2 Peter 1:17 “For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

The Father spoke from heaven. This was well-witnessed. At the very beginning of his ministry John the Baptist heard God say this at Jesus’ baptism. Peter was there with James and John when Jesus let them see a little glimpse of the glory that made him something far higher than themselves. This was not just an “impression” these men had, a “gut-feeling,” like so many people who say “God spoke to me” today. They saw the light. They heard the Voice. This wasn’t last night’s pizza talking.

 “This is my Son,” the voice says. Sometimes people say that we are all God’s children, because he made us all, and that’s right. But that isn’t what the Voice meant. There were six men on that mountain top that day we heard when we read Matthew: Peter, James, John, Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. The Voice doesn’t say, “These are my sons.” It says, “This is my Son.” This one is different.

This is God’s Son in the sense we hear it in what may be the most famous of all Bible passages, John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,” his only-begotten Son. This isn’t a son he made. This is the Son who is made out of the same stuff his Father in heaven is–an eternal Being, an all-powerful Spirit, perfect Love, absolute Authority.

Does it matter whether you listen to him? Does it matter whether you follow him? There is nothing in your world that matters more! We contradict him, we ignore him, we deny him at our peril!

The Voice has even more to say about the Son. “This is my Son, whom I love.” Well, duh! I love my sons, too. Even when they were naughty I didn’t stop loving them. But the Father is saying something more.

God the Father had special reasons for loving Jesus his Son. “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life–only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father” (John 10:17-18). That’s part of Jesus description of himself as the Good Shepherd. The Father loves his Son because the Son lays down his life for us. He dies to save us. His death forgives us.

More than anything we have heard about Jesus today, this is why he wants us to follow him. He doesn’t want to scare us into listening to him with threats of his power and glory. He wants to love us into listening to him with the sacrifice that brings us forgiveness and life. Trust him and he will give you real life, unending life, fuller and better life than any other you can find. Know him and he will show you God’s love, love that knows no limits, love that infinitely surpasses any other affection you have ever known.

These things you’ve heard about Jesus–his sacrifice, his forgiveness, his love, his gift–these things are certain, too. No one less than God the Father in heaven speaks to it to assure us it is true.