According to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed . . . by the eternal God. (Rom. 16:25–26)
IN JUST THREE VERSES, Paul traced God’s revelatory plan from the mysteries of ages past to its culmination in the salvation of all nations. The year of our Lord 2017 falls between the early church era and the dawn of the new creation. And in this particular time in history, we have every reason to give thanks.
Sometimes we need a reminder of the certainty of what we believe. Doubt and hopelessness can creep in when Christians are tirelessly called upon to defend the reliability and relevance of the Scriptures, or the historical person of Jesus, or seemingly contradictory doctrines like the Trinity. It’s trying, and sometimes I think, “How do I build my entire life around something so complicated, so uncertain?”
It’s then that I think of Abraham, who only had the promise of a great nation and a sky full of stars. I think of Moses and the Israelites who only had the miracle of the Exodus and the law. I think of the prophets and the Maccabees, who merely longed for the day when the Messiah would come. We have the Old Testament, and the Gospels, and the letters of Paul. We have archeology and studies in original languages. We have the incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and Pentecost. We have confidence in all these promises fulfilled, and we are so very blessed.
Tonight, look up at the stars and ponder your place in God’s history.
Ruthie Marie Anderson is a junior majoring in biblical and theological studies at Oklahoma Wesleyan University. She enjoys doing yoga, reading science fiction, and making homemade bread while watching Downton Abbey.
© 2018 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission.
