How Can I Gain Understanding?

Q

It appears to me that there will always be things pertaining to GOD that I will not know or understand regardless of the amount of study and prayer I engage in. What is a believer to do in these instances when what has been revealed does not answer the questions that I have?

A

There are many things about God that we will not understand until we’ve been perfected and stand before Him. Paul said now we know in part, but then we shall know fully, even as we are fully known (1 Cor. 13:12).

In the meantime, God gave us His Word in a form we can understand. Proverbs 1:7 tells us the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. The Hebrew word translated “fear” in this verse means “respect, reverence, or piety”. The more we show God the respect He deserves as our Creator and Redeemer, the more receptive our mind will be to His word.

His word tells us to “trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5). Unless there’s a clear reason to do otherwise, we should trust that the Lord wants us to take His word just as He had it written.

We should pray for understanding. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. (James 1:5-6)

Finally, we should believe that God’s word is written in such a way that anyone with average intelligence, a willingness to study, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit can comprehend it. We still won’t know all there is to know about God, but we will know the things He intended for us to know to get us through this life. The rest will come in the next life.