A Divine Privilege

A Divine Privilege

Read: Matthew 13:10-17

“The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you.”

Matthew 13:11

“What is offered . . . is not truth concerning God, but the living God Himself.”

—William Temple

IN WORD Have you ever wondered why a group of people can hear the exact same truth presented in exactly the same way, and half will believe and the other half won’t? We might be inclined to attribute the phenomenon to the different personalities and backgrounds of the hearers, and that’s probably part of the explanation. But there’s more. The mysteries of the kingdom must be given. They cannot be discerned merely by human inquiry and logic. The kingdom is not made known by a scientific discovery, and it never will be. The intellect of mankind cannot and will not figure it out.

That explains why some of our planet’s greatest geniuses were clueless when it came to the things of God. Revelation is the key, and revelation is given to seeing eyes and hearing ears. In other words, hearts that are inclined to learn of God will learn; hearts that are inclined to explain Him away will remain utterly confounded and dark.

And consider the treasure that this revelation is. What a privilege! The answers to all of humanity’s questions, the pursuit of the thinkers of all generations, the mysteries of the universe—all are given to those humble souls who will take up this gospel and read it with a hunger in their hearts to hear God speak. The answer to every why and what for is given not to the brilliant intellects but to the common seeker. Those who want to meet God on His terms and not their own will have divine mysteries opened up before them.

IN DEED What a blessed treasure we’ve been entrusted with! What a sacred knowledge! We’re no more entitled to glimpse divine mysteries than a vagrant is to sit in the Oval Office and discuss policy, yet we’ve been given a glimpse anyway. The relevant question for us is this: What will we do with that knowledge? It wasn’t given for entertainment; it was given to pass on to those who will welcome it. Share it everywhere. The divine privilege is entrusted to those who know what to do with it.