December 22, 2020 THE MYSTERY MADE KNOWN
Ephesians 1:7-9 “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace, which He lavished upon us. In all wisdom and insight He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intentions which He purposed in Him….”
Matthew 13:11 “And He answered and said unto them, ‘To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.”
The message of the gospel is not logical. No matter how educated or no matter how high the IQ may be, those who do not known the Lord cannot understand the word of God nor the kingdom of God; because it is not logical, it is rejected. (We should not be surprised when non-believers do not understand and reject God’s word.) God has designed it in such a way that only through a relationship with Jesus can the gospel be understood and experienced. There are mysteries surrounding the message of the gospel, and there are mysteries about God-BUT He has chosen to make known to us the mysteries. Following is just a brief listing of some of the mysteries of God and His kingdom. It is better to give that to receive. When we die to ourselves, we find life. It is better to prefer others over ourselves. The Holy Spirit of God indwells us. We have been made new creations. We have been given a new heart, a new spirit, and a new mind. We are super-natural beings. God has poured out His love into our hearts. God directs our steps. We have a hope that is not based on circumstances but on God-and His hope does not disappoint. Whoever has, to him shall more be given-Matthew 13. Whoever wishes to be great must become a servant. We return good for evil. We have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness and transferred to the kingdom of light. There are many more mysteries concerning the things of God-but you get my point. There is a key point that we must not overlook. One can come to know God as Savior, but not be about maturing in the faith and not learning of his or her new identity as a child of God. We should be like Paul who said in Philippians 3:14: “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” The pursuit of knowing God more fully and learning more about His kingdom is the greatest pursuit we could ever be about. The good news is that God desires to reveal to us more about Himself and His ways; our part is to have a heart for Him and to seek Him first.
Matthew 16:19 “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
Blessings,
Buddy