Great and Hidden Things

“Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known” (Jeremiah 33:3).

I can remember when my children were young and their appetites for knowledge were insatiable. With eager anticipation they presented their queries at seemingly twice the speed of sound. I don’t know if they ever allowed me the opportunity to fully answer one question before they had asked two more.

There were times when their questioning made my heart swell with pride, as when they were intent on knowing more about Jesus. And, of course, there were times when the endless stream of questions exhausted and/or frustrated me. All children go through it. It’s how they grow intellectually and learn to maneuver through life.

This is every bit as true for Christians. When we first come to faith in Jesus we want to know everything there is to know about Him and what it means to follow Him. With unbridled passion we seek out answers, and with a loving and generous heart He reveals them.

As my children aged and their knowledge increased, they asked fewer and fewer questions. This was, in part, due to their ability to find answers on their own. Their inquisitive spirit drove away the fear of making mistakes when they discovered that they can learn from them. Their need for Dad had diminished as their self-reliance increased.

Unfortunately, as we grow as Christians, it is all too common for us to become more self-reliant and need God less. We would never say so, of course. And we would quite likely deny it if pressed. But our culture values self-reliance. It expects us to do it all by ourselves.

The greatest mistake we could ever make as Christians is thinking we can do it all by ourselves!

We fail when we put our trust in our education, in our connections, and in the school of hard knocks. We fail when we don’t realize that apart from Jesus we are powerless (John 15:5)! Our outward success, if achieved by our own efforts and not by our complete and utter reliance upon Him, is at best a façade and at worst, blasphemy.

Christianity is at odds with our culture. We, therefore, should live counter-culturally and strive toward lives of greater dependence upon God.

Why would we possible insist on finding our own way when the Creator of all things has promised that if we call on Him, He will show us “great and mighty things” we haven’t known?

Blessings on your weekend!