Opening Prayer
Lord, teach us to believe and to adore Your Wisdom. Amen.
Text: Romans 11:33–36
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor?” “Or who has first given to Him and it shall be repaid to him?” For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Devotion
Do not be discouraged, dear Christians, if it seems dark for Christendom. The cause is the Lord’s, and the Lord shall bring His cause to victory. His wisdom is unsearchable. We understand only as much of His way, as He finds good to reveal to us; but in many things it is of service to us that He hides from us what He does. We are too lowly to give Him advice and too small to comprehend God’s wisdom. But He has revealed to us enough so that we can believe in Him and commend ourselves into His hands.
It is hard to see the unbelieving Jews walking in blindness and the multitude of the Gentiles sitting in the darkness of ungodliness, to see Christ rejected by the leaders among Christian people, and the rest of us lacking both in faith and love. Whoever has a heart must really “feel a great concern and an incessant pain within.” – But will all this grief embarrass our God so that He does not know what to do? Will Caiaphas and Pilate, who in blindness and wickedness completely destroyed God’s Son, be able to hinder Him in His saving work of grace? Rather didn’t they have to fulfill His will? Or shall the Jews with their unbelief be able to stop the spreading of Christ’s kingdom, even on earth? Actually they propel the Gospel out over all nations, and their rejection becomes the world’s reconciliation! Can the unbelief, rejection of God, and free-thinking of our time be unknown to God? He took it into account in His own way in His plan for the completion of the kingdom. Just let people build their tower of Babel against the Lord. He looks at it and they must build it for Him. There in the plain of Shinar they built long ago, to keep themselves together, even contrary to the word of the Lord, but the Lord, contrary to their thinking, used it to scatter them abroad. Our age gathers materials from the depths of earth and the height of heaven, from repositories and work places of philosophizing in order to build a tower that would gather all people into one great natural temple, so that Christ’s Church might become empty. It seems as if “nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them” (Gen 11:6). Be still, the Most High has His own thoughts about this. “Of Him and through Him and to Him are all things” (Rom 11:36). Take note of this “of,” this “through,” and this “to,” dear Christian! These small words are infinitely glorious and powerful against unbelief. – When the gardener cuts away the whole top of the apple tree and a big part of the stem, he knows what he’s doing. But the child who sees it thinks he is destroying it. The Church is the Lord’s. Be still before Him, wait for Him, serve Him, and walk before Him, and little by little you will be able to see His wisdom, and with the fruit and joy of holiness offer Him worship and praise. But if He hides it all from your eyes again, you shall still believe, so that you can say: “To Him be glory forever!”
Closing Prayer
O God, let Your Spirit enlighten us, so that we understand that You have enclosed all under sin, so that You might have mercy on all (Rom 11:32). Show us enough of the plan of Your love and righteousness that we may confidently believe in You and gladly serve You. Amen.
Hymn
What shall I say? Weak are my words
And humble my opinion!
How great Thy wisdom, Lord of lords,
Thy might and Thy dominion!
Arise, ye nations of the earth
And lift your voice to heaven,
Praise God in songs of joy and mirth,
Who all these things hath given.
Brorson: Op al den Ting L 451:12-15 HCH 361:7-8 tr. A. M. Andersen;
tune: Jeg ved et evigt Himmerig (LHy 523); alternate hymn: Father, who the light this day ELH 14