I read this verse at thanksgiving and again to my wife tonight and I can't seem to get it out of my head. So, I guess I'll just ponder it openly with the rest of you.
Jer 9:23-24 "Thus says the LORD: "Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches,
but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD."
As I step into the world of theology I come again and again to a wall. God is the wall. He is incomprehensible. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts, they are higher! Even when I consider His divine attributes I can only see those things in part. Right now I know in part but some day face to face. His grace is without limit. His mercies are new every morning. Yet at the same time His justice and His righteousness are perfect. Though it would seem that His grace and mercy would come into conflict with His righteousness and justice, he holds these attributes in perfect harmony. We can never hit the bottom of this well. The bible calls this the unsearchable riches. And there, looming in the background, is the elephant that many do not want to face. We can't even comprehend what we know in part about God. He is infinite, omniscient, omnipotent, eternal, and triune, and we can't comprehend the depths of His nature or attributes. Theology will always have a blockade when it comes to this point. Often this is where wise men begin to boast in their wisdom. They reach, at times, to grasp what we can not. Like trying to catch a lion by the tail, the Lion of Judah can't be handled. Strong men have tried to wrestle God into the conformity of their own understanding. Men rich in their biblical knowledge have argued and wrangled over the minutest details of scripture all with the hope of purchasing for themselves an understanding of God.
There is only one thing God wants us to boast about. He is incomprehensible, but we can know Him. We can get God's M.O.! We can share in knowing Him in the same way Adam knew Eve. We know that His love is steadfast, He is perfectly just, and righteous. We can know His heart, observe His dealings with mankind and come to conclusions regarding His nature. But we will never be able to comprehend Him. God delights in our knowing Him but cautions our pursuit of knowledge saying that it "puffs up." So what can we know of God's nature and attributes?
There are two Categories:
Incommunicable- These are attributes that He doesn't share with us.
Independence (self existence, self sufficiency), Immutability (unchangeablenesss), Eternality, Omnipresence, Omniscience
Communicable- These are attributes that He does share with us
Spirituality, knowledge, truthfulness, goodness, love, mercy , holiness, peace, beauty, glory, sovereignty
To sum it all up, there are parts of God that will always remain a gorgeous and beautiful mystery. We will not ever be able to comprehend them or partake in them. Like my 3 year old at Disneyland, we don't understand how it all works but it sure is gloriously thrilling! There are some things about God that I will not just know in theory but, He actually invites me to partake in experientially. I can share with Him in the Spirit, grow in grace and knowledge, love truth and mercy, partake in His holiness, rest in His peace, bask in His beauty, let my jaw drop at His glory, and trust in His sovereignty because it is motivated by His love. He is incomprehensible but He is knowable!
As I step into the world of theology I come again and again to a wall. God is the wall. He is incomprehensible. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts, they are higher! Even when I consider His divine attributes I can only see those things in part. Right now I know in part but some day face to face. His grace is without limit. His mercies are new every morning. Yet at the same time His justice and His righteousness are perfect. Though it would seem that His grace and mercy would come into conflict with His righteousness and justice, he holds these attributes in perfect harmony. We can never hit the bottom of this well. The bible calls this the unsearchable riches. And there, looming in the background, is the elephant that many do not want to face. We can't even comprehend what we know in part about God. He is infinite, omniscient, omnipotent, eternal, and triune, and we can't comprehend the depths of His nature or attributes. Theology will always have a blockade when it comes to this point. Often this is where wise men begin to boast in their wisdom. They reach, at times, to grasp what we can not. Like trying to catch a lion by the tail, the Lion of Judah can't be handled. Strong men have tried to wrestle God into the conformity of their own understanding. Men rich in their biblical knowledge have argued and wrangled over the minutest details of scripture all with the hope of purchasing for themselves an understanding of God.
There is only one thing God wants us to boast about. He is incomprehensible, but we can know Him. We can get God's M.O.! We can share in knowing Him in the same way Adam knew Eve. We know that His love is steadfast, He is perfectly just, and righteous. We can know His heart, observe His dealings with mankind and come to conclusions regarding His nature. But we will never be able to comprehend Him. God delights in our knowing Him but cautions our pursuit of knowledge saying that it "puffs up." So what can we know of God's nature and attributes?
There are two Categories:
Incommunicable- These are attributes that He doesn't share with us.
Independence (self existence, self sufficiency), Immutability (unchangeablenesss), Eternality, Omnipresence, Omniscience
Communicable- These are attributes that He does share with us
Spirituality, knowledge, truthfulness, goodness, love, mercy , holiness, peace, beauty, glory, sovereignty
To sum it all up, there are parts of God that will always remain a gorgeous and beautiful mystery. We will not ever be able to comprehend them or partake in them. Like my 3 year old at Disneyland, we don't understand how it all works but it sure is gloriously thrilling! There are some things about God that I will not just know in theory but, He actually invites me to partake in experientially. I can share with Him in the Spirit, grow in grace and knowledge, love truth and mercy, partake in His holiness, rest in His peace, bask in His beauty, let my jaw drop at His glory, and trust in His sovereignty because it is motivated by His love. He is incomprehensible but He is knowable!
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