The Hidden Plan of God-Lent 13, 2022

“7 But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.” (Revelation 10:7)

Continuing our study of Revelation in 40, there are enough odd statements in the lines of Scripture that we don’t need to read between the lines to have our curiosity kindled. “Mystery of God” sounds so…mysterious! What is this mystery of God? According to this verse, God has already announced it to His servants the prophets.

One cannot read about this little scroll (Revelation 10:8) now unsealed in the hand of a mighty angel of God without thinking of Daniel, who, yes, was a prophet. Daniel did not understand the visions and messages he was given but was commanded to roll up and seal the scroll until the time of the end. It would remain a mystery until God partially unveiled it in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ, Son of God and powerfully at His resurrection. I wonder if Jesus had a twinkle in His eye when He said, “Go your way, Daniel…”

Daniel 12:1 “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people– everyone whose name is found written in the book– will be delivered. 2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. 4 But you, Daniel, roll up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.”… 8 I heard, but I did not understand. So I asked, “My lord, what will the outcome of all this be?” 9 He replied, “Go your way, Daniel, because the words are rolled up and sealed until the time of the end.”

Ah, but now they’ve been unsealed in John’s vision.
Okay, what is the mystery? The hidden plan of God?

Daniel 12 continues…. 10 Many will be purified, made spotless and refined, but the wicked will continue to be wicked. None of the wicked will understand, but those who are wise will understand.

Thoughts for today:

Read Peter’s assessment: “Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.(1 Peter 1:10-12)

At the time of Daniel, it looked like humanity was totally in a losing game of chess. It was mortality’s checkmate because of sin, and there was no other hope for humanity. No one had the slightest hint that God Himself, in the person of Jesus Christ would suffer and die for His beloved Image bearers. That God Himself would provide (indeed BE) the perfect sacrifice. The Lamb of God sent from God and God’s only Son would receive God’s holy wrath against sin and by His grace, through our faith, many will be purified. The Gospel-a hidden and awesome plan of God. It is amazing grace!

The verse from today says the “mystery of God will be accomplished.” In what way has the Gospel been revealed, but not yet been fully accomplished (reserved for the very end as the seventh trumpet is about to sound)?

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2022 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals continue to minister, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.
Our Lent 2020 devotional series offered prayer points surrounding “Be Thou My Vision” and were aimed at helping us to see God for who He is. The full set of devotionals are archived beginning February 26, 2020.
The theme for 2021 Lent Devotionals was how to live between two worlds while waiting for Christ’s return. Into the gap between the City of Man and its fixation upon sin and the City of God with its demand for holiness, two words minister peace: But God. Praise God for His intervention! They are archived beginning February 17, 2021.