… just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you …
Summary: Peter’s reference to Paul provides an important endorsement of Paul’s teachings in the New Testament.
If you asked me what the backbone of the Old Testament is, I would have to say it is the genealogy of the Israelites. From Adam to Jesus, the genealogy of the world’s oldest family line is recorded in great detail. No matter where you are in the Old Testament, with few exceptions, there is a genealogical link to this backbone.
The New Testament is entirely different. The “links” are not as clear as they are in the OT. In Jesus’ day, the once-proud family line of Abraham has been scattered about the four corners of the ancient world. After the exile under King Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 52), some of Israel returns to her homeland, but she does not regain her once-fabled glory and power.
By the time of Jesus, Israel is little more than a historical footnote in the Grand Scheme of Things. Rome has conquered the world and what is left of Israel is subject to her. The backbone of the OT still exists, but for those counting vertebrae, it looked like history had come to the end of the line.
Then came Jesus.
In the course of his ministry, Jesus institutes a New Covenant between God and men (Jeremiah 31:31, Luke 22:20, 1 Cor 11:25). This New Covenant is not based on human genealogy but instead is based on a spiritual relationship with God.
The New Testament, instead of being a family album for the descendants of Abraham, is a collection of writings and letters from all kinds of people. The bulk of the New Testament is written by a Gentile we know as Luke. Matthew and John are both disciples of Jesus, which makes their gospels a first-hand account. Mark is another mystery. Who is he? In Peter’s first letter, he makes note of his “son Mark.” Is Mark Peter’s biological son, or is he a spiritual son as Timothy is to Paul (1 Cor 4:17)?
Then there is Paul himself. Originally committed to eradicating the world of those who followed Jesus, he becomes a disciple himself (Acts 9: 1-19).
Oddly, it is Paul, the disciple with the most tenuous connection to Jesus, who ends up being the primary spokesman for New Covenant. He is the one who carries the message of redemption to the Gentiles (Acts 22: 21).
If this were Three Hour Bible instead of Three Minute Bible, we could go on at length about Paul’s history and his theology, but it is not. Instead, let us focus on this most important connection between the Old and the New. Peter was called by Jesus to be a disciple (Matthew 4: 18-20). He followed Jesus for the whole of his ministry on earth. He saw the resurrected Jesus and talked with him and ate with him (John 21: 1-14).
In this one passage, Peter reaches out to all of history and obliterates any doubt about Paul’s credentials as an Apostle of the Lord. He writes, “Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you…” This means that Peter has read Paul’s writings. By addressing Paul as a “dear brother,” he erases any doubt that there is lingering hostility between Paul and Peter (Gal 2: 11).
Did Paul write about God’s patience leading to salvation for many? Yes, he did (Rom 2:4). Did Peter know about this? Yes, again. Did Peter approve of Paul’s teaching? Yes, it is clear from the text that they were in total harmony in their understanding of the Gospel.
For those who need it, Peter’s letter is the bridge from the teachings of Jesus to the teachings of Paul. The connection between these vertebrae differs greatly from the historical connections in the Old Testament, but they are every bit as solid.
Application: Use this passage as a means of answering questions about the validity of Paul’s teachings.
Food for Thought: How does Peter’s reference to Paul as a “dear brother” reflect on Peter’s application of his teachings in 2 Peter 1: 5-8?
Peter spent a considerable time with Jesus in the flesh and saw the prophesy fulfilled with his own eyes. Paul saw the face of Jesus and His glory, but didn’t walk with Jesus in the flesh. Both Paul and Peter though were dedicated to God’s mission. Brothers-in-arms, but more so, brothers is Christ. In 1 Peter 1:5-8 Peter spoke of those of faith, shielded by God’s power, who rejoice because the grief they endured demonstrated their genuineness, so that Christ could be glorified. Even though these faithful had not seen Christ in the flesh, they loved Him, and have been given joy (a very sloppy paraphrasing on my part).
I think (think) Peter recognized this in Paul, and it brings a great sense of brotherhood to him. To see a man turn from persecuting Christians to helping them grow closer to Jesus, despite having never known Him as a man.
1 Peter 1:5-8 “Who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
Thanks Chris,
You got to where I was going, even though I misdirected you on the scripture reference. (Since corrected.)
Thanks for the good effort and your understanding. 🙂
Hmm. I am not completely sure where you are going with this question. Paul certainly experienced all kinds of trials and was refined by them (2 Corinthians 11: 23 – 29; 2 Corinthians 12: 7b – 10; 2 Timothy 4: 6 – 8). Paul did not “see” Jesus but certainly heard from Him – and did see something (Acts 9: 1 – 6). And Paul certainly demonstrated a genuine faith expressed in glorious joy despite his sufferings.
Dear Brother Rich,
I have a mental image of you staring at this question, scratching your head and thinking, “What is he doing?!!”
Thanks for sorting out what I had intended to ask. 🙂
Well done!
If you meant 2 Peter 1: 5 – 8, then we see the love of Peter toward Paul despite past relational strife. Paul and Peter developed into dear brothers as the love of Christ won out.
5Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge,
6and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness,
7and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love.
8For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I think you may be right, R. I imagine, especially for Peter, he would’ve initially had to utilize a lot of self control with Paul. And then, seeing the evidence of his faith become like brothers and the love of our Lord Jesus wins.
Ooops! …
I did mean 2 Peter 1: 5-8.
Sorry about the confusion! Kudos to all of you who did your best to make sense of my late night ravings!!
No worries Jeff! It happens to us all 🙂
But you made a good point that the letters show interaction with the writers. All those who participated in penning the new testament knew each other and had to figure out how to live what they taught. In fact it should be concerning if we didn’t have any of that showing up in our studies!
I think you did great Jeff it all made sense to me. Wisdom Knowledge and Understanding. Quick question. Wasn’t there a period of time before Paul started teaching that he was learning/studying or something for 4 years?