Something in the human heart seems to always ask “Why?” Embedded within our DNA is this compelling desire to understand the reason for things being the way they are. For the most part, this compulsion serves us well and leads humanity to the most amazing and beneficial discoveries. But the opposite is true also. Understanding why the unpleasant things exist can show an ugly or undesirable reason for the reality we experience, which again, is beneficial for us to know.
This is also true in relation to God, just on a much larger scale. For the Christian, God is the ultimate cause of all things (Isaiah 45:7), yet He not only allows His creation to interact with each other, but also with Himself as Creator, LORD, and Saviour. Yes, it’s true that Yahweh knows all things, even the secrets of the heart (Psalm 44:21), whereas we know very little, least of all our own hearts (Jeremiah 17:9). Which highlights the grace of God in wanting us to know Him.
Jeremiah explained God’s promises to Israel before returning them from Babylonian exile to their homeland of Israel. God told His people that you will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord… (Jeremiah 29:13-14). God wants to be found, and He wants us to experience the blessing of knowing Him as the cause of our seeking Him. God desires to be known, and believers now desire to know Him (Psalm 37:4). Our right desires are the effect of God’s gracious desires for us.
We may not understand all the intricate mechanisms the Lord employs to bring this about, but we do know the outcome. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 5:1). God the Father caused His Son Jesus to bring us peace with Him through the cross, which is the effect we experience, for which we are very thankful. James 1:17 adds, every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights… And there is no gift greater than the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul stretched the gospel application of this truth out for the Corinthian church in this way. Because of Him (God) you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31). We Christians can boast of God, who alone caused Jesus Christ to become all the needed things on our behalf that we could not be ourselves. Therefore, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, are the results we have been gifted with through faith in Jesus Christ. It’s no wonder Paul later wrote to the Ephesian church, it’s by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). The extent and complexity of all that God has gifted us with is enormous. The more we think about this, the more we conclude that God is worthy of our boasting, our praise, and our gratitude.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (1 Peter 1:3-5).
