Delight in the Lord—Even the Parts You Don’t Comprehend
Are there parts of God you don’t understand? Does this frustrate you? It shouldn’t. Don’t let what you don’t know weigh you down. We should accept that we can’t fully know our Lord—at least not in this world—that we can’t yet understand God.
Yet some people refuse to let God into their life because there are parts of him they don’t understand. Until they know him fully, they refuse to embrace any part of him. They can’t accept that there are elements of God’s character that exceed their comprehension.
Yet if God were someone we could fully know and completely understand, he wouldn’t be much of a god. He’d be fallible, just like us; he wouldn’t be much of a god at all.
Personally, I delight in the reality that there are aspects about God I don’t understand. I delight in what I don’t know—in what I can’t yet know.
This doesn’t concern me; it’s not a cause for worry. What I don’t know about my Lord draws me to him, like a moth is drawn to a lightbulb and then flutters about it.
Fearsome or Loving?
A cursory read through the Old Testament reveals God as someone to fear. Yet his love shines through in the New Testament. Which is it? Should we fear God or should we love him? We should do both.
Recall that God doesn’t change (Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 13:8, and James 1:17). His patient love exists throughout the Old Testament, just as his judgment remains in the New Testament.
We should fear the Almighty and love him at the same time. It’s a delightful paradox in how we understand God.
Judgment and Mercy
In parallel to this fear/love dichotomy is God’s justice and mercy. Which is it? Does God judge us and demand justice? Or does he forgive us and offer us mercy?
In truth, we tend to want justice for those who oppose us; we don’t want them to receive God’s mercy. Yet for ourselves, we long to realize God’s mercy; we don’t want to face his judgment. We can’t have it both ways.
Yet both truths reside in contrast with the other. God judges and offers mercy; our Lord dispenses both justice and grace. Like opposite sides of a coin, we should embrace both as part of God’s character.
It’s another delightful paradox of the complex nature of our Lord’s essence—of how we understand God.
Controlling Everything or Not?
Some people view God as controlling every aspect of their lives. They blame him for every bad thing that happens. Many times I’ve heard someone lament, “Why did God let this happen?”
Maybe he didn’t. Perhaps what occurred was the result of natural law, evil in the world brought about my sin, or poor choices that we ourselves made.
If God controlled every aspect of our lives, like a spiritual grandmaster moving us as pieces on a supernatural chessboard, that removes any element of free will that we might have.
Though God is omnipotent and can intervene in our lives whenever he wishes, he also gives us the freedom to make our own decisions. Both aspects of his nature exist in tension with each other.
It’s not one or the other. It’s both. This is a third delightful paradox about the Almighty and how we understand God.
We Now Know in Part
We can respond to these seeming dichotomies of God’s nature with despair. Yet this is the wrong approach. Instead, we should marvel over the complexities of his unfathomable character. He is our amazing Lord; he is worthy of our awe.
We should delight in the truth that we don’t—and can’t—fully know him. At least not yet. But one day we will.
Paul writes that we now know in part. It’s like seeing a reflection in a mirror. But later it’ll be like seeing face-to-face. Now we know in part; then we shall know in full (1 Corinthians 13:9-12).
What a glorious day that will be. The characteristics of God will become clear, and the seeming paradoxes will fade away. We will know him fully and be with him—for the rest of eternity.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.
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