The Foolishness of Trying to Fully Understand God

If you have ever tried to fully understand the ways of God, and been disappointed by failing to do so, then welcome to the club. We are finite humans and to try to fully understand everything about an infinite God, quite frankly, is folly.

The God of the Bible tells us this clearly in (Isaiah 55:8-9), where we read: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” In addition, we read in (Deuteronomy 29:29): “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” Thus, the Scriptures clearly teach us in some cases that God’s ways are far beyond our understanding and that some things He chooses, in His sovereignty, to keep hidden from us.

I like what J. I. Packer says about this when he shared: “A God whom we could understand exhaustively, and whose revelation of Himself confronted us with no mysteries whatsoever, would be a God in man’s image, and therefore an imaginary God, not the God of the Bible at all.”1

By definition the God of the universe must be somewhat mysterious. But just because we can’t fully understand Him doesn’t mean we can’t know Him in a deep and personal way. And that’s where the Bible comes in. The Scriptures tell us so much about Jesus that, rather than try to understand everything, I choose to concentrate on praising what a wonderful God we serve and studying His precious Word, to not learn about solving mysteries, but about just how much love Jesus has for me!

In addition, thankfully He has shown me where I came from, where I am going when I die, and what my purpose in life is. He has also shown me His great power and wisdom through the amazing beauty and orderliness of the universe He created.

Sadly, there are many people who want to know everything about God and our universe and forget that not only is this impossible but what God really wants is to be loved and trusted, and not analyzed to death. So often we get disappointed with God since we can’t understand why he allows so much suffering in our world, why the guilty seem to get away with things, and why sometimes when we really need God to answer He remains silent.

First, His ways are higher than our ways and while God promises us peace and joy, He doesn’t promise us a suffer-free life. Second, our sense of fairness doesn’t mean that in the economy of God we are correct. God’s sense of fairness has an eternal element in it where our idea of fairness is often just in the here and now. And third, when God seems silent it doesn’t mean He is absent. Instead, silence allows us time to meditate on God’s Word and trust God that in the long run He will work our suffering for a future good; if we only give God the time He needs to work things out according to His divine plan.

My friends, while there will always remain mysteries for us to ponder, one thing that is not a mystery is that Jesus loves us so much that He died on the cross to save us. And for that I am eternally grateful. And yes, even the idea that I will live for eternity is a mystery since my finite mind can’t fully comprehend such an amazing thought!

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1 J.I. Packer – A God whom we could understand exhaustively, and… (bibleportal.com)