JESUS SPEAKING
At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the son, and the one to whom the son wills to reveal him” (Mathew 11: 25-27.)
INSPIRED THOUGHTS
Jesus thanked God the Father for hiding the truth from the wise and prudent. Instead, it pleased God to make the truth known to the simple minded. The hidden truth was the identity of Jesus, and his relationship to God. All that God had made and all that existed had been given to Jesus. Youth was something that the Jews equated with stupidity and weakness. In fact, in a group of Jewish men, they often spoke in order of age; the oldest spoke first and the youngest spoke last. The very old were held up as more honorable than the youth. Here Jesus was flipping Jewish culture on its head. They believed that with age came wisdom; wisdom was seen as something that could be attained, discovered, sought after and grasped. Jesus made it clear that true wisdom could not be attained, but rather, it could only be received from God. God was truth; a person’s closeness to God indicated how much truth they had attained. The only one who had ever truly known God was him, and so, the knowledge of God could only be revealed to others through Him. Sin separated a person from the knowledge of God, because God’s spirit did not fellowship with evil; Jesus, being sinless and the son of God had perfect knowledge of his Father, and he delighted in revealing that knowledge to those who were simple. The truth was given to the ignorant and unintelligent.
Young children are often better at recognizing evil than are adults. As a child, we once had a teen age baby sitter come over to watch my sister and brother and I. He got in to the liquor cabinet. He began to drink; I was curious and so he handed me a shot glass full of liquor. As soon as I tasted it, I spit it out. The liquor tasted so horrible, I couldn’t imagine why anyone would drink it. Children are often far better at discovering who a person is by what they do, not by what they say. Adults are often blinded enough to trust a person’s words without seeing congruent actions. [Words turn in to lies when they don’t match up with actions; actions are always the true, and kids know it.] Children can often identify the sin in other people’s lives without needing to see it, or understand its nature; they intuitively know things, because God’s spirit is a voice they hear from within. Growing up there was a local child molester that made my friends and I uncomfortable; each of us intuitively new that there was something strange about him, and later our suspicions were confirmed; yet the adults in the community were more than happy to trust him with their children; after all, he was a lawyer and a prominent citizen. As many children grow, they stop hearing that voice. When a person receives the Holy Spirit, that internal voice returns; they again become able to sense good and evil with ever greater accuracy. I believe this was what Jesus was talking about when he said, ‘You must become as a little child.’ Physical age is no longer the indicator of purity, goodness, and an understanding of God’s simple truths; a 50 year old can again be as a little child, on the inside. God’s truth returns, and the simple are restored [but immediately God’s truth is at war with the intelligence of this world.] Intellectualism is man’s attempt to master knowledge without God. Intellectuals look down upon those who believe God is the answer for ‘how’ and ‘why’ instead of their beliefs in ‘time’ and ‘chance.’ They laugh when a person without a high school diploma seeks to tell them about the truth. They live in their minds and their hearts are completely empty. They search the stars for an answer they cannot know with their minds, but must comprehend in the deepest parts of themselves. They look under every rock for an understanding that doesn’t include God, and when they observe something new, they believe they are getting closer to an answer; but they have only discovered new questions [They never arrive at any true meaning or purpose.] Those who have found Jesus Christ don’t need to search any longer; those who have looked to him, now know the truth; they have received the truth from God, and have come to understand that no one can ever discover the answer unless God himself gives it to them.
Today, intellectualism, and rationalism are duking it out with ‘faithfulism.’ Our truth comes from God, and apart from Him, understanding is dark and deceitful. When we read an author, we have to ask ourselves the question, “Are they a believer?” If they are not, then we must read carefully and critically [the same is true of television programs.] We must begin our day upon the unchanging truth we have in Jesus Christ, and if, in order to learn something new we need to depart from the teachings of the Lord, it isn’t worth learning. The truth is not in some text-book, it isn’t expressed in an equation, but it resides in our hearts, as God himself lives within the believer. This knowledge cannot be acquired or attained; you cannot earn a PHD in truth; it comes from a growing relationship with God. As you move closer to Him, your vision will become clearer, and clearer. Reading the bible is a very good way to continue your journey with God. Prayer is another way; pray for wisdom and knowledge specifically. Most importantly, doing what God has asked you to do, will bring you closer to Him. Lastly, you never have to be afraid of the truth; never be embarrassed that you believe in something the intellectuals of the world thinks is archaic and narrow minded, but rather rejoice, knowing that you have truly found the answer that has, and will continually allude them unless they give themselves over to the creator of all things. If you don’t know the truth, ask God to give you the truth; ask him for his Holy Spirit in prayer in His Son’s name, and you will receive what you ask for.
“Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You and we ask and pray that You would give us more of Your truth, and more of Your goodness, and help us desire to be simple and reliant upon Your word. We pray for those who are lost, those who are intelligent in their own thinking, and those who trust in the achievements of men. Help us to be as little children, to look to You in all that we do, and to desire the knowledge of Your Holy Spirit. We love You Father, we thank You, we praise You, and we love You, and we ask and pray all of these things, in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.” God bless all of you.
Jesus Speaks 