The secret [of the wise counsel] of the Lord is for those who fear Him, And He will let them know His covenant and reveal to them [through His word] its [deep, inner] meaning.

Psalm 25:14

We love secrets because they often promise to bring excitement into our lives. Getting the inside scoop is a delicious feeling, and the one who listens to a secret feels valued by the one who tells it.

In the spiritual world, many things seem to be hidden. We wander and stumble around, trying to figure out how to relate to God, how to follow His will, and how to relate to His people. King David understood that God doesn’t share His secrets with everybody- just with those who fear Him. The term fear of God isn’t popular today because it’s misunderstood as being afraid of Him. It actually implies wonder and awe, a sense that God is so powerful, so intelligent, and so loving we can hardly imagine it!

People who are overwhelmed with the awesome nature of God become good listeners, and God delights in sharing His secrets with them. What are those secrets? They aren’t the winning lottery numbers for this week’s drawing, and seldom are they the specific directions for what to do in a situation. No, God’s secrets focus on His character. We can trust Him even when we can’t see His hand at work because He assures us that He is infinitely wise, loving, and strong. And ultimately, the biggest secret of all is that God has made us His own dearly beloved children in a covenant relationship with Him. But that’s not a secret anymore.

God created man on purpose, and for a purpose.

Zig Ziglar

Jesus spoke about the kingdom of God often in parables. As He gave the parable of the soils, the disciples drew Him aside and asked Him to explain it to them. Jesus’ words are interesting:

“Then the disciples came to Him and asked, “Why do You speak to the crowds in parables?” Jesus replied to them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 12 For whoever has [spiritual wisdom because he is receptive to God’s word], to him more will be given, and he will be richly and abundantly supplied; but whoever does not have [spiritual wisdom because he has devalued God’s word], even what he has will be taken away from him. 13 This is the reason I speak to the crowds in parables: because while [having the power of] seeing they do not see, and while [having the power of] hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand and grasp [spiritual things]. 14 In them the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘You will hear and keep on hearing, but never understand; And you will look and keep on looking, but never comprehend; For this nation’s heart has grown hard, And with their ears they hardly hear, And they have [tightly] closed their eyes, Otherwise they would see with their eyes, And hear with their ears, And understand with their heart, and turn [to Me] And I would heal them [spiritually].’ 16 But blessed [spiritually aware, and favored by God] are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 17 I assure you and most solemnly say to you, many prophets and righteous men [who were honorable and in right standing with God] longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

Matthew 13:10-17

In another setting Jesus says that we ought not cast our pearls before swine.

“Do not give that which is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, for they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Matthew 7:6

Many times we wonder why there are those who can’t seem to grasp the truths of God for we forgetting the the Bible is not intellectually understood but spiritually revealed by the Holy Spirit. Even things such as the need to receive Christ as Savior in order to become a child of God cannot be received by intellectual means. It requires the work of the Holy Spirit revealing our sinfulness and our need of a Savior. Jesus gives us the secret to gaining more spiritual knowledge. He says, “Whoever has spiritual wisdom because he is receptive to God’s Word, to him will be given more.” In other words, the person who values the Word of God, who expresses and pursues an interest in it will be given greater revelation and understanding. What a promise! You say, “Well I don’t really know much about the Bible.” So my question would be, “Do you have an interest that moves you to read and seek and search for understanding or are you one of those whose mind wanders during a lesson or sermon? Do you specifically set aside time to read your Bible? Do you pray for understanding before you pick it up to read? Do you shut out distractions, things like the TV going or your phone interrupting and the like? We must remember that the devil doesn’t wish us to know the Word of God for he knows that if “we know the truth, then the truth will make us free.” So he offers distractions, disinterest, and spiritual blindness to hinder us in our pursuit of the truths of God. Jesus says that those who have “devalued the Word of God” will lose even what they have gained. Ive seen this sad thing occur over the years as people began their journey with God delighted and interested in what the Bible had to say and then begin to let life crowd out their pursuit of God and the Word and become hard and cynical toward the Bible and God. What a travesty! This drawing away by the devil doesn’t occur suddenly or even noticeable, but little by little, our hearts began to be occupied by the cares of this world and the weeds begin to grow in our hearts crowding out the good seed of the Word of God. In this most significant parable, Jesus is saying to us that the soil, the receptivity of the heart determines the outcome of the seed-the Word that is sown. The Bible teaches that the Word of God is powerful and that it never is sent forth empty and useless. When that word reaches our ears, we choose to hear without receiving or to listen and take it to heart and apply it to our lives. Whether we will know the mysteries of God is largely based on our interest to know for those who seek find.

If you find yourself in the category of those to whom the mysteries of God are hidden, turn with your whole heart to God, ask Him to cleanse your heart of all the clutter so that there is room to receive the Word. Ask the Holy Spirit to be your teacher and give understanding to what you are reading. And read, for without reading you can never know what the Bible actually says. Don’t skip read but read through thoroughly without setting a goal of reading so many verses but read to learn, to know, to understand. If you only read one verse and the Holy Spirit gives understanding, that’s better than reading a hundred verses and not comprehending anything that is said. Before you open your Bible, open your heart with prayer for the Bible is God’s response to our prayers. Meditate on what you have read, chew on it, let it sink deep into your spirit in just the same way as you chew on food for your natural body, until the “Word becomes flesh.” Think about what you have read until it becomes part of you and you become part of it. And God, the source of all wisdom and knowledge will make known to you the mysteries of the kingdom of God.

Dr. John Thompson