Sermon Tone Analysis

*God’s Secret*

11~/19~/06 CC~/AM

1 Corinthians 2:6-16

(1 Cor.

#5)

 

Introduction: How do you do at keeping secrets?

Do you have a secret that you are keeping this morning?

Sometimes children like to whisper secrets in front of others to make them feel left out.

Would you be surprised to know that God keeps secrets?

As a matter of fact God has kept most of the things that will affect our lives a mystery.

Unlike us, God is great at keeping secrets.

He operates on a need to know basis until we really need to know.

We don’t always like that but if we are going to grow in our faith we must trust that God knows what He is doing, because He actually does!

In our text, Paul continues to tell the Corinthian believers about the wisdom of God and how it is actually a secret.

This morning we will examine some of the issues concerning the secret that God has.

Prayer~/Text

 

*1.

**It will not be known by everyone vv.

6-7b*

 

a.

One of the things that make something a secret is that not everyone one knows!

b.

Not everything that pretends to be a secret is.

When you get an e-mail about a stock market tip, it is not really a secret!

c.

Paul states that this is a secret that certain people will never figure out.

d.

The rulers or those in authority in Paul’s day didn’t understand it.

It was a mystery to them and therefore the crucified the very Lord of glory.

i.e. the Lord from glory.

The reason that they killed Jesus was because they really did not know who He actually was even though He told them and they should have known.

e.

Also those who were of “this age” did not know the secret.

It was not only those who were in power at the time that didn’t understand the mystery, the world in general did not know it either!

f.

The same is true today!

The majority of the people in this world are lost and still in their sins.

They do not have to be because the message of the gospel is no longer a mystery as far as the information concerning it goes!

g.

Unfortunately most are just like the rulers who are described in the text as passing away or are coming to nothing or in their own wisdom accomplishing nothing that will amount to anything.

h.

You might have noticed that some do get it!

Those who have been made complete in Jesus Christ are not only capable of understanding the mystery it is the reason that they are listed as being mature.

Now before we get to big a head about this we must remind ourselves that it is not because we are inherently smarter.

It is all because of God’s grace!

Apart from that we will still have no idea what the mystery was all about!

*2.

**It is a very old secret*

 

a.

What is the longest that you have ever kept a secret?

We know of people that we would never tell another secret because they have proven untrustworthy when it comes to keeping it a secret!

b.

Look how long God has kept this secret!

It was predestined or ordained before the measurement of time!

Before the ages were counted God knew exactly what He would do.

c.

He knew that He would have to redeem man unto Himself billions of years prior to ever making Adam and Eve.

As a matter of fact God has always known about everything that has or will yet happen, hundreds of billions of years before He ever created this universe.

We can’t even begin to comprehend the power and wisdom of God!

 

d.

Since God has always known everything long before anything ever happened doesn’t it make sense to trust Him with every decision in our lives?

e.

It says that He not only knew about it but that He predestined it or He made it happen.

Jesus didn’t go to the cross because man nailed Him there.

God placed Him there before the ages and for what reason?

It was for our glory!

So that we, even though we were fallen sinners, could experience the glory of God both in this life partially, but in the next life completely and forever!

 

f.

We might even have a hard time keeping a Christmas present a secret!

God kept this secret way past Christmas and past the cross and all the way to Easter!

 

*3.

**No human could have ever figured it out*

a.    Man seems to be fascinated with discovering mysteries.

From filling out crossword puzzles to playing “eye spy”, to office pools on babies gender, weight and length, we like the challenge of figuring things out.

b.

Here is one that we could never figure out.

c.

Verse 9 is often used to describe how indescribable heaven will be.

While it is true that heaven is beyond our capabilities to imagine its glory, that is really not what this verse is talking about.

Verse 10 tells us that this mystery has already been revealed!

d.

What Isaiah and then Paul is saying is that man was not capable of discovering on his own the things that are God’s.

e.

The mystery of the gospel, the plan of redemption was inconceivable to man.

The very fact that God would have pity upon us wicked little creatures, would not even have entered our puny little minds.

f.

The fact that God would call us unto Himself through the death and resurrection of His Son and then desire to guide and bless us throughout our lives and desire to enjoy eternity with us, would have never even be considered by us.

To be honest, we still don’t even understand why He did it!

g.

But I sure am glad that He did!

 

*4.

**A very Special Person revealed it*

 

a.

When it is time to reveal a secret, don’t you like to be the one who gets to break the news!

 

b.

Here the person who got to let the cat out of the bag is the Spirit of God.

 

c.

The Holy Spirit makes us alive in Christ Jesus.

He convicts and reveals the mystery to us.

We may have heard it from a human but until the Holy Spirit enables us to understand it, it makes no sense.

d.

It took the Spirit of God to understand the mystery of God!

 

e.

Paul gives us an illustration when he says that the only one who really knows what you are thinking is you!

Someone may say to us that they know what we are thinking, but in reality it is only a guess.