and governmental sins. In other words, you will either fight for truth and liberty and freedom, or you will be swallowed up by the tyrannical and despotic governments that abound today. There's the present truth. I want you to listen to what Martin Luther said. Martin Luther certainly understood the heat of the battle. Listen carefully, Martin Luther wrote: "If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ. However boldly I may be professing Christ, where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."
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Did you hear what he just said? He said, "I can profess the truth loudly with the clearest expositions in every area except that one area where the battle is raging. And if I do not profess the truth in that area, I have effectively denied Christ and denied the Word of God." This statement of Martin Luther reveals a present truth. The truth has to be professed where the battle is raging. We need to profess the truth concerning the Confederate battle flag. We need to profess the truth concerning Southern history. We need to profess the truth concerning the Word of God. We need to profess the truth concerning the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We need to profess the truth of the superiority of the Word of God. And where we have to do this is where the battle is raging. Now, here's my question. How do we ascertain what the present truth is?
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Well, let me give you two answers. First, it is a truth from God's Word that is under attack by the humanists, liberals, and unbelievers. So all I can say is look around you. See where the attacks are directed. That is the spot where you need to stand. That is the spot where you need to lift your standard and say, "I'm sorry, you're wrong. The Word of God says this." So just look and see what is being attacked. There is where you need to stand. The second way I would answer that question, how do we discern present truth? I would answer that the present truth is that which is being proclaimed by God's men—listen carefully—from God's Word as necessity is laid upon them in the providence of God. Mind you, I'm not referring to mama-called-and-papa-sent, ear-tickling preachers, but to real genuine men of God. Okay, I want to show you—look in your Bibles
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to the book of Titus chapter 1. Titus chapter 1. 1st and 2nd Timothy and then Titus. Titus chapter 1, and let's begin looking there at verse 1. Titus 1, verse 1. Here it is. "Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness, in hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began."
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Well, who did he promise it to? Well, to Jesus Christ and those who were in Jesus Christ. But watch, "...but hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour." Did you hear what I just read? Paul said Jesus Christ was promised salvation of His people, and God promised salvation before the world ever began. How do we know all of it? Because he said it was now manifested through preaching of the Word of God. Do you know the Bible says in Amos 3, verse 7, "Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets."
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In other words, whatever God's going to do, in God's providence, He's going to burden His preachers to warn His people and to direct and encourage and bless His people with the truth. Let me give you an illustration. Recently, Alice and I went to a chaplains conference up in Virginia. I was the first speaker. After me, there were probably five others that spoke. And before I went up there, I knew what I was going to preach. I preached the message to those people that I preach to you. I preached that message "When God Has Had Enough." And remember, I was preaching to preachers and to a lot of other folks that were there, too. Do you realize the next five speakers got up, all good and godly men, and each one of them brought a message on the judgment of God? There were six different messages on the judgment of God. Now, I would think—we never planned these messages, I never spoke to any of them, they never spoke to me, we never spoke to each other.
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But each of us preached almost exactly the same truth. Which would leave you, or at least should leave you, scratching your head and asking, "Is God trying to tell me something? Should I be making some preparations?" Of course, this is what I mean. The present truth is that which is being expounded and explained from His Word by His preachers. Let me just remind this to you. And I'm not talking about the opinions of men. I'm not talking about you ask me my opinion or what I think. I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about expounding the Word of God. Let me just read it to you. Nehemiah chapter 7—chapter 8 it is, I'm sorry. Nehemiah 8, verses 7 and 8. I'm picking up in the middle of the verse. Listen carefully.
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"And the Levites caused the people to understand the law: and the people stood in their place. So they read in the book of the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading." So here's what real preaching is. It is exposition, explanation, and application. When you are expounding and explaining and applying the Word of God, that is a far cry from your opinion or what you think. You have to understand that the present truth is not the decrees of courts.
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It is not the ravings of lunatic lawyers, nor is it the acts of a legislative body. No, it is a truth of God's Word that is laid upon the hearts of His servants to proclaim to God's people for their benefit, blessing, and warning. That's the present truth. I mentioned this the other day. I've mentioned it here before, but it serves to illustrate my point. When I went to boot camp, Fort Jackson, South Carolina, I went into the mess hall for breakfast and they were serving creamed beef on toast.
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Now all the soldiers have a name for that, which I'm not going to repeat. And I looked at that stuff. It was so unappetizing. And you have to remember, I came off a farm. We had real eggs, grits, biscuits, gravy, potatoes, meat. And here they want to give me some kind of slop like that. I refused to eat it. I said, "I'm not going to eat that stuff." And I didn't.
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But, you know, what I did not know is they had planned for us that day a five-mile hike with full field packs on. And you know, by 9 o'clock in the morning, that creamed beef on toast got to looking real appetizing in my mind. I wish I'd eaten that stuff.
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Now, the point I'm trying to make is this. Listen carefully. I didn't get to choose my menu for breakfast at boot camp. Somebody else chose it for me. They decided because they knew what they were going to train us in that particular day. They knew we needed the protein. And so that is what they gave us. Do you realize the same thing is true spiritually? God sets before His people exactly that which they need.
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For He knows your tests, your trials, your tribulations, and your tasks for the coming week. And if you turn your nose up at what God gives you, you're going to do without. You're going to do like I did. You're going to be marching down with your stomach growling, hungry as all get out, saying, "I wish I'd eaten something. I wish I'd eaten something." And you'll be saying, "If only I'd listened. If only I'd listened. If I'd only taken that and applied it to my life." I want you to turn in your Bibles to the book of Jeremiah, chapter 3. I want to show you here's one of the promises that God gives to His people. Look what He said. Jeremiah chapter 3, and let's begin reading there with verse 14. Jeremiah 3, verse 14. God says,
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"Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord, for I am married unto you, and I will take you one of a city and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion." Ah, but look what God is going to do for those people. "And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." What did He say? "I'll give you pastors according to my heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." The present truth is that exposition, that explanation, and that application that's being preached to you on a weekly basis from the Word of God. So here are my applications. The first one is this: Are you established in the present truth? Do you have any idea what the present truth really is?
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Are you content with that which you know or that which you think you know? You have to understand that when God gives you a message from His Word, that is when He's saying, "This is what I want you to have. This is what you need." The present truth right now for this message is the present truth. You have to learn to receive God's Word as the present truth.
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It's not the opinions of men. It is an exposition from the Word of God.
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Now, let me tie this together with a second application. What is your attitude toward the preached Word of God? I can tell you what the attitude of a lot of people happens to be. A lot of people's attitude is, "Oh." And some have the attitude, "Well, let's hurry up and get this over with, I've got to get on with my life. I've got to get the dinner." So here's the question. Do you view the preaching of the Word of God as it really is—the Word of God—or do you merely regard it as the word of man?
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Let me show you. I want you to look in your Bibles to 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. Here's an amazing and marvelous verse. 1 Thessalonians 2, verse 13. The Apostle Paul writes to the Thessalonians, and he says this: "For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." So these Thessalonians, when they heard Paul preach, they didn't say, "That's just Paul's idea. That's Paul's opinion." No. When they heard Silas or Barnabas preach, they didn't say, "Well, they're just up there saying things." No. They received it as the Word of God and not as the word of men. So the question is, how do you receive the preaching of the Word of God? Do you say, "This is God's will. This is God's Word for my life"?
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It's the present truth. It's what God would have me to understand right now. It's what God would have me to apply to my life right now. It's what I should be living right now. Or do you think it's just oratory? What did he say? "For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe." If you want the Word of God to work effectually in you, you need to receive it as the Word of God and not as the word of men. So Peter said, "I want you to be established in the present truth." What truth was that? The truth that Peter was preaching at that time.
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He said, "You already know some things. Fine, I'm going to remind you of them. And I want you to be established because you need to hear what God says over and over and over again." Let's pray. Father, we thank you in the name of Jesus Christ for your Word, for your truth. We ask that you would help us, build us up in the most holy faith, and give us, Lord, the courage to stand and to be that which we should be for your honor and glory. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T17:38:26Z

The Present Truth

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

John Weaver expounds 2 Peter 1:12–15, emphasizing the vital principle of 'the present truth.' He explains that truth must be heard repeatedly to be established, and that 'present truth' refers to the truth God is emphasizing for His people in their current context—not new revelation, but the progressive illumination of Scripture by the Holy Spirit. Weaver illustrates this with historical examples and urges believers to receive preaching as God's Word, to discern where the battle rages, and to be established in the truth for their time.

Introduction and Text

Reading of 2 Peter 1:12–15 and introduction of the vital principle of 'the present truth.'

2 Peter 1, verses 12 through 15. The title of the message is "The Present Truth." So notice 2 Peter 1, verse 12:

Scripture Reading — 2 Peter 1:12-15

"Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth. Yea, I think it meet as long as I'm in this tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance, knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me. Moreover, I will endeavor that you may be able to after my decease to have these things always in remembrance."

The Necessity of Repeated Truth

Truth must be heard over and over to be grounded and established; repetition aids learning, as modeled by Christ.

Scripture Reading — 2 Corinthians 13:5

"Examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith. Prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?"

So he says, here's the opportunity to know yourself and to prove yourself. So first, we're told that this truth needs to be heard over and over.

Let me just read to you Mark 10, verse 1. Listen carefully. "And he," that is Christ,

Scripture Reading — Mark 10:1

"arose from thence and cometh into the coast of Judea by the farther side of Jordan. And the people resort to him again. And as he was wont, he taught them again."

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 2:1

" So I want you to note the past tense. He said we should give more earnest heed to the things which we have heard—and we've already heard them. It's in the past, but we have to give more earnest heed to these things, lest at any time we should let them slip. So it's easy then for truth to slip away from us if we do not constantly re-hear it and have it re-preached to us. Now, I want you to look at verse 12, because that is basically the message today. He says, "

Wherefore, I will not be negligent to put you in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and be established in the present truth."

Being Established in the Present Truth

Explanation of 'established' (stērizō) and the benefits of being fixed in truth, contrasted with double-mindedness.

Scripture Reading — Colossians 2:7

"Rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving."

You remember the Bible says in James 1, verses 5-8,

Scripture Reading — James 1:5-8

"If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord. A double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways."

Defining 'Present Truth'

The Greek word pareimi means 'at hand' or 'right in front of you'; it is not relative truth or new truth.

Scripture Reading — Luke 13:1

"There were present at that season some that told him of the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices."

Scripture Reading — Psalm 119:89

When I talk about the present truth, I'm definitely not speaking about situation ethics. I'm not saying that truth changes with the situation. No. God's Word is constant. God's Word is fixed. That's why the Bible says in Psalm 119, verse 89, "Forever, O Lord, is thy word settled in the heavens." That's why our Lord said in John 17:17, "Sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth." So when I'm talking about the present truth, I'm not talking about nor am I saying that truth is relative or that truth changes. That is not what is meant by the term "the present truth." Secondly, I am not saying that there is such a thing as new truth. Listen carefully. The phrase "the present truth" does not imply new truth. Here it is. Listen carefully. If a revelation is new, it is not true. For there is no such thing as new truth.

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners,"

that is, at different times in different ways,

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets."

It's true in the Old Testament and sometimes in the New Testament, God used visions and dreams. Watch this.

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 1:1-3

"But hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high."

Progressive Revelation in Scripture

God revealed truth progressively over 1,600 years; examples from Messianic prophecies and Acts show unfolding truth.

Scripture Reading — Genesis 3:15

"For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little." So what did God do when He gave us the Bible? He gave us line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little, there a little. Now, we're going to be looking at some scriptures in just a moment, but I want you to listen to me right now because I want to show you what I'm talking about when I refer to progressive revelation or progressive unfolding of the truth. So if we take no one else other than the Lord Jesus Christ, this should explain it for you. Don't turn there. But if you were to go to Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, that is the protevangelium. That is the first promise of the Messiah in the Bible. It is there that God says that the seed of the woman is going to crush the serpent's head, and the serpent will bruise his heel. So the very first thing you find out about the Messiah in Genesis chapter 3, verse 15, is He is going to be born of a woman and He is going to be victorious. Do you realize that's Genesis 3:15? It was only in Genesis chapter 12, verses 1 through 3, particularly, that we discover that the Messiah is going to come from the seed of Abraham. We weren't told that in Genesis 3, verse 15. It was only later in Genesis 49, verse 10, that we find out that the Messiah is going to be born, not just simply of the seed of Abraham, but of the tribe of Judah. And then it was many years later after that revelation that it was revealed in 2 Samuel chapter 7, verses 12-13, that the Messiah was going to be the seed of David.

Scripture Reading — Acts 19:1-5

"And it came to pass that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having passed through the upper coasts, came to Ephesus." "And finding certain disciples, he said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus."

Revelation Ceased, Illumination Continues

Revelation has ended with Christ, but the Holy Spirit progressively illuminates believers to understand Scripture.

Scripture Reading — 2 Timothy 2:7, 15

"Consider what I say, and the Lord give thee understanding in all things."

Historical Examples of Present Truth

In various eras, present truth was the Lordship of Christ, justification by faith, sovereignty of God, etc.; today it is the superiority of God's Word.

Discerning and Applying Present Truth

Present truth is where the battle rages; it is proclaimed by God's true servants. Believers must receive preaching as God's Word and be established.

Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 2:13

" So here's the question. Do you view the preaching of the Word of God as it really is—the Word of God—or do you merely regard it as the word of man? Let me show you. I want you to look in your Bibles to 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. 1 Thessalonians, chapter 2. Here's an amazing and marvelous verse. 1 Thessalonians 2, verse 13. The Apostle Paul writes to the Thessalonians, and he says this: "

Scripture Reading — 1 Thessalonians 2:13

" No. They received it as the Word of God and not as the word of men. So the question is, how do you receive the preaching of the Word of God? Do you say, "

This is God's will. This is God's Word for my life"?

The Present Truth

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	101915167563
Subject	Church Government
Course	Church Order: Worship, Sacraments, and the Lord's Supper
Genre	Sermon
Date	2015-07-26
Dictation Name
Book	Book 039: Church Order and Worship - Volume 1 — Chapter 11
Source Timed Segments	67

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Text: Reading of 2 Peter 1:12–15 and introduction of the vital principle of 'the present truth.'
The Necessity of Repeated Truth: Truth must be heard over and over to be grounded and established; repetition aids learning, as modeled by Christ.
Being Established in the Present Truth: Explanation of 'established' (stērizō) and the benefits of being fixed in truth, contrasted with double-mindedness.
Defining 'Present Truth': The Greek word pareimi means 'at hand' or 'right in front of you'; it is not relative truth or new truth.
Progressive Revelation in Scripture: God revealed truth progressively over 1,600 years; examples from Messianic prophecies and Acts show unfolding truth.
Revelation Ceased, Illumination Continues: Revelation has ended with Christ, but the Holy Spirit progressively illuminates believers to understand Scripture.
Historical Examples of Present Truth: In various eras, present truth was the Lordship of Christ, justification by faith, sovereignty of God, etc.; today it is the superiority of God's Word.
Discerning and Applying Present Truth: Present truth is where the battle rages; it is proclaimed by God's true servants. Believers must receive preaching as God's Word and be established.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

Truth Requires Repetition

Peter insists on reminding believers of known truth because repetition grounds and establishes them.

2 Peter 1:12: 'I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance... though you know them.'

Present Truth Is Not New Revelation

Jesus Christ is the full and final revelation; claiming new truth denies His completeness.

Hebrews 1:1-3: God has spoken in these last days by His Son.

God Revealed Truth Progressively

The Bible was given over 1,600 years with progressive unfolding, as seen in Messianic prophecies.

From Genesis 3:15 to Micah 5:2, details about the Messiah were revealed gradually.

Illumination Is Progressive

The Holy Spirit enlightens believers to understand Scripture progressively, not all at once.

John 16:12-13: 'I have yet many things to say... but ye cannot bear them now... the Spirit will guide you into all truth.'

Present Truth Is Where the Battle Rages

Believers must confess Christ precisely where truth is under attack, or they deny Him.

Martin Luther: 'where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved.'

Preaching Is God's Means of Manifesting Truth

God manifests His Word through preaching, and His servants proclaim present truth as He burdens them.

Titus 1:1-3: 'hath in due times manifested his word through preaching.'

Scripture References

2 Peter 1:12-15: The primary text; Peter's commitment to remind believers of truth and his desire for them to be established in the present truth.
2 Corinthians 13:5: Paul's command to examine ourselves, used to show that rehearsing truth enables self-examination.
Mark 10:1: Jesus taught the people again, illustrating the principle of repetition.
Hebrews 2:1: We must give earnest heed to things we have heard lest they slip, emphasizing the need for repeated truth.
Colossians 2:7: Believers are to be rooted and built up in Christ and established in the faith.
Psalm 112:1-10: Describes the blessings of the man who fears the Lord and is established, including stability and lack of fear.
James 1:5-8: The double-minded man is unstable; contrast to being established.
Luke 13:1: Usage of 'present' (pareimi) to mean 'standing right in front of you.'
2 Corinthians 10:11: Paul uses 'present' to mean being physically present, illustrating the word's meaning.
Psalm 119:89: God's Word is forever settled in heaven, showing truth is constant.
John 17:17: Jesus said, 'Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.'
Hebrews 1:1-3: God has spoken finally by His Son; no new revelation beyond Christ.
Isaiah 28:9-10: Precept upon precept, line upon line; God teaches progressively.
Genesis 3:15: First promise of the Messiah; seed of woman will crush serpent's head.
Acts 18:24-28: Apollos knew only John's baptism; Aquila and Priscilla expounded the way of God more perfectly, illustrating present truth.
Acts 19:1-5: Disciples at Ephesus knew only John's baptism; Paul taught them about Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
John 16:12-13: The Spirit will guide into all truth; progressive illumination.
2 Timothy 2:7, 15: Study to show thyself approved; the Lord gives understanding.
Titus 1:1-3: God manifests His Word through preaching committed to Paul.
1 Thessalonians 2:13: Believers received Paul's preaching as the Word of God, not man's word.

Historical References

Martin Luther and the Reformation (1500s Germany): Present truth was justification by faith alone; Luther's quote on confessing Christ where the battle rages.
John Calvin and Geneva (1500s): Present truth was the sovereignty of God; choice between Calvin's teaching and humanistic divine right of kings.
John Knox and Scotland (1500s): Present truth was the kingship of Christ; stand with Knox or statist position.
Puritans and Separatists (1700s England): Present truth was purity of the church; Puritans sought reform, Separatists left impure churches.
Cult of Emperor Worship (First Century): Present truth was the Lordship of Jesus Christ; choice between Christ and Caesar.

Important Quotes

If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God, except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ. However boldly I may be professing Christ, where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefields besides is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.

Martin Luther's statement powerfully defines present truth as the truth under attack, demanding confession precisely there.

I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them and be established in the present truth.

The key verse of the sermon, highlighting Peter's commitment to repetition and the concept of present truth.

For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little and there a little.

Isaiah 28:9-10 quoted to illustrate God's method of progressive revelation.

For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 emphasizes the proper reception of preaching as God's Word.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

Why does Peter emphasize reminding believers of truths they already know? How does this apply to our need for repeated teaching?

[Context]

Based on 2 Peter 1:12 and the principle that repetition aids learning.

[Question]

What does it mean to be 'established in the present truth'? How can we discern what the present truth is for our time?

[Context]

From the definition of 'established' and the explanation of present truth.

[Question]

How does the concept of progressive illumination affect our patience with other believers who may not yet understand certain truths?

[Context]

From the discussion on God's sovereignty in illumination and the example of being patient with Ed.

[Question]

In what areas is the battle raging today where we must confess Christ and His Word?

[Context]

From the application of Luther's quote and the list of contemporary issues.

[Question]

How can we cultivate an attitude that receives preaching as the Word of God and not merely the word of man?

[Context]

From 1 Thessalonians 2:13 and the application about our attitude toward preaching.

Applications

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