Tag Archives: Spirit of God

A hidden mystery – in plain sight

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Mystery. Intrigue. Things that are difficult or impossible to explain. From the miracle of birth to the creation of each new sunrise, we’re drawn to things that are revealed before us and yet escape our full understanding. Our minds are created to know more. Authors and filmmakers go to great effort and expense to allure us to the mysteries of things around us. But we have a greater yearning to discover “the secrets” of life itself and how to live it well.

 

And yet, there remains a “secret” mystery in our midst that is “hidden” in plain sight. Paul describes it in 1 Corinthians 2 as “God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.” What is this “mystery”? Throughout the New Testament it is clearly described as the wisdom and plan of God revealed to us through his son Jesus. This “mystery” reveals:

  • What is true godliness (1 Timothy 3:16).
  • The revelation that God’s good news is for all people who accept it (Romans 11:25, Romans 16:25, Ephesians 3:3-9).
  • The understanding of God’s will (Ephesians 1:9).
  • The secrets of the end times (1 Corinthians 15:51, Revelation 1:20, Revelation 17:5-9).
  • The announcement of who wins at the end of time and where we will stand (Revelation 17:14).
  • The “secret” of “Christ in us, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27)

 

As we long to understand so many things, let’s focus on what has already been revealed: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived,” the things God has prepared for those who love him – these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. (1 Corinthians 2:9-10)

 

God’s mystery isn’t revealed through eloquent and persuasive words or human reason.  We’re not going to grasp the mysteries of God in our own understanding. Such search will yield nothing about the purpose of suffering or the keys to living well. God warns us that without the power of his Spirit, his mysteries remain hidden; they’re even considered foolishness to those who reject his leading. His mysteries are not revealed by becoming strong but in realizing our inherent weakness. In fact, the primary way we discover the mystery of God is when we come to the end of ourselves and our infatuation with other things. His mysteries are only revealed by the power of God who lives in us. Take heart! The Spirit of God knows “even the deep things of God.” He knows our thoughts and inner desires. And he knows the thoughts and plans of God for us. It’s futile to live the Christian life by trying to “become better.” What we need is to accept and rely on “the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us” (v 12).
Let’s freely accept what has been freely given!

 

“Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?”
But we have the mind of Christ.

 

No eye has seen

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No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him. These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.  1 Corinthians 2:9-10

 

We were created with powerful imaginations. Some see a barren field and imagine a bountiful garden or a vast building project. Some see a blank canvas and imagine a beautiful painting. Some hear tones and rhythm and imagine a musical masterpiece. God will allow us even to imagine He doesn’t exist if we insist on such a notion. But what mind can imagine what God has prepared for those who love Him? The answer: no wisdom of man can unveil the mysteries of God. However, God’s Spirit reveals these things.

 

God’s Spirit searches even our hidden thoughts. Helpful therapies can scratch below the surface of our understanding of things. But whatever dark mental fortresses these therapies cannot penetrate, the Spirit of God is able to enter in and shine a revealing light. Beyond our thoughts God’s Spirit perceives the fiery desires that furnace our ambitions and motives, even when they are hidden from our own heart. And what the Spirit reveals, He can heal.

 

The gifts of God are revealed by this same Spirit, if He lives in us. While our eyes and ears can only perceive our physical world, the Spirit can reveal our spiritual reality.

 

Without the Spirit of God, such things are regardless as foolish and worthless. They cannot be understood. The Bible is the best seller of all time, yet it is not understood by mere human minds. To them it is foolishness. (V 14) Only the Spirit of God can reveal its meaning and application. We can call ourselves Christians, but if we don’t have or obey the Spirit of God, these things will remain hidden. They are discerned and related only by God’s Spirit. Philosophy, literature, education, the lessons of the humanities, the arts and sciences – all these speak of knowledge. But God’s wisdom is spoken by the Spirit to those who have the Spirit. That is, God speaks to those who have the mind of Christ. (V 16)

 

The mind of Christ is not molded after the ways of the world, nor does it pursue them. They are foolishness. And we cannot have the mind of Christ without being transformed by God’s power through the renewal of our minds by His Spirit. This daily cleansing is our path to understanding God’s good and perfect will. (Romans 12:2)

 

We begin to imagine the mysteries of God and His will for our life when we ask Him to help us see ourselves and the world around us through the eyes of Jesus.