From the Pee Dee Baptist Association—Featured this month is Rev. Chris Alderman, the pastor of Little Rock Baptist Church, Little Rock.

“It Is the Glory of God to Conceal a Thing”
Solve the Riddle: A woman shoots her husband, holds him under water for 5 minutes, and finally hangs him. But 10 minutes later, they go out to eat dinner together. How can this be? Proverbs 25:2, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.” No better example of this in Scripture than the birth of the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. God, wrapped in flesh and concealed from the world, lying in a manger. The kings (wise men) were honorable in that they searched out the matter and found Him. Matthew 13:34, “All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitude in parables, and without a parable spoke He not unto them.” How does concealing a matter for it to be searched out bring glory to God? It’s best understood in the context of a parent and child. One of the main differences between you and your child is maturity. You have an intellect and knowledge beyond his. Your very glory over your little one is that you know so much more and are more powerful than he yet you love him. So it is with the Lord. His truth is concealed FOR us, not from us. This is readily seen in Easter egg hunts. We hide eggs for our 2 year old on the coffee table, floor, and in places that are in plain sight. Why? Because the pleasure of the parent is seeing the child get something that makes them happy. If I hide eggs for my 9 year old in the same manner, she’s going to put her hands on her hips, give me an eye roll, and say, “Try, Dad, could you at least try to hide the eggs?” Why? Because their pleasure is not in finding things conveniently; their joy is in the hunt and discovery. We would never hide the eggs for our children and then go into another room while they searched for the eggs. We stay in the room because our glory is watching them discover and claim for their own the things we concealed for them. So it is with the Lord. God receives greater glory as we dig and search out the deep truths of Scripture. Some truths He puts in plain sight; others must be carefully sought after, BUT God is always there guiding us and taking pleasure in our discovery of Him. Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong unto the Lord our God; but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” The beginning point of this discovery is to be born again. Romans 10:9, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Have you repented of your sin, confessed them to the Lord Jesus, believed that He is God in the flesh, died, buried, and resurrected on the third day? If not, please do that today before it’s too late. The answer to that riddle? She was a photographer developing a picture of her husband she “shot”. Romans 16:25–27, “Now to Him that is of power to establish you according to the Gospel, and the preaching of the Lord JesusChrist, according to the revelations of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: to God, only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ forever. Amen.” As God’s child, you are never more honorable than when you are searching out and applying to your life the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Scriptures.