For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. (2 Peter 1:16)
Following Fables
A fable is a fictitious narrative or story, sometimes with supernatural happenings, to enforce a useful truth. One characteristic of a fable is that animals talk or act like human beings. A wolf finds the skin of a sheep and becomes a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” (Aesop). The lesson is that appearances can be deceiving. While Aesop’s identity is debated, it is thought he was an ancient Greek fabulist who lived hundreds of years before Christ. The early disciples were familiar with fables as fanciful stories lacking practical truth.
Peter used fables as a backdrop to show that the story about Jesus was not a fictitious narrative, made-up story, or legend of human wisdom. The story of Jesus was about a real man who lived in a real time and did real things. When Peter made known the gospel of Jesus Christ, he did not present it as a cunningly devised story created by the mind of man. The gospel of Jesus Christ is about the Son of God, His miracles, teachings, and sacrifice on a Roman cross. When the gospel was presented to the world, it was a story of profound character and eternal message. What the early writers wrote about Jesus were true stories.
During Jesus’ ministry, the Lord took Peter, James, and John to a high mountain where He was transfigured before them. The face of Jesus shone like the sun. His clothes became as white as the light. Moses and Elijah appeared and talked to Jesus about His death. Peter saw this with his own eyes. Jesus forbade the three apostles to tell anyone the story until after He was risen. After Jesus’ resurrection, they told everyone who would listen. In the minds of the world, the story of Jesus glowing like the sun was a myth, a fable, a cunningly devised story to strike the hearts of the hearers. Peter assured his audience that these events were true and that Jesus was the Son of God.
The stories of Jesus were validated by the eyewitness testimony of men like Peter. He saw Jesus heal the dead, feed more than 5,000 people with two small fish and five loaves of bread. Peter told his audience that Jesus walked on the water and that Peter had joined the Lord in walking on the water. Fable? No. Myth? Never. Peter testified that he was there. The resurrection of Jesus was real. Peter and John came to the tomb on the morning of the third day and found it empty. They inspected the contents of the tomb where Jesus was buried and found the linen cloths lying in place along with the handkerchief that had been around His head. The handkerchief was folded together next to the linen cloths. John affirmed this story in his gospel, and Peter affirmed it in his preaching.
Many consider the Bible a book of fables. They do not believe the veracity of its message, condemning it as a book of human wisdom. The story of Jesus is accepted as far as the story goes, but all miracles are rejected. Thomas Jefferson created his own version of the Bible, taking out all the stories of miracles, including the resurrection. The end of the gospel in the Jefferson Bible was hopelessness. People thought Noah was believing a fable. God told Noah to build an ark to save his family because God was going to destroy life on earth. Noah preached a message of salvation but to no avail. Noah and his wife, and their three sons and their wives, were saved in the ark. Everyone else “mythed” the ‘boat’ because they did not accept the word of Noah as truth. They could not believe God could destroy all life on earth – He did. The Bible is not a book of fables. Refusing to believe it has eternal consequences. Don’t myth the Bible.
