To my beloved brother in the faith, grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
I write to you concerning the knowledge of God, for I perceive that many have been led to think of Him in a way that does not befit His greatness. They say that God’s wisdom consists in His foreknowing all things as a settled certainty, as if He wins His victories not by His superior wisdom but by having secretly read the outcome in advance. But I ask you, my brother, is this the way of true greatness?
Consider a mighty king who is said to be the wisest of all rulers. If he triumphs in battle only because he has stolen the enemy’s war plans beforehand, does this display his wisdom? Or is the greater king the one who, by his own strategy, courage, and understanding, defeats every foe and brings about victory? Surely, it is the latter. And if we recognize this among men, how much more should we attribute to God?
It is written that His understanding is infinite, yet we are never told that He has no choice in what He knows. Indeed, the Scriptures bear witness to a God who searches, who inquires, who tests the hearts of men—not because He is lacking in wisdom, but because He is relational, engaged, and personal. Did He not say of Sodom, "I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to Me; and if not, I will know"? And when He tested Abraham, did He not say, "Now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me"?
Such words are not written in vain. God does not speak falsely, nor does He engage in empty gestures. If He says, "Now I know," then it was not known before in the same way. The prophets never declared that the Lord is a passive observer of a settled fate, nor did they teach that He must witness every vile act in its fullness, as though He is bound to gaze upon wickedness. Rather, they proclaimed that He is pure and holy, that He turns His face from evil, that He hides Himself from sin. Is He not free to grant privacy as He wills? Can He not turn away from what He has no need or desire to see? Must He be bound to witness that which He has already judged unworthy of His gaze?
Many have said that God must know all that is knowable, but where is it written? Is it not instead true that God knows what He desires to know? His knowledge is not a burden laid upon Him by necessity, but a power wielded according to His will. He does not need to see every wicked deed in order to judge it; He does not need to predetermine every choice in order to reign over history. His wisdom is not found in mere foresight, but in His perfect understanding of men, of creation, and of the paths that lead to life and death.
What, then, is the error of those who insist that the future is fixed in His mind? It is that they strip away both the living nature of God and the true significance of our choices. If God merely foresees all as settled fact, then He does not think anew, He does not respond, He does not strategize—He merely observes. And if our future is already settled, then our will is but an illusion, and our choices are but shadows cast by what has already been written. But this is not the God of Scripture!
The Lord is a God of action, of judgment, of risk, of love. He is a warrior, a counselor, a shepherd. He does not simply watch history unfold; He engages with it. He does not merely observe what men will do; He calls them, persuades them, warns them, and rejoices when they turn to Him. He is not a lifeless record-keeper but a living, relational Father, whose wisdom is seen in how He interacts, not in how much He has per-ordained.
Do not be deceived by those who would reduce the Almighty to a mere archive of all that shall be. His greatness is not in a knowledge that renders all things inevitable, but in a wisdom that works all things together for good. He is not a God who wins by reading a script but by being the wisest, the strongest, and the most loving of all.
Therefore, my brother, take heart and rejoice in the living God! Walk before Him in true freedom, knowing that your choices matter, that your prayers are heard, that He is with you not as a distant spectator but as an engaged and present Lord. May His wisdom guide you, and may you always trust in the One whose greatness is not in what He foresees, but in what He does.
Grace and peace be with you always.
I write to you concerning the knowledge of God, for I perceive that many have been led to think of Him in a way that does not befit His greatness. They say that God’s wisdom consists in His foreknowing all things as a settled certainty, as if He wins His victories not by His superior wisdom but by having secretly read the outcome in advance. But I ask you, my brother, is this the way of true greatness?
Consider a mighty king who is said to be the wisest of all rulers. If he triumphs in battle only because he has stolen the enemy’s war plans beforehand, does this display his wisdom? Or is the greater king the one who, by his own strategy, courage, and understanding, defeats every foe and brings about victory? Surely, it is the latter. And if we recognize this among men, how much more should we attribute to God?
It is written that His understanding is infinite, yet we are never told that He has no choice in what He knows. Indeed, the Scriptures bear witness to a God who searches, who inquires, who tests the hearts of men—not because He is lacking in wisdom, but because He is relational, engaged, and personal. Did He not say of Sodom, "I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to Me; and if not, I will know"? And when He tested Abraham, did He not say, "Now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me"?
Such words are not written in vain. God does not speak falsely, nor does He engage in empty gestures. If He says, "Now I know," then it was not known before in the same way. The prophets never declared that the Lord is a passive observer of a settled fate, nor did they teach that He must witness every vile act in its fullness, as though He is bound to gaze upon wickedness. Rather, they proclaimed that He is pure and holy, that He turns His face from evil, that He hides Himself from sin. Is He not free to grant privacy as He wills? Can He not turn away from what He has no need or desire to see? Must He be bound to witness that which He has already judged unworthy of His gaze?
Many have said that God must know all that is knowable, but where is it written? Is it not instead true that God knows what He desires to know? His knowledge is not a burden laid upon Him by necessity, but a power wielded according to His will. He does not need to see every wicked deed in order to judge it; He does not need to predetermine every choice in order to reign over history. His wisdom is not found in mere foresight, but in His perfect understanding of men, of creation, and of the paths that lead to life and death.
What, then, is the error of those who insist that the future is fixed in His mind? It is that they strip away both the living nature of God and the true significance of our choices. If God merely foresees all as settled fact, then He does not think anew, He does not respond, He does not strategize—He merely observes. And if our future is already settled, then our will is but an illusion, and our choices are but shadows cast by what has already been written. But this is not the God of Scripture!
The Lord is a God of action, of judgment, of risk, of love. He is a warrior, a counselor, a shepherd. He does not simply watch history unfold; He engages with it. He does not merely observe what men will do; He calls them, persuades them, warns them, and rejoices when they turn to Him. He is not a lifeless record-keeper but a living, relational Father, whose wisdom is seen in how He interacts, not in how much He has per-ordained.
Do not be deceived by those who would reduce the Almighty to a mere archive of all that shall be. His greatness is not in a knowledge that renders all things inevitable, but in a wisdom that works all things together for good. He is not a God who wins by reading a script but by being the wisest, the strongest, and the most loving of all.
Therefore, my brother, take heart and rejoice in the living God! Walk before Him in true freedom, knowing that your choices matter, that your prayers are heard, that He is with you not as a distant spectator but as an engaged and present Lord. May His wisdom guide you, and may you always trust in the One whose greatness is not in what He foresees, but in what He does.
Grace and peace be with you always.
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