One of the greatest blessings you and I possess as followers of Jesus, is His wisdom and His mind. Through Jesus we have a new perspective, new eyes, and a new outlook. There are things we are being divinely equipped to understand that the unbelieving world cannot comprehend.
Throughout the course of our lives, we naturally begin to see things differently as we grow and mature. Our perspective develops as we take on new roles and responsibilities. I used to think leadership looked fun, now that I've been leading for a few decades, I can see that it's sometimes fun and sometimes very painful. As a child, I used to question the decisions of my parents, but as a father, I can more clearly see why they made certain leadership decisions that I didn't appreciate in my youth.
As we come to faith in Jesus, and our faith begins to mature, our spiritual eyes are opened. Once we are granted the mind of Christ, His Spirit shows us things that we were incapable of seeing before. Things that were hidden from us because we didn't possess a spiritual mind that was capable of comprehending them. God's word goes into detail about our new spiritual sight and the development of our understanding.
I. The wisdom of God is displayed in Jesus Christ
“but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:23-24)
When I was about twelve, my grandparents took my sisters and me to a drive in movie theater to see the movie "Big". In that movie, the character played by Tom Hanks gets a job with a toy company, and during a business meeting, someone tries to pitch an idea for a new toy. It's a robot that transforms into a building. After the idea is presented, Hanks raises his hand and says, "I don't get it." He thought the toy was boring and it would be better for the robot to transform into something that could move, not just a building that would sit still.
When the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ is presented to an unbelieving world, I often wonder if they're also saying, "I don't get it." And if that is what they're saying, they're probably being honest because Paul says our crucified Savior is a stumbling block to Jews and sounds like foolishness to Gentiles.
The Jews who were waiting for centuries for the appearance of the Messiah struggled to wrap their mind around Him finally coming, only to be crucified. And Gentiles who come from all kinds of mixed up spiritual beliefs struggle to see how a suffering Savior who was put to death can accomplish anything meaningful in our lives at present.
But those of us who have come to faith in Christ have had our eyes open to the bigger picture. In Christ, we see the fulfillment of the Scriptures. In Christ, we see the atonement for our sin. In Christ, we not only see His vicarious death, but also the power of His resurrection. In bodily form, through His words and His actions, Christ demonstrated both the wisdom and the power of God because He is the source of true wisdom and power.
We also understand that we will never experience true wisdom or lasting power outside of a deep, relational connection to Jesus Christ.
II. God's plan, which was secret, has been made clear to you
"But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory." (1 Corinthians 2:7)
The older I get, the more I value having a plan, and I see this same trait in my children as well. A few months ago, I announced to our household, "Tomorrow, I'm taking a drive in my car. Anyone who wants to come with me is welcome to come. If you go, you will have fun, but don't ask me any other questions about it." Because I didn't annunciate all the details of my plan, only one person in my household joined me--my wife. And we had a lovely day together.
God is a planner. He is orderly and intentional. From eternity past, He planned for our redemption through His Son. But He's been revealing His plan to humanity gradually, a piece at a time. Certain aspects of His plan remained mysterious and hidden for ages. Likewise, there are certain details of what He has in store that He has only revealed to us in part at present. But in the meantime, He offers us the chance to take a ride with Him. He's giving us the opportunity to get in the car and believe He's got something good in store.
Amazingly, there are aspects of His plan that we have a more developed understanding of than did the angels and the prophets who lived prior to Christ's incarnation. They longed to look into the things that have been more fully revealed to us.
As recipients of this divine revelation, Paul tells us in this passage that we have the privilege to impart this secret or hidden wisdom of God to others. It will only be understood by those whose eyes have been opened by the Lord, but we are given the privilege to be the ones He speaks through. We reveal what we have been privileged to understand.
III. Through knowing Christ, your eyes are truly opened
"So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized; and taking food, he was strengthened." (Acts 9:17-19)
A few months ago, my father became unhappy with his television. It is a high-end TV that's supposed to last a long time, but he said the color was starting to fade and the image wasn't as crisp. In the meantime, he also went to his doctor to get cataracts removed from his eyes. When his eyes healed, he quickly realized that his TV was perfectly fine. His ability to see clearly was the real problem.
The Apostle Paul experienced a significant sight problem during his era as well. If you're familiar with the story of his life, you know he was zealous for the religious traditions he was raised in. He was well trained in Jewish theology and became part of a select group called the Pharisees. For a time, he hated and persecuted Christians because he believed their worship of Jesus was blasphemous. Jesus was still a stumbling block for Paul, until his eyes were opened.
God's word tells us that Jesus appeared to Paul and Paul was impacted both physically and spiritually through that encounter. For a time, he became physically blind after seeing Jesus, but after coming to faith in Jesus, his physical sight was restored and he was granted true spiritual sight.
If you know Jesus in a personal way, have you ever taken the time to notice how the Lord has been opening your eyes to see things you would never have naturally seen? When Christ opens your eyes, you will see yourself differently. You'll also see marriage, parenting, cultural events, morality, grace, justice, and the needs of humanity in a new way. The world will not understand your new perspective, but mature believers in Christ who also have had their eyes opened will understand you completely.
IV. The Holy Spirit will enable you to understand the whole counsel of God's word
“Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” (Acts 20:26-27)
For one week each summer, I have the privilege, along with several other seasoned pastors, to teach classes to new pastors. At this year's training event, one of the questions that came from one of the new pastors was, "How do I handle the fact that a very influential man in my congregation doesn't like when I preach through entire books of the Bible. He prefers that I preach on selected topics that fit with current events."
Every pastor experiences that same dilemma. We're called to preach the whole counsel of God's word, but when people become glued to the mind-warping power of modern media, they can sometimes prefer the pulpit to become the podium of current events instead of the sacred desk from which the Scriptures are preached. From time to time, I receive pushback in this particular area because more often than not I try to resist the urge to let my preaching calendar become dictated by the news cycle. I am willing to accept occasional criticism for taking this approach because I know that when the day comes and my service as a pastor ends, you'll always be able to say, "John preached the word of God. Even the awkward parts."
That was Paul's aim as well when he was proclaiming the Scriptures to the people in his era. He showed them that the Scriptures are pointing us to Jesus. He even went so far as to say that he couldn't be held culpable for the spiritual blindness or spiritual death of anyone because he never shied away from declaring the whole counsel of God's word, even the awkward parts.
As our eyes are opened through faith in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit will also enable us to understand the whole counsel of God's word. We won't just see the parts we prefer to see. We'll see and understand the parts that challenge us as well, and I believe He will help us to value what He's showing us in those passages. As our faith matures, we'll even thank Him for confronting our false beliefs and opening up our eyes to the right perspective.
Tell me if this sounds familiar. "When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years." That quote is usually attributed to Mark Twain, even though it probably wasn't him who said it. But we laugh at the thought that's being conveyed because it's something we can all identify with. It takes time for us to see things that used to be hidden from our understanding.
Take heart because through Christ, we can now see things that we couldn't see before. God is giving us new sight and deeper understanding. Rejoice in His willingness to open our eyes, and generously share His wisdom.
© John Stange, 2020
