"Let God Have His Secrets"

“Let God Have His Secrets”

 

Years ago a missionary visited our New Hampshire church and left his Bible on the pulpit after the service. I called him the next day and asked for his address so I could return it. The street name was unusual so he spelled it. I asked him where the name came from and he replied with a sigh, “Only God knows!”

I remembered this incident recently while reading Ezekiel 37, “The Valley of Dry Bones” (the NIV chapter heading). God asked His prophet, “…Can these bones live?” to which Ezekiel answered, “O Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” (Verse 3). I pondered this statement and God brought to mind His words in Deuteronomy 29:29: “The secret things belong to the Lord our God….” The only conclusion we can draw from this is that there are things He, for His own reasons, hasn’t chosen to let us know.

Abraham Lincoln is said to have observed that he wasn’t bothered by what he didn’t understand in the Bible as much as he was by the things he did understand but failed to practice. To this bit of wisdom I respond, “Guilty as charged.” In Revelation 10:4 the Apostle John was commanded not to write down what he’d just seen, but I sometimes wondered what it was until I realized God wouldn’t have withheld it if it was something He wanted me to know. Or how about setting dates for the events surrounding Christ’s return when He Himself said, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matthew 24:36, emphasis added)? If Jesus in His humanity didn’t know this how can I be so arrogant as to think I can?

In His Word God has given us “…Everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him….” (2 Peter 1:3). He also reminds us, “…My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways….” (Isaiah 55:8). So, with Honest Abe, let’s act on what we know and let God have His secrets about the rest.

 

Blessings!

Jim McMillan