Proclaiming the mystery of God

Everybody loves a good mystery.

From solving crimes to finishing crossword puzzles, uncovering truth is a human pursuit to satisfy curiosity.

Some mysteries seem beyond our capabilities to understand. We gaze and marvel at the latest images from deep space or try to comprehend all the complexities of the human brain.

How we process what we do not know can affect the bigger questions in life.

Who is God? Why am I here? What is my purpose in life?

The knowledge of God is an unsolvable mystery.

Yet, God assures us that he provides everything we need to answer the big questions in life that really matter.

Our purpose in life. Our relationship with God. Our eternity.

Faith alone is the hand that receives all the benefits Christ won for us on the cross.

Christ forgives the past and secures our future. Faith is knowledge from God that assures us when we don’t see and gives confidence in the hope we have in his promises. (Heb. 11:1) 

Faith alone accepts the unexplained mysteries of God.

How can we proclaim the mystery of God without having to prove that God exists?

Biblical truth must be defended since God’s Word is the only source to receive salvation. The clarity of God’s truth must be preserved to receive his knowledge.

Apologetics has a place on the banquet table of evangelism.

Some people are naturally prone to enter debates and defend the Christian faith. And praise God for them! They love to learn answers to every possible question posed by skeptics. But defending the faith is not a requirement to witness our faith.

Many believers feel they need to be equipped to answer every objection in order to share the gospel. But that’s not true. Jesus doesn’t tell us in the great commission to go out into the world and win arguments, but to win souls. That makes a big difference.

While serving with Truth in Love Ministry – a ministry devoted to proclaiming the gospel to Mormons – there were many Mormon outreach ministries that centered on apologetics. Their approach was to get lost souls to leave Mormonism by proving that their teachings were wrong and Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, was a fraud. One ministry leader told me that after a person is convinced that their Mormon beliefs were wrong, there is only a small window of opportunity to bring them to faith before they turn into an agnostic. And who can blame them? Devout members of the LDS Church are required to trust church leaders to establish truth. When they discover that they have been lied to and embarrassed for being duped, how can they trust anyone with the truth?

Many ex-Mormons who become Christians struggle with deep resentment towards the LDS Church. This can lead them to focus more on getting people to leave the church rather than lead them to Christ through his Word.

I am not sure what is worse. An angry, bitter, ex-Mormon agnostic or a happy Mormon immersed in the LDS culture. They are both lost and need Jesus.

They need to hear God’s Word.

Faith in God is a mystery that can’t be proven to satisfy human logic. It is not an emotion or an intellectual decision that Jesus is right, but a trust that absorbs the mind, body, and soul.

Saving faith is a mystery because it is a miracle.

It is a touch of grace that brings life to something that was completely dead.

The power of God’s Word turns the key to open hearts and minds.

The key in Christ. He is the Word.

Evangelists provide the key when they share what Jesus has already done for all people. One word receives his grace.

Believe.

It’s that simple.

How can we proclaim the mystery of God without having to prove that God exists?

We can start by confessing that faith is a mystery and that we can’t on our own understand the knowledge of God.

We can’t satisfy human curiosity by pointing to the tomb where Christ arose nor explain scientifically how the resurrection works. If it were important, God would let us know.

Instead, we point to the benefits of Christ’s resurrection and why it’s foundational to the Christian faith.

Christ lives. And we will too! He reigns – right now — in the hearts and minds of those who trust in him. We have peace in this promise that has great mystery.

“Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” (1 Cor. 15:51-52)

Faith embraces the mysteries of God and it’s okay to communicate this with people to start a spiritual conversation.

Trusting in Christ doesn’t rely on what is provable, but that God keeps his promises.

There is already enough evidence that God exists. He really doesn’t need our help.

What God needs help from his people who believe in him is to deliver the message of salvation.

We introduce Jesus through proclaiming his Word and he takes it from there.

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