Wednesday, February 1, 2023

           Samuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet and theologian.  His writings were heavily influenced by various Old Testament books.  One such book was Ezekiel.  Coleridge once famously noted that the most profound sentence ever uttered by any human was the one spoken by prophet Ezekiel in the Valley of the Dry Bones when he was asked whether these bones could live.  Ezekiel said, “Sovereign LORD, you alone know” (Ezekiel 37:3).  Only the LORD God knows.  We could draw the same conclusion today about any number of things.  Only God knows the future.  Only the Father knows when He will send the Son to return.  Only He knows everything we have ever said or done.  Only our Maker knows every cell in our body.
            While we do not know everything, it is comforting to know that the Lord does.  Nothing has escaped His knowledge.  Nothing is too great for His understanding.  On those occasions when we have more questions than answers, we might have to find consolation in knowing that God knows.  He knows us and He knows where we are.  And because God knows, He will supply our needs and take good care of us. When we are not sure how to proceed, we can turn to Him.  He knows!  And that is enough.
            To say “God knows” is a statement of faith.  Coleridge was right—it is a profound statement.  We acknowledge our limits and the limitlessness of God.  We acknowledge our frailty and His strength.  We recognize our powerlessness and His power.  He knows! He knows everything.  Even the finest and largest library ever assembled does not possess all human knowledge or history.  But God knows everything—all the time and at the same time.  No molecule or particle in the universe is beyond His sight and knowledge.  He knows!
            To say God knows is an act of worship.  We are giving worthiness and majesty to Him with such a statement.  No one is like the Lord. God remembers the first second of creation (in the beginning) and He knows the last second before His Son comes again.  We want to trust, to walk with, to lean on and to surrender to Him.  Paul wrote in Romans 8:33-36, “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! ‘Who has known the mind of the Lord?   Or who has been his counselor?’  ‘Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?’  For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.”  For a moment, inspired by the Holy Spirit, Paul sought to describe the wonders of the God who knows. 
            Because God knows, we can faithfully bring our battles and trials to Him.  We can lay them at His feet and receive the help we need.  He does not have to guess about what we may need.  He knows.  He has always known.  When we admit what we do not know and cannot do, we find ourselves calling on His Name and trusting in His Word and ways.  To say “I do not know” brings no shame.  To say “He knows” brings life’s greatest security and serenity.  We can confidently declare “He knows” over our tears, worries, anxiousness, grief and sorrow.  He knows and that is sufficient for us.  Have a wonderful Wednesday and worship whenever you like at youtube.com/FirstBaptistKannapolis.