A Mystery that is no longer a mystery!

Scripture Read: 1 Timothy 3:16 By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, Was vindicated in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Proclaimed among the nations, Believed on in the world, Taken up in glory.

Application: Restated “the mystery” is a secret, hidden before, now revealed by God which we all commonly confess. This is one of the most powerful verses in the Word of God because of Christ. Here in just a few phrases we have all that we hold as Truth stated, simply and succinctly. The only room for argument is a spirit of rebellion. Paul makes it clear that this simple statement is what the Body of Christ agrees to:

 The words, “without controversy,” (common confession) are the translation of homologoumenōs (ὁμολογουμενως), an adverb from homologeō (ὁμολογεω), “to agree with.” The translation could read, “confessedly.”

Paul’s directness about this is refreshing in our politically correct age. Those that call themselves children of God agree and understand certain truths that are non-negotiable. The first truth is obvious, but also so important though, it is often missed.

The term “Great is the mystery of godliness - The word “mystery” is mustērion (μυστηριον) refers to truth previously hidden, which when revealed, is understood by the believer.

~ The word is also used of such things as the mystery of evil, which is a mystery not to be understood, at least, this side of the grave.

~The mystery of piety towards God on the part of men is the truth to which Paul referred in the previous verse.”

 ~ The meaning in the context of this verse is  ““The contents of this truth or mystery is Christ, revealed in the gospel as the Savior from ungodliness, the norm and inspiration of godliness, the divine life in man, causing him to live unto God as Christ did and does (Rom. 6:10)” (Vincent).^[1]

Much of what we believe is not completely understandable on this side of glory, we need to accept that and stop fighting about issues that only God can resolve! The rest of these truths have been clearly revealed to us and should be embraced.

He who was revealed in the flesh:  God in the Flesh, no room for debate, anything else is a cult!

Was vindicated in the Spirit: The works Christ did through the Power of the Holy Spirit proved He was the Messiah - John 20:30–31 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹ but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

   

Seen by angels: The fact that all that Jesus did was witnessed by the Angelic realm, which they gave testimony to i.e. His birth, His resurrection.

Proclaimed among the nations: This Truth has been preached throughout the world

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Believed on in the world: Throughout history, in spite of the effort made by many; persecutions of unbelievable magnitude, millions who have laid down their lives without seeking revenge on their murderers, people of every educational background, economic level and cultural & religious background have trusted in Christ, changed dramatically and have sensed a oneness with others of like faith, no matter the differences.

Taken up in glory: This is the beginning of the Hope of every child of God. If Christ did not ascend to heaven than He cannot return. These truths are what makes our heart beat with excitement as years wane on. We do not become more tired and discouraged. Though, we become worn out and age takes it’s toll, but the inner man is energized and renewed at the thought of our Lord coming back for us! The mystery revealed is seen in our own lives!  ~This should be our “mantra”, reminding ourselves daily of this Truth so that we may endeavor not to lose heart. ~The God-man our own Christ who sacrificed Himself for us, rose from the dead and asked us to tell others the mystery has been revealed in the Truth that He is coming back for us soon and then we will live forever; away from sin and evil, pain and regret, death and sorrow. Most of all we will be with HIM – face to face! Every child of God should engraft this passage into their soul Even so… Come Lord Jesus!

Meditation Questions: Can you accept as the Word of God states Who Jesus is or do you change it? What does that say? Even though there are many denominations, how many faiths are there? If someone changes anything mentioned in this passage what does that show? Based on this confession, when should we retire from ministry? The world tries to preach oneness, but what is their oneness based on? What is our oneness based on? When you meet a fellow believer, what do you sense? Does it matter if they look different or sound different? What does that say?  

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^[1] Wuest, K. S. (1997). Wuest's word studies from the Greek New Testament : For the English reader (1 Ti 3:16). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.