September 19
Isaiah 30-31
Psalm 105:23-36
Proverbs 23:6-8
Colossians 1:15-29
The Great Mystery
“I have become its servant, to make God’s message fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to His saints. God wanted to make known among the Gentiles the glorious wealth of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim Him, warning and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” Colossians 1:25-28
We know the secret, the one that all humanity has been trying to figure out since the beginning of creation. The meaning and purpose of all existence and the secret to being able to live lives that glorify God and are transcendent to time and place. I know that sounds arrogant and presumptuous, but it isn’t. We know the secret because God has revealed it to us. We are in the know. All of history from the beginning of creation led up to God’s Son leaving heaven, coming to earth as a baby, living a perfect, sinless life, dying on a cross as the sacrifice for our sins, being buried and raising Himself back to life, defeating sin and death, and then ascending to heaven. All of that is amazing and our belief in that is what saves our souls and gives us eternal life, but that isn’t the mystery. For centuries the Old Testament saints followed God. They had an elaborate system of rules and regulations they had to follow to live a good life and please God. They had prescribed sacrifices to offer when they messed up and even sacrifices just in case they messed up and didn’t know it. But their lives were still characterized more by sin and evil than by holiness. God’s chosen people failed Him time and again. God knew before He ever created humans that we were going to be sinful and selfish and rebellious. And He still created us. He knew that no matter how hard we tried, we were going to mess up. So, he provided the sacrifice, His Only Son, that would allow for our salvation.
But He knew that even that would not be enough. His Son came to earth and walked among us. In His human body, He could not be with everyone everywhere all at once, so He had another plan. He knows how weak we are. He knows that we each need constant attention and guidance. When He ascended to heaven, He sent His Holy Spirit to indwell us. That is the secret! That is the mystery! As soon as we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord, we receive the Holy Spirit! He not only saves us, but He also gives us the assurance of His constant presence. He comes to live in us to help us. He is our guide, comforter, encourager, companion, protector, mediator, and friend. We are never alone, and we have access to His wisdom, foreknowledge, strength, peace, and love. We don’t have to figure this all out ourselves. We have Him to do it for us. The secret to living a life of meaning and purpose is “Christ in us.” He created us and placed us on earth at this time on purpose. He indwells us to carry out His plans at this time in history. We fit into His grand plan. We are a piece of the puzzle, and the picture will not be complete without our contribution. Apart from Him, this life does not have purpose: it is here today and gone tomorrow. But in Him and through Him we find meaning in life. No other world religion or philosophy offers a god who indwells you and helps you day by day because their gods are not real. We alone know the Great Mystery. Let us be bold to proclaim it to anyone who will listen.
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