Some Key Words (2/1/01)

Establish (sterizo [4741]):

to make stable, place firmly, to strengthen, to render constant, confirm one's mind; to turn resolutely in a certain direction

Revelation (apokalupsis [602]):

uncovering, unveiling, disclosure, the thing shown and its interpretation; a making naked, a disclosure of truth, an instruction concerning things previously unknown, events which cause things previously hidden to be made visible to all, manifestation, appearance;

Mystery (musterion [3466]):

something hidden or not fully disclosed, a sacred thing hidden from natural human reason and knowable only by revelation of God, a spiritual truth presented by a concealing similitude; a secret, religious secrets, something not obvious to human understanding, a hidden purpose or will;

Kept secret (sigao [4601]):

to keep silence, hold one's peace, to be kept in silence, concealed;

Manifested (phaneroo [5319]):

to make known, the impact of revelation - the revealing making it known to those to whom it is revealed; to make visible or known, to reveal by word or deed, to make realized, to make known by teaching, to show oneself, to be thoroughly understood as to who and what one is; to render apparent

Made known (gnorizo [1107]):

to know or perceive, to know the revelation of God's purposes toward salvation, to know what has been divinely communicated; to become known, to be recognized, to gain thorough knowledge of;

Obedience (hupakoe [5218]):

willing subjection to God's will, to that which is revealed to be right, to salvation, or to faith, the obedience demanded by Christ; compliance and submission, obedience to counsel, obedience in observing the requirements of Christianity;

Faith (pistis [4102]):

belief in general - implying knowledge of, assent to, and confidence in divine truth and leading to good works, such knowledge lacking in good works - false faith, faith accompanied by miracles; conviction of the truth of anything, belief regarding man's relationship to God and the divine - displaying trust and holy fervor, conviction that God exists as creator and ruler of all, and provider of salvation through Christ, conviction that Jesus is the Messiah and the means of our obtaining salvation, belief with trust and confidence in God or Christ, the character of one who can be relied on; credence, moral conviction of religious truth or the truth of God, reliance upon Christ for salvation, constancy in profession of such beliefs

Wise (sophos [4680]):

one who knows how to regulate his course in view of the movements of heaven or God, wise in respect to spiritual truth, skillful or expert, prudent, sensible and judicious; learned, forming the best plans and executing them by the best means;

Glory (doxa [1391]):

reputation, the recognition belonging to a person, honor and renown, that in one's aspect that catches the eye and demands attention, splendor, brilliance, all which is excellent in the divine nature; a good opinion concerning someone - leading to praise, honor and glory, magnificence, excellence, dignity, grace, majesty, the majesty of absolute perfection found only in God, the kingly majesty of Messiah, the perfect personal excellency of Christ, the exterior brightness of angels, a most glorious condition, a most exalted state, the condition of blessedness appointed to true Christians at Christ's return; very apparent glory

 

Paraphrase: (2/1/01)

25 It is only God who can make this gospel of mine certain in you, as well as Jesus' own teaching. For in them, God has revealed that which He has held in secret for many ages. 26 Yes, now He is making these things manifest, revealing what was meant in prophetic Scripture, causing this revelation to come about in accord with His own command. The eternal God is thus being revealed and made known in every nation, that every nation may come to Him in obedience of faith. 27 To this God, Him alone God and Him alone wise, through Jesus His Christ, be the glory forever. Amen.

Key Verse: (2/1/01)

16:27 - Eternal glory is to God alone, Him wise, and Him alone God. Through Christ Jesus, we can so give Him the glory.

People Mentioned: (2/1/01)

N/A

Some Parallel Verses (2/2/01)

16:25

Eph 3:20 - Glory to Him who can do way more than we even think to ask, Jd 24 - to Him who keeps us from stumbling, who enables us to stand blameless in His presence. Ro 2:16 - Paul taught that God will judge men through Christ on the last day. Mt 13:35 - Prophecy was fulfilled by Christ's speaking in parables, and so revealing what had been hidden since the beginning. Ro 11:25 - God's saving of the Gentiles, and His using the Gentiles to save the Jews is a great mystery. 1Co 2:1 - Paul did not rely on superior speech and wisdom in his preaching, 1Co 2:7 - although there was wisdom in what he taught, but not of the sort that that age understood. 1Co 4:1 - Paul was a steward of the mysteries of God, a servant of Christ. Eph 1:9 - God made the mystery of His will known to us. Eph 3:3 - The mystery of the Gentile church was explained to Paul in revelation, Eph 3:9 - which mystery he was charged to bring into the light and to administer. Eph 6:19 - Paul sought prayer for boldness in preaching the gospel and the mystery. Col 1:26-27 - The mystery of Christ made our hope of glory has been revealed amongst the Gentiles by God's will. Col 2:2 - Our hearts are encouraged, and unity built, by the complete assurance that comes of understanding the mystery of God which is Christ. Col 4:3 - Paul prays that doors may be opened to him to continue preaching the mystery of Christ. 1Ti 3:16 - The mystery of godliness is a great mystery, revealed in the flesh by Him who was vindicated by the Spirit, beheld by angels, declared in the nations, believed by the world, and taken in glory. 2Ti 1:9 - God's call of salvation to us was granted to us in Christ Jesus from all eternity, established long before our own existence. Tit 1:2 - God promised eternal life long ago, and He cannot lie.

16:26

Ro 1:2 - The gospel which is declared throughout the New Testament was promised by God in the Scriptures of the Old Testament, through the preserved words of the prophets. Ro 1:5 - Through Christ we receive the grace to cause obedience amongst unbelievers, for His own sake and glory.

16:27

Ro 11:36 - All things come from Him, all things continue their existence because of Him, the purpose of all things is to glorify Him with all the glory for all of eternity. Amen.

 

New Thoughts (2/3/01)

God, who alone forms the best plans and executes them by the best means, is the only One who can turn us resolutely - unchangeably - in a certain direction. This is the closing thought of Paul, as he completes this letter. And it's a thought reflected elsewhere in Scripture. It is the primary message of Christianity, really. We were lost, incapable of saving ourselves from our own error. We were so lost, we couldn't even see the error we walked in! But for God, His grace, and His plans, we would remain in error through death, and throughout eternity. But God granted our salvation in Christ from all eternity (2Ti 1:9)! Before we were born, before there was an earth to be born into, before Adam had had opportunity to fall; already God had determined my salvation. Already He had in mind every step in the plan. The whole of history stood open before Him, from the garden, to my own personal set of errors, to what it would take for me, personally, to recognize His reality. That is an awesome God!

Notice once more, in this closing paragraph, how the unity Paul has been preaching throughout this letter is once more focused. Paul's message, the good news he has always brought, is one with the teaching of Christ Jesus our Lord, as we can learn for ourselves by our studies. Neither Jesus, nor Paul taught anything that was not of one accord with existing Scripture, rather their words revealed and explained the meaning of what had been obscure prophecies. The new teaching made understandable the old. So, the Old and the New stand in unity in their declaration of the One wise God, and His singular purposes and will. And all of these - the prophets and chroniclers of the Old Testament and of the New, Jesus, Paul, and the other apostles - work at one with God, depending upon His will to know what to declare, and when, and to whom. How we need to recover this!

Hidden in all this reminder of God's overarching purposes, of His singular will, of His unparalleled wisdom in choosing the times and the means, is an understanding of predestination. There lies a concept that wounds us to the quick. We don't like the idea that it was none of our doing that we came to Christ. We like to think that we chose Him, but deep down we know He chose us. Look at 2Ti 1:9 one more time. From before our existence, He had already determined to save us. Where, then, is our effort? What had it to do with our desire? We couldn't even have a desire for the love of God, except He had come to us and made us able by His Holy Spirit! In ourselves, we can and will choose nothing but sin. But God chooses otherwise. He chooses to save us from ourselves. He chooses to dust us off, wash our garments, and stand us in places of honor in His own courts. Why? One reason is that it leaves no place in us for pride of accomplishment. Pride destroys the unity God wants so much amongst His own. An understanding that each one of us is His only by His own doing keeps us free of that pride. Col 2:2 tells us outright that this great mystery of our being chosen from the beginning in Christ is the builder of unity amongst us. It also tells us that this great mystery, when understood, is a great encouragement to our hearts. Why so? The answer is right there. Because, when we understand that our salvation is and always has been God's decision, we come to have the complete assurance of realizing that what God has decided will surely come to pass. What He has declared cannot be broken or changed. Whom He has placed in the hands of His Son, can by no means be snatched out of those hands. Ever wonder if your salvation is secure? Here is the answer. Praise be to our God and Savior! Praise be to the One who knew me from before the womb! Praise be to the almighty creator of heaven and earth who was willing to lower Himself to be known by such a one as I, so that I might be lifted up to know Him!