Does God Hide Things From Us?

As we grow in our trust of God in our daily walk there are some  things he may choose to hide from us. The reasons for such actions I’m sure are many, yet to understand the basic reasons would be helpful to us so that we can know if God is withholding truth because we are not prepared for it, like the early disciples who walked with Jesus in ministry.

The first thing that comes to mind as to why God doesn’t just tell us why he is doing or not doing something is because he wants us to learn to “Process” the things we have already learned from him. We have stored many truths God has already given us intellectually  in our minds yet failed to process those truths so they work in practical way. Solomon said “Wisdom” is the principle thing to get because  wisdom is how God ordered the earth. As we are called to be like Christ in all our lives, wisdom should be at the top of our pursuits.

Proverbs 3:21-22 

My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion; they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck.

Proverbs 4:7 

The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.

If we are honest, we can see that many of the mistakes we have made in life are mostly due to a lack of wisdom. If we had wisdom beforehand we could have avoided many pitfalls and things that have wounded our souls. The ability to choose one thing over another does not imply that we have the wisdom to make good choices.

In the book of Genesis God tries to help Cain understand why his sacrifice was not acceptable and why Abel’s was. He spoke to him about figuring out “Why” he was so angry and not just let anger control his life. God was trying to help Cain see what his “Motives” were and why he failed to please God. How often have we blamed God when things go wrong when God is trying to help us process our choice to discover our motives? God is more concerned with helping us learn wisdom than he is in making life comfortable.In the end, God warned Cain that sin was out to get him and he had the power to defeat sin. Unfortunately, Cain let his emotions get the best of him and ruined the rest of his life.

Genesis 4:6-7 

Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

Secondly, God withholds truth or understanding from us not because of some sin area but because of some weakness in our walk. Looking back through my 50+ years as a Christian I can see times when I thought I was smarter or more mature than I really was and thus God had to let me hit a few walls in my life to wake me up to my pride. Those hard experiences taught me to look deeper in my understanding of who God is and learn his ways better so I don’t assume things that ended up hurting me and my decisions. Can you relate?

The disciples who walked closely with Jesus had similar problems. They thought they understood Jesus more than they really did and consequently couldn’t get past the false premises they had of him. They had to discover their misunderstandings before they could embrace the truth that God wanted to give them. You and I often are caught in overestimating our own understanding and wisdom which blinds us to the truth that is invaluable towards our own success.     

Luke 9:44-45 

“Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.” But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.

The third reason God withholds truth from us is that we are lacking in the discipline of reading and studying God’s word. Our ability to process truth is dependent on the truth we have learned already. Without the building blocks of certain truths we can’t process nor understand new truths because truth is built on other truths. Failure to learn the basics of wisdom, understanding and truth prevents the new truths we seek. God in his wisdom often “Holds Back” certain truths because of the damage it might do to us and those we meet.

Take Solomon for instance. Solomon was given a special gift of an understanding heart by God because he was humble when he started out as king. God met him and rewarded him with a discerning heart which allowed him to see past the surface of any problem or difficulty.

1 Kings 3:9

So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”  

1 Kings 3:11-13 

So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. 

If we can learn anything from Solomon’s life it’s that God is gracious to the humble and rewards those who seek him. Secondly, though Solomon started out well he ended up poorly because he thought wisdom rested with him rather than God. Pride has a way of twisting our hearts and our understanding so that the wisdom and understanding we had in the past becomes lost due to pride. Had Solomon learned and kept on learning from God he would not have ruined his life and the life of his family and the nation of Israel. Always remember it’s not as important how you start your race as much as how you end your race!

Let me leave you with a passage of scripture on wisdom that has kept me focused for these past 50+ years as a follower of Jesus. You would do well to memorize and refer to this passage throughout your walk with God so that he may reveal the hidden things you seek from him for.

Proverbs 3:6-9

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. [7] Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and turn away from evil. [8] It will be healing to your body and refreshment to your bones. [9] Honor the LORD from your wealth and from the first of all your produce;

Questions:

1) Have you been asking why God doesn’t share important things with you? Have you considered the condition of your heart?

2) Have you put into practice the scripture you have learned already? The blessings of God will be hindered if we fail to apply what we have learned from his word.

May the Holy Spirit see fit to reveal the Father’s heart to us as we seek him,

Pastor Dale