Read: Colossians 1:24-4:18
God is constantly revealing new things to those who trust him. There are things written in the Bible that are sealed from our understanding until the time that God plans to reveal them. They are like the seals of Revelation. God keeps them sealed until it is time to open them up. Paul came as the messenger of church of Ephesus. In Revelation 2:1, John called him the angel of the church of Ephesus. Each of the churches in Revelation refer to a different church age and each angel referred to a certain person during that age that unsealed an important revelation God wanted unsealed. Paul came to the church and the new revelation that he unsealed was the fact that the Gentiles were all part of God’s plan and they were to be adopted into the family of God. This was blasphemy to some and good news to others. Paul gave his life and suffered much to bring forth that truth. He stayed faithful till the end of his life. Once a seal is broken, it is forever a truth no longer hidden but a truth that will continue to every generation after that.
Paul’s goal was to birth churches of people that were filled with the knowledge of God’s will and grew in wisdom, understanding and good fruits.
Paul warned them to not let man lead them away from the truth they received by philosophy, vain deceit, traditions of men, and the rudiments of the world. (That is King James talk.) Philosophy is the love of wisdom and knowledge that comes through logical analysis of the principles underlying conduct, thought, knowledge, and the nature of the universe. We can learn about God by observing his creation but the nature of the universe and man is not necessarily the nature of God. This world is Satan’s domain that we are to take back for the kingdom of God, so we are not going to learn about God through logical analysis. God is not logical. He is higher than logic and cannot be understood by our finite minds. To understand God through logic was the temptation Satan gave Eve as they stood looking at the tree whose fruit promised to give them knowledge of good and evil. He told her that she would be as God, understanding these things. We understand God through spiritual discernment. He does reveal himself through nature but everything we learn about God comes through his son, Jesus. Jesus was the manifest presence of God on the earth. We will never understand God apart from his son, Jesus.
Lord, help us to embrace our weaknesses and rest in Jesus as the answer to everything we need to know.
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