What do we know?

Have you ever cautioned someone else on explaining the mystery of God and then done so yourself? Well here I go.

My daughter and I have been having an argument the last couple of days. She is four and she learned at pre-school about deciduous trees. She is claiming her teacher told her the trees with needles are the deciduous ones and the ones with leaves are not. I have been trying to get through to her the concept the trees with needles are evergreens - see it even has green in its name. Look outside and see which trees are still green. She is convinced she is right and I am wrong or "just joking dad." She firmly believes what she has gotten into her head and it not letting it rest. Every time we get in the car and she sees an evergreen she points to it and says,"that one is deciduous."

Have you ever gotten so sure of something only to find out you are way off base, or really had no idea of the complexities you were trying to speak to. In Job 11 Zophar just sets himself up. He tells Job the depths of God are too deep for us and the heights of God are to high for us. We can't really understand him. And then he goes on to explain with perfect clarity what Job needs to do in relationship to his sin and this God no man can understand.

How many times have we done this? We explain some truth about God and find our we were just way off base. Zophar tells Job if he would just cast his sin aside and not let any sin dwell in his house then he would be able to stand again. Then he would be able to have hope again by some self produced righteousness. The problem is we know from the beginning of the book, Job is considered righteous in God's eyes. It is not his sin bringing down this suffering. Zophar has no idea what he is talking about.

I pray today we would be open to what God has to teach us about the mysteries of himself. There are things he has revealed to us in his word. Things we can place of feet on. If we confess our sin he is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We can not put away our sin all on our own, we need a savior without him there is no hope. Christ is our righteousness, Christ is our savior, and Christ is our hope.

May God teach us today of himself, and may we open our minds and hearts to listen because he might just change our minds from deciduous to evergreens.