Why Was the Mystery of God Kept Secret for Centuries?

Now, here's your host, Les Feldick. Okay, good to have everybody in. My goodness, this does look good, and I have to let our television audience realize that we've finally gotten into the new studio area. When the Lacy people sold the old building and bought this new one, we had to put up with that more cramped quarters, while they built this whole new addition. We realized it would take some time, and we've been a little impatient, but anyhow I certainly want to thank the Lacy people. We've met their president more than once, Pete Summerall, so Pete if you're ever listening it's a personal thank you. We just want the television audience to realize that this is the work of the Lacy people who have given us these kind of facilities now, and we just trust that with all this extra room that we'll be bringing more and more people in for our taping sessions. Again we always like to let our television audience understand that all the past programs are available on videotape, they're now transcribed into print, and they've also been dubbed over onto the audio cassette, and then of course we have various other things that the girls send out if you request them. But if you have any questions about the materials, you just give us a call or drop us a note, and we'll get the information to you. I think that's all we need for announcements so far as our television audience is concerned. Those of you in the studio have already turned to Colossians chapter 2 verse 1, and you'll notice that we've got it up on the board that we are now in Book number 41, it's the middle two hours and the first half hour of it. That's our formula I guess we could call it that. But I guess there's something else I've got to share with the television audience. So many of you call that when you're watching the weekday program, we're back someplace else. Right now of course as we tape today we're in the Book of Acts, but on the week end programs we're right where we're taping, we're in Philippians, Ephesians, and Colossians, and so they get rather confused. Well I'm going to explain so that you'll know. So whenever they finally talked us into going daily, we agreed to let them use the old programs. So our poor Minnesota people I think have probably gone through now for about the third time as well as the Indiana audience. So anyway they go back to Genesis and the daily program just eats up our inventory at five programs a week. And then the time comes that you catch up where we're presently taping, and if you want to stay on a daily format, we just send them back to Genesis again. But the weekend programs, whether it's on Saturday night on some of the satellites or some of the stations carry us on Sundays, the weekend programs are right behind us. And that's why once in a while we even have to pull in an extra taping session so that we can stay ahead of our weekly programming. So maybe that'll answer some questions. The daily programs are reruns as they've been produced, and the weekend program is current. Now we're ready to start Colossians chapter 2, verse 1. Now I'm going to refrain from putting the timeline on the board until we finish Colossians, because it's been a while since we've had it up there, but when we finish Colossians and get ready to go into the Thessalonian letters, I'm going to again put the timeline on the board, and we're going to review some of those things, because I hope you all realize we've got new listeners every day, and we have to keep reviewing these things so that they know where we're coming from and what we're talking about. But for now we're in Paul's prison epistle of Colossians, which was written to a little congregation east and south of Ephesus. And then of course almost due north of Colossae was the other little city in Asia Minor or Turkey called Laodicea. And so when Paul makes mention that the Colossae people should pass this letter on to the Laodiceans, it's just simply that they were a neighborhood congregation. As I mentioned in one of the earlier programs, Paul himself had nothing to do with starting the Colossae and Laodicean churches. So they were actually begun probably by some of his converts in the Ephesus church. And so that's what he makes mention, that he's never met them by face, but he had such a concern for them, and as we're going to see a little later on today, then as now false teaching followed the apostle everywhere he went, and consequently it disturbed him. Now as we come into chapter 2 of Colossians, he writes, I would that you knew what a great struggle I have for you. Well what was he struggling over? The fact that these people were left with no written word, and they didn't have any New Testament until Paul's letters started coming, which was in about the early 60's and late 50's. He's already been out there establishing churches for 15-20 years, so you've got to realize there was that period of time when they didn't have the written word. So he says, I just want you to know what a great conflict and inner struggle I have for you and for them at Laodicea, the church probably 10-15 miles north of Colossae, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh. There's what I just got through saying, they had never seen the apostle Paul personally. So he didn't have a direct part in establishing these two little congregations. Now we'll just go on to verse 2. And they that their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding... Now how many times have I said this is why I teach, so many Christians have made a profession of faith, they join the Church, they may get active in the social aspect, but they know nothing of the Scriptures. And I'm sure you're all aware of that. But see Paul's whole heart's desire was that even these people in his day, and how many times have you heard me say it, what was their past lifestyle? Paganism, idolatry. And they knew nothing of even the Old Testament. And so it was so hard for Paul to comprehend, I think, that these people could just maintain their Christian experience with no more background that they've had other than idolatry and paganism. And so he says that this is his concern, that they would have a full assurance of understanding to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God. Now those of you who have been with me in my teaching for ever so many years, and I'm always stressing the mysteries that were revealed to the Apostle Paul, and you know just in the last week I don't know how many people have called and said, I've never even heard the word mystery before. Well that doesn't shock me too much, but I think as I look back I probably didn't either. But this is the heart of Paul's Gospel, is this revelation of these mysteries. Now I'm going to start flipping back to Romans chapter 16, and let's just go back to verse 25. Now to him that is of power, and remember that's another one of Paul's favorite words. The power of God, the power of his resurrection, the power of his Spirit. So now to him that is of power to establish you, according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery. Not the preaching of Jesus Christ according to Matthew, not the preaching of Jesus Christ according to Mark, Luke and John, but the preaching of Jesus Christ according to the revelation of the mystery. Now if I remember correctly in our last program I went all the way back to Deuteronomy 29. I went back to Deuteronomy 29, and the secret things belong unto the Lord our God. What does that tell you? In his sovereignty he doesn't tell us everything all at once, but he says those things which are revealed belong to us and our children. So you always have to look at this whole concept of the revelation that Paul talks about, are the secret things that God did not reveal to the Old Testament writers, He did not reveal them to Peter, He did not reveal them to John, He waited until Saul of Tarsus was converted, and he sent him down to Mount Sinai, and poured out at least a good portion of the revelation of the mysteries. Now reading on in verse 25 of Romans 16, this mystery which was kept secret, that's what it says, and that's what it means. And it means what it says. God kept this whole package of truth secret, and never gave anybody an inclination of what was coming until it was revealed to this apostle. In fact I know quite well that I use it in our last program, which was several weeks ago in our taping, but the other night I woke up in the middle of the night, and the thought hit me, and I can't help it, of this verse in Peter. Now let's go back and look at it, because I just said it, and that's what made me think of it. Peter didn't have any concept of what Paul was going to have revealed, called the mysteries, and so back in II Peter chapter 3, beginning at verse 15, as I was laying there wide awake, and it just struck me, that I'd never really made the point before, as often as I've used these verses, of two things in particular. Number one, that Peter is recognizing that the Gospel for this period of time came from the epistles of Paul, and the second point was that Peter puts Paul's writings as Scripture. Scripture, which meant that Paul's letters are just as authoritative as Moses, or Isaiah, or Matthew, or John, or Peter, or any of the rest of them, because his words are Scripture. Now let's look at it. Verse 15 of II Peter chapter 3, and again I always like to remind people when these things were written. Peter is writing this shortly before he's martyred, at the end of his life. He's not writing this way back there 20 -30 years ago. This is at the end, in the middle 60's, probably 65-66 A.D., shortly before the Temple was destroyed. Now he says, and account, or understand, that the long suffering, the patience of our Lord is salvation. That's the whole purpose of the Book, whether it's Old Testament or New, is to bring mankind into a knowledge of salvation. Whether it was under law, or whether it was under the Kingdom economy, or now under grace. God's heart is for the salvation of lost mankind. So understand, the long suffering of our Lord is salvation. Now look at the next statement. I Peter chapter 3, and again I remind people when these things were written. Even as our beloved brother Paul, also according to the wisdom given unto him, hath written unto you. Now you've got to remember, what group of people is Peter addressing? Jews! The Jews of the dispersion. He says it back there in chapter 1, written to the twelve tribes. And so even to his own Jewish people he is admonishing them to go to the letters of Paul. Now they haven't been out there that long. Even his earliest epistles have probably only been out there 7 or 8 years, and his later epistles have only been out there a year or two. But yet Peter is admonishing his fellow Jews to go to those letters of Paul. Now verse 16. Now I know most people just read right over that, and they don't even realize what the man is saying. But Peter is admitting that this revelation to the apostle Paul was hard for a good Jew to comprehend. Why? Because it was so totally different. It was completely removed from temple worship, it was completely removed from the covenant promises of Israel, and here was the offer of salvation to these pagan, idolatrous Gentiles, that if they would just simply realize their lost estate, and believe the Gospel, God will bring them in to Himself." And that was hard for a good Jew to comprehend. So in his epistles speaking in them of these things, in which Peter says, are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned, and unstable, rest, or twist, as they also do the other scriptures. So what's Peter doing with Paul's epistles? He's lumping them in with the rest of the Bible. They're Scripture, they are the inspired Word of God. Now isn't it amazing that men just ignore this, and they just almost refuse to go into Paul's epistles? I don't know why, but I can see it over and over that they just almost ignore them purposely. Willingly ignorant as Peter says concerning the flood in his little epistle. Well anyway, this is all part and parcel then of this revelation of what Paul calls his Gospel, and that is that God in grace. Now as we're going to see a little further on in Colossians, the mysteries are in several different categories. We've got for example, the mystery of what I call the Rapture. It's a mystery in I Corinthians chapter 51, and another mystery was that the Gentiles would come into the Body of Christ on equal basis with Jews. That had never been revealed before, so it was a mystery. Here in Colossians we're going to see that this particular mystery is a revelation of the Godhead in a way that the Old Testament never explained it. This is an explanation of the Godhead, the likes of which Peter and the apostles couldn't even teach or comprehend. But now it's revealed to this apostle that this Godhead, and that's the term Paul will use a little later in his chapter, is that composition of the three persons and yet one. And see this throws a curve at so many people. I had a phone call early this morning, hung up on this very same thing. They could not believe that Jesus was God. And the term that throws so many people is the Son of God, which means that God co-created Him. It's unreal what people are being taught, but you see they can't conceive of the fact that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit are all three co-equal. So there is no one of them above the other, and yet they operate as one. I can't understand it, and I can't describe it, but I sure believe it, because it's in the Book. Now here it comes. "...that their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God." And what is God? At least in most of our translations, in some of them the Father and Christ are not in it, but we're going to leave it in here. "...that the mystery of God is this composite of all the persons of the Godhead, and the Father, and of Christ, and then in verse 3. "...that in this Godhead of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, there is the treasures hidden of all wisdom and knowledge." Now we're in a technological explosion today, aren't we? I was just reading to Iris a little article last night, that in the next five years, now of course Iris always says people can write whatever they want, I know that. But hopefully they're not pulling the wool over our eyes all the time. But this particular individual made the statement that in the next five years, we are going to see more technology exploding around us than we've seen in the last 50 years. And then he went on to explain that the fiber optic for example, has just sort of been laying dormant. I haven't heard much about it lately, but the Lucent companies have just suddenly brought in such technology for the fiber optic system that it just blows your mind. But you know what? Every time they discover or invent a new technology, God smiles and says, Hey, I created it! Well if He created it, He knows the intricacies of every electrical formula, of every facet of physics, He created it. And so He has the knowledge of all of these things before they're ever discovered. Now I can't help but think, when God speaks of His wisdom and knowledge, I always have to think of poor Job. Go back with me to the book of Job, and I'm not referring to his having lost all of his daughters, and I'm not referring to his having lost all of his livestock, I'm referring to something else, and that is he lost his pride. Oh the Lord must have made Job just feel like two cents. Come back to Job chapter 38, and I think Job's basic problem was pretty much like today. He was proud of his humility, he was proud of the fact that he was blessed of God, that he was a righteous man, he loved God, and I don't take any of that away from him. But you see you come through the whole book of Job, and now you get back to chapter 38, and that's why I say, I feel sorry for the poor old fellow. My he must have felt like he'd like to have crawled into a rat hole, because look what God says in Job 38. Job 38 verse 1, "...then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said..." Now I wish I had time to just read all of Job 38 and 39, but I'm not going to. But you do that in your spare time, and then you'll get the drift of what I'm talking about. Now look what the Lord says. Who is this that darkeneth counsel by words without knowledge? Well the casual reader is going to say, well God's referring to His three friends. No! God's talking to Job, and He says, Who is this that is darkening counsel without knowledge? Now He says to Job, verse 3, "...Gird up now thy loins like a man, for I will demand of thee, and you answer me." Now He's on the spot isn't He? Now look what the Lord says, where were you Job when I laid the foundations of the earth? Where were you when I created this whole shebang? What could Job say? Nothing. I mean he's helpless, he's wordless, and he doesn't get a word in edgewise. Verse 5, "...who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest." Do you get what I'm driving at? What is God imparting here that Job thought He knew it all? He says, okay Job if you are so smart, and you know this is exactly what God could do with our scientists today. He could take the greatest brain from Silicon Valley, and He could put him in front of Him, and He could say, okay where were you? If you're so smart, tell me. And God could bring things into their thinking that they have not even yet considered, as He's doing here with Job. Then read on, "...where were you when I laid the foundations? Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? Who hath stretched the line upon it? Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? Who laid the cornerstone thereof?" Verse 8, "...who shut up the sea with doors when it broke forth?" And he goes on to say, and then of course the verse that I was really thinking of when I saw this in Colossians, was come all the way up to chapter 38 and verse 22. Which of course now in our technology, our little grade school kids know this from 4th and 5th grade science I guess, but back in the antiquity they didn't have the microscopes and so forth. But look at what God says to Job in verse 22, "...hath thou entered into the treasures of the snow?" That even in a tremendous blizzard there's no two snowflakes alike. Did Job know that? No. Then the next thing I'd like to bring is all the way up to verse 31. The Lord says to Job, "...can you bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion?" Can you control the stars in their orbit? Can you control the constellations? Verse 33. "...do you know the ordinances of heaven? Can you set the dominion thereof in the earth?" Do you get what I'm talking about? And every question he just puts Job lower, and lower, and lower, and finally what does Job have to realize? He doesn't know anything. So I guess I better come right back to Colossians quickly, and verse 3 again is where we're going to stop. We've only got a matter of seconds, and so Colossians 2, verse 3 is in the same God who confronted Job, and reveals all the knowledge of those two chapters in 38 -39. He is the one who contains all wisdom, and knowledge, and understanding. The smartest man on earth can't even come close. Thank you for watching Through the Bible with Les Feldick. Through the Bible is a partner-supported ministry. If this program has been a help to your study of the Scriptures, and you'd like to see others enjoy the teaching, your support would be greatly appreciated. Write to us at Les Feldick Ministries, Route 1, Box 760, Kenta, OK 74552, or call 1-800-369-7856. Remember, all programs are available in printed form, audio cassette, and videotape. Be sure to tune in next time to Through the Bible with Les Feldick.