Sun 9:30a Class; 10:30a Worship; 11:35a Communion
Bible Bites
God's Unrevealed Commands
The Bible contains “all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1.3), but God certainly hasn’t told us everything we might like to know. Deuteronomy 29.29 says, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” The “secret things” stand in contrast to the “things that are revealed.”
We generally think of God’s commandments as those laws and prohibitions which regulate our be- havior on earth—i.e., the target audi- ence is human beings. God’s com- mands, however, are not limited to us. After all, he spoke creation into existence. Each day of creation begins with the phrase, “And God said ...” (cf. Genesis 1.3). Hebrews 11.3 de- clares, “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God. ...” Psalm 33.9 says, “He commanded, and it was done.” An- gelic forces were working to execute God’s plan (Psalm 104.1–4, 7).
God issues the orders, and angels carry them out. What was true of creation still holds true with regard to God’s providence. We may never know what commands are being is- sued from his throne, but the Bible gives us a very clear picture of a God who is “hands on” and in control—a Creator and Sustainer who is actively involved in human affairs.
Supernatural Agents
Angels obey God’s voice. Psalm 103.20–21 says, “Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word. Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!” Psalm 91.11–12 is not the devil’s scripture, in spite of Satan’s misuse of it to tempt Jesus. The passage belongs to the faithful as a tremendous comfort: “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.”
Similar verses give us an intrigu- ing peek at supernatural intervention on our behalf.
- TheangeloftheLordencamps around those who fear him, and delivers them (Psalm 34.7).
- “Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place that I have prepared” (Exodus 23.20).
- WhenPetercametohimself,he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and res- cued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting” (Acts 12.11).
No wonder angels are called “min- istering spirits” on behalf of the saved (Hebrews 1.7, 14). There’s a lot more going on behind the scenes than we are aware. We can only imagine the forces at work!
Providential Care
When God blesses his people, he is said to “com- mand the blessing” on them (Deuteronomy 28.8), and the joyful result can “overtake” us (28.3). Over a half century ago, Watchman Nee of China suggested that when we reckon on the basis of cause and effect, we merely bar the way for God to work beyond our reck- oning. God’s blessing, he added, is out of all corre- spondence of who we are and what we can envision. Therefore, we should not put God in a box of our own making.
Deuteronomy 8.3 should be understood in this light:
“And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fa- thers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”
The contrast here is not that of physical food ver- sus spiritual food. The real issue, in context, is whether we provide for ourselves or whether we de- pend on God to provide. The very food that we eat from day to day is granted by the mouth of God. Be- hind the scenes, God issues the commands that meet our necessities and make our abundance possible.
When it came to seventh-year jitters during plant- ing season in the Year of Jubilee, God’s promise to the Israelites was, “I will command my blessing on you in the sixth year, so that it will produce a crop sufficient for three years” (Leviticus 25.21). Psalm 133.3 says, “It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the moun- tains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.” Even Daniel acknowl- edged, “My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths” (Daniel 6.22). Many of us sing the song, “God will take care of you,” and he certainly does! The word goes forth from his throne, and marvelous things start to happen on our behalf.
World Affairs
Likewise, there are many examples in scripture of the Lord’s voice working providentially in matters of national and international prominence. In David’s time, “God sent the angel to Jerusalem to destroy it, but as he was about to destroy it, the Lord saw, and he relented from the calamity. And he said to the angel who was working destruction, ‘It is enough; now stay your hand.’ And the angel of the Lord was standing by thethreshingfloorofOrnantheJebusite”(1C hroni- cles 21.15–16). When King Nebuchadnezzar of Baby- lon came against Jerusalem, the Biblical historian con- cludes, “Surely this came upon Judah at the command of the Lord, to remove them out of his sight” (2 Kings 24.3). And when it came time for Nebuchadnezzar himself to be humbled, “a voice from heaven” set events into motion (Daniel 4.31–33). Psalm 29 repeat- edly speaks of the “voice of the Lord.” It is “over the waters” (v. 3), it is “powerful” (v. 3), it “breaks the ce- dars” (v. 5), it “flashes forth flames of fire” (v. 7), it “shakes the wilderness” (v. 7), and it even “makes the deer give birth” (v. 9).
Answers to Prayer
Daniel prayed for an end to Babylonian captivity (Daniel 9). He knew that if his people would humble themselves and confess their sins, God would end their exile (Leviticus 26.40–45). He also knew that Jeremiah’s 70 years of promised captivity were nearing an end (Jer. 25.12). So when Daniel prayed accordingly he was told, “At the beginning of your pleas for mercy a word went out ...” (Daniel 9.23). This is a most amazing develop- ment, but it serves to remind us of the potential an- swers to prayer of every righteous person (James 5.16). We should have the same confidence in God that the centurion had in Jesus to heal his servant from a dis- tance: “Just say the word!” (Luke 7.6–9).
Just because God’s activities are not fully revealed to us does not mean he is inactive. He directs world affairs, intervenes, blesses, interacts, and answers prayers. We will never know much of it in this life, although at times we may have a strong hunch. The awareness of “unrevealed commands” is a great confidence-builder in a storm of adversity.
When we face a crisis, we must not forget that God is still on the throne! We must also remember that he is “able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us” (Ephesians 3.20). No matter what happens in this life, if God is in control, the needs of the faithful will be met. We may not know exactly what words God speaks on our behalf, but if we trust and obey him, we must never doubt that he does speak on our behalf.
— In Focus Magazine, October 2010
