Unsearchable

Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph 3:8).

Paul evidently makes a contradictory statement here. Is it possible to explore something which is unsearchable? Can plain words explain the riches of Christ? If God is spirit can mere words express His being, His existence and our position in Him?

We know that the Pharisees employed a literal approach to the scriptures, and they couldn't find the Person who sustains everything and who is all in all. It seems, though, that an additional source is needed, who of course is the Spirit. This is what often causes strife; persons who try to understand what only can be grasped by revelation oppose those who have declared their dependence upon the Spirit to understand what can only be perceived on a spiritual level.

A question which is sensible to raise in this context is whether or not the Spirit is confined to only animate the written word, or can He give us insights which transcends the word, but which do not contradict it? The written word is limited in scope, even when we take into consideration all what has been written about God's kingdom during the centuries. The written word is a finite quality. Unsearchable is definitely infinite.

The answer to our question must obviously be yes. There exist no limits for Him, and our Father apparently has made everything in such a way that He is the one who discloses what He wants to be known about Him at a certain time, or in accordance with a person's level of maturity in the Christian walk. Isa 45:3 puts it like this:

I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hoards in secret places, that you may know that it is I, the LORD, the God of Israel, who call you by your name.

God has hidden His treasures in the darkness. In other words we are unable to see them if not He lights them up, or lead us to the secret places. And those of us who have gotten acquainted to His generosity know that He is more than willing to share with His precious children the secrets of life.

Paul must have known that to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ was mission impossible for a human. I believe Paul rested in this simple fact: "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you." (John 14:26)

This is a liberating truth, because everyone of us can now anticipate the Spirit speaking to us individually and teach us about the depths of God. And isn't it so that as we get to know Him better this will increase our hunger to know Him more intimately? The more He discloses of His beauty and our inheritance as saints the more we are pulled towards Him. And the more we have the more we will get, because we are led to intensify our searching. What can He do except give us our heart's desire? And we are His heart's desire!

As we now are aware of the truth that He is unsearchable we can meet every day with an expectancy of a new revelation about Him from Him. Can you hear your Father whisper words of life to you? More than that, can you see things which you cannot describe with words? Things beyond this temporal world? You might ask: Why me? As my dear friend John Bunting says: Why not me?

If the riches of Christ is unsearchable, that is, limitless, then consequently also His love is limitless. You might as Paul assert that you are the least of God's people. Well, then you also are more than qualified to preach His limitless love by the gifts you are furnished with. In Math we do calculations on infinite integrals and sequences which surprisingly yields a finite answer. It is as all the power of the infinite nature of the original function is stored in that figure. Yup, that figure is you!