Today I am writing about a great mystery. It is a spiritual mystery that has been hidden and hinted at for centuries before you or I were even born. Prophets spoke of it coming, but never saw it. Righteous men have longed to know the details, but they were not able to find out. In fact, it is such a great mystery that even the angels are interested in looking into it.
“I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (Matthew 13:17 Jesus is speaking.)
The apostle Peter spoke of “those things which angels desire to look into.” (1 Peter 1:12)
Today I began to understand that we don’t have to search any strange place to find a real mystery. It is right here, all around us, and we don’t even begin to understand it.
The great mystery I speak of is the gospel.
Now, before you say, “Oh, that’s all it is. I know all about that,” let me assure you that it is a very great mystery. In this post, I won’t even begin to dive in, but only hope to awaken you to the fact that there is something to “look into.” For when you believe you already know something (that you really don’t), then you stop looking into it.
When Jesus was teaching His disciples, they asked Him why he used parables (stories that use symbolism to teach a spiritual meaning) instead of just teaching those spiritual lessons directly. And his answer has puzzled many people ever since.
“He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.” (Matthew 13:11)
So the question arises right away: Who are the ones who are “not given” to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven?
Jesus provided a part of the answer in a prayer:
“I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.”
The next verse seems to be directed to his disciples.
All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. (Matthew 11:25 – 27 NKJV)
Jesus deliberately spoke in a kind of code. He told stories that made sense on the surface, but that had a hidden spiritual meaning that only some would understand. He hid the teaching from the “wise and prudent,” and revealed them to “babes.”
On the surface, this seems unfair. Those who deliberately tried to learn, who devoted themselves to becoming wise, would be excluded from understanding. And the uneducated, or the simple ones, would get it.
But we need some context. Who were the educated ones that Jesus was talking about? They were the religious leaders, the “scribes and Pharisees.” And just as it has happened today, the teachings of God, which were fairly simple to begin with, had become more and more complicated, and things had been added that God never intended. As a result, God’s Holy law had become entwined with and blocked by the “doctrines of men.”
Or one could call it the “wisdom of men.” The apostle Paul says this:
“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them,because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
Jesus wasn’t trying to exclude intellectuals. But his parables were designed to teach only those who were sensitive to the Spirit of God. They excluded those who were following the doctrines of men, thinking that they could get close to God by pleasing each other.
The comment that Jesus made after the prayer helped to explain that all of the wisdom of God came exclusively through God’s son, Jesus. No one knows the Father except the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Son decides to whom He will reveal the Father.
Jesus’ teaching also leveled the playing field. You don’t have to be rich to please God. You don’t have to be smart. You don’t have to be well-known, or handsome, well-liked or even socially acceptable. The Lord only discriminates against those who believe they already have all the answers.
It’s so simple, and yet it’s so easy to miss. If we think we have all the answers, we are wrong. God is the only One with all the answers, and the only way we will know the truth about Him is if Jesus reveals it to us. Remember that Jesus is the “Way, the Truth, and the Life.” (John 14:6)
Does that mean that we have to let go of everything that we have learned? No, but it might mean that we have to let go of some things in areas where we have trusted men and not God.
I freely admit that there are lots of things I really don’t understand, but despite that, I am determined to submit my mind to God and trust Him. I know He will reveal the truth to me in time, when He determines it’s time, or that I am ready to know. That means that right now, I don’t know some things, I believe them. It means I have to trust Him, even when I can’t prove things to other people in a way that they trust.
If I try to get at the meaning using my mind and my logic, I will not be able to do it. It will be hidden from me unless it comes from God, through Jesus. And by pursuing things that are hidden, I may be led astray. God gave us mind and logic, but the desire for premature knowledge is exactly the problem that Adam and Eve had.
Think about it: They already had knowledge of good. They had everything they wanted. They had food when they reached for it, and they walked with God every day, just to visit! And they had leisure. They didn’t have to plant anything, or mow the lawn, or even weed. (Thorns came later, because of their sin.)
They had unrestricted access to all things except for one tree. The temptation was to decide for themselves when it was time to know more, and that decision took them out from under God’s blessing and protection. Not only that, but they betrayed God by trusting His enemy. And all they received for such a terrible cost was the knowledge of evil and eventual death.
The scripture tells us that “for now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.” (1 Corinthians 13: 12)
The great mystery is the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the mystery of why He loves us so much that He would die for us. It’s the mystery of the glorious Godhead, and all that that implies–who can truly understand it in this life? It is the mystery of how we please Him, which each one of us has to find out, not only through learning what He expects of us by studying His word, but also, specific to ourselves, through our relationship with Him.
The Holy One of Israel, the Lord of Hosts, has a plan for your life. (Jeremiah 31:3) That plan has been in existence from before you were born, and even from before the foundation of the world. (Ephesians 1:4,10) He chose you, and guarded you all of your life. (Romans 8:28-30) You are a child of God–and yet, you are literally dust. This is also part of the mystery.
I’m writing this, not to answer any questions. It’s the exact opposite. I am inviting you to step into wonder and belief. I urge you to let go of things that God hasn’t given you. Enter true reality, where you understand your limitations, and yet have peace that passes all understanding, peace that you are utterly cared for, loved, and safe, despite not knowing everything.
(I took the blurry ones.)
Believing is seeing. You have to trust God and believe Him before you are able to see the evidence that He was truthful all along. That’s what makes it tough. But that is our part: Belief.
First, we have to invest in God, and take a step out without knowing where, exactly, that step will land. But every time, when we trust in Him, He quickly completes the distance between you, because being close to you is what He has wanted all along.
So look up, my dear friends! Look at the beautiful sky that God has made to show the days, the seasons and the years. Notice those things that have not been made by man, and look for the hand of God. He left His fingerprints all over this world, for the purpose of communicating the truth about Himself. He loves you so!
Have a wonder-filled week, and know that I will be praying for you to easily see the things that you have picked up without meaning to do it. Examine your own ideas, and ask yourself if that’s what you really believe. What do you will to believe?
I have found many of my long-standing beliefs are utterly false this week; but it’s always a relief to let those false things go! Walk in freedom, the freedom that Jesus gives you, and remember who you really are. Walk as children of light!
The Fullers Four 