HF142 - The Hidden Things of the Lord
To: Hebraic-Foundations@yahoogroups.com
From: "Pastor Buddy Martin" <Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org>
Date: Sunday, July 17, 2005
Subject: Bible Study HF142 - The Hidden Things of the Lord
Hebraics,
David said, "The secret of the Lord is for those who
fear Him, and He will make them know His covenant."
(Ps25:14 NASB)
Here is the same Scripture in the Amplified Bible:
"The secret [of the sweet, satisfying companionship] of
the Lord have they who fear (revere and worship) Him, and He
will show them His covenant and reveal to them its [deep,
inner] meaning."
Is that not something to think about? In this study we want
to consider some of the 'deep inner' meanings of the covenant,
with a view what it means to be born from above, and also how
the issue of 'hiddenness' remains a constant in the life of a
believer. Some of the terms we will consider in the study are
secret, hiddenness, overshadowing, and 'the hidden person of
the heart.'
This is Bible Study HF142 - The Hidden Things of the
Lord.
The early Christian writers had a concept of the new birth
in which they said that when a person is born from above it is
like Christ being born afresh in the heart of the believer.
This is an interesting concept. But does it have foundation in
the Scriptures. Perhaps it does. Consider the following:
"My little children, with whom I am in labor until
Christ is formed in you..." (Gal4:19)
"No one who is born of God sins [by way of nature and
life], because His seed abides in him; and he cannot [continue
in] sin, because he is born of God." (1Jn3:9)
The afore Scriptures may arouse more questions than
answers, so let's go on to the case of the new birth. To
appreciate what being 'born from above' means, we can draw in
part from the conception and birth of Jesus Christ. He is
called the firstborn of many brethren.
Mary wanted to know how it was possible for her to become
with child, without knowing a man. Gabriel said, "The
Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High
will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy offspring
shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35) In other
words this overshadowing will result in divine generation. But
it will be done in hiddenness, that is, it will be done in
secret.
While Jesus Christ is uniquely God's Son, that is, the only
one of His kind, (this is what monogenees means), yet the
language used by Gabriel reflects on our own spiritual
make-up. Every person born from above is uniquely a 'holy
offspring' of God. It is this very sense that makes
Christianity is not a religion, but, rather, the very family
of God.
The term 'overshadow' is a key term. The Greek word 'episkiazo'
simply speaks of someone's shadow passing over. It is used
when Peter's shadow passed over the peoples with the resulting
healings that took place. However, in a spiritual sense the
word itself does not mean darkness as with the casting of a
shadow. Rather it speaks of hiddenness. The overshadowing of
our birth from above expresses God's hidden influence.
The Greek 'eposkiazo' continues with the meaning of 'to
obscure'. The overshadowing of the Spirit is not a thing that
can be noted by the senses. Its influence is to be seen by its
result. Jesus drew attention to this in saying, "The wind
blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not
know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone
who is born of the Spirit." (Jn3:8)
Again the idea is 'secretness,' or 'hiddenness.' You cannot
see, feel, or hear anything that would identify the moment of
our birth from above. It is a secret of the heart. It is done
in recluse, in secret, that is, in the deep of the human
spirit. Peter refers to this deepness as the 'hidden person of
the heart.' David gives us an idea of this hiddenness in Psalm
139:13-16. Listen and you will hear something that closely
resembles the new birth process:
"For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my
mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully
and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul
knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I
was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of
the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in
Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me,
when as yet there was not one of them."
In my testimony on the Christian Challenge site, I speak of
a moment in time when I was born of God's Spirit. It was a
secret moment of the heart. From that moment in time the very
center of being changed. (http://www.christianchallenge.org/staff/testimony.htm.)
There is an issue of our birth from above that needs to be
considered. Jesus was conceived in a point of time. His birth
was also at a point in time. Both points in time are dependant
upon one another, yet they are separated by a space of time. I
believe this can be very much the same for every person born
of God. This means that the seed of salvation can be planted
in a person long before the moment of their actual spiritual
birth.
Let's leave all that for now and come to the second issue
of our study in how the hiddenness of the Lord becomes a
constant in the life of every believer. The point at hand is
that everything the Lord initiates in our life will always
begin in a spiritual form. Paul said, "Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with
every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in
Christ." (Eph1:3)
The same apostle brings this out even further. Listen
again: "Just as it is written, 'Things which eyes has not
seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the
heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love
Him.' For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the
Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who
among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the
man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows
except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit
of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may
know the things freely given to us by God, which things we
also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those
taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with
spiritual words." (1 Co 2:9-13)
For God's new covenant children, the secret and sacred
place of God's indwelling is in the their own hearts. This
does not mean that God cannot be elsewhere. What it does mean
is that the deepest work of God, that is, the disclosures, the
directives, the revelations, the secret counsels, and all the
true workings of God will find their place in the quietness of
our human spirit. God's work is in hiddenness.
These secret counsels are summed up in what Jesus said
concerning His sheep. He said, "My sheep hear My voice,
and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life
to them, and they will never perish..." (Jn10:27,28)
This is also what Jesus was teaching when He told his
followers not to get caught up in the trappings of religion or
of emotionalism. He said, "But you, when you pray, go
into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father
who is in secret, and Your Father who sees in secret will
reward you." (Matt6:6)
There it is. The key word is 'secret.' This word in the
Greek (kruptos) again speaks of hiddenness. It is used
elsewhere for 'SECRETS of his heart.' Thus there is a secret
place in the deepest part of our human make-up where we share
communion with the Lord Jesus Christ by and in His Spirit.
Paul affirms this in saying, "But the one who joins
himself to the Lord is one spirit with him." (1Co6:17)
Peter uses this same word [kruptos] with regard to
something that is precious in the sight of God. He says,
"Your adornment must not be merely external --- braiding
the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but
let it be the HIDDEN [kruptos] person of the heart, with the
imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is
precious in the sight of God." (1Pe3:3,4) We have a
secret room. It is in our very heart. In our hearts is our
secret life.
The point is that in the new covenant the human heart
becomes the holy of holies. Certainly God fills all of
eternity, yet His special dwelling place with His children is
in their very hearts. Where does He speak? In the hearts of
His children. Peter implied that it is in quietness of spirit
that we hear the best. It is the adornment of quietness that
is precious in God's sight.
Pay attention to when and where your special enlightenments
from God come. It is not almost always in quiet moments, or in
moments of heart worship. (Worship in Greek means to kiss.) It
is in these close moments of divine communion that the Spirit
of God reveals something to our heart.
Here is where I need to make a point. It is a sad thing
when I see some of God's precious children attempting to live
in the new covenant on an old covenant level. (I've said this
often.) The reason for this misadventuring of God's people is
due to a faulty understanding of the realities of the new
covenant. God's people fail to understand the spiritual
realities of their own covenant walk. And because of
misteaching they often are afraid to trust their own
relationship with Jesus Christ. Thus they continually seek out
others to speak into their lives. Of course these folk are
fair game more misguidance by so-called prophets.
It is not that I wish to sound negative, but there is a
fact that remains. What was it David said? He said, "The
secret of the Lord is for those who fear Him, and He will make
them know His covenant." This is such a rich statement.
Keep in mind that David often spoke in a prophetic-perfect,
which means he experienced by transformed reality the things
that he saw. For example when David said, "Thus I have
seen You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and Your
glory," he was speaking of actually seeing Jesus Christ.
The term 'secret of the Lord' expressly speaks of secret
counsel, or the secret of His purposes, or the very secrets of
God's heart. This is the very thing that Paul said; "Now
we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit
who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given
to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught
by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining
spiritual thoughts with spiritual words."
There is so much more to be said about the hidden things of
the Lord. Is this something you would like to know more about?
Feel free to make observations or ask questions. Let me know
if this study speaks to your heart.
The Lord bless you,
Buddy
Lawrence E. (Buddy) Martin, HF Host
email: Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org
Web:
http://www.christianchallenge.org/
"See to it that no one comes short of the grace
of God; that no root of bitterness springing up
causes trouble, and by it many be defiled." (Heb12:15)
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