You Don’t Have to Know All the Answers

I was very struck by a conversation I had with a very intelligent gentleman that loves the Lord but seems to confuse himself when it comes to studying God’s Word. He is a graduate of a very prestigious ivy league university and has multiple degrees. His college career began with a series of changes to his major, and even when he decided upon one, he was very unsure of his choice. The same can be said of his journey as a Christian. He has studied and practiced under several Christian religions but is unhappy with them all. He said to me, “None of them have answered my questions to any degree of satisfaction, and instead only led me to have even more questions. Some of these religious leaders even seemed annoyed with me for asking.”

There is no question that the Christian community needs inquisitive scholars. Ultimately, they help all of us understand the Word better in some areas. Some of their extensive study opens the door for us to receive extraordinary revelation from the Holy Spirit, but we must never forget that it is the Holy Spirit who guides us into all truth. You and I will not come into consciousness of ‘ALL’ truth, but the Holy Spirit knows all the truth there is to know. If God had wanted us to know everything, we would have been preprogrammed with all this knowledge in our heads, but this isn’t the case.

Our focus as sons and daughters of the Most High God and brothers and sisters of Christ is to know God’s purpose for our existences. We are to seek to do those things that we are ordained to do according to the destiny He has set for us. Heavenly Father encourages us in 2Timothy 2:15(NIV) to, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.” Our desire and motivation should be to show ourselves approved before Heavenly Father, not to ourselves or others. The motivation to become an intellectual giant will do nothing for the Kingdom if it does not serve the purpose God has ordained. Our mission is to be true disciples of Christ who bear much fruit. Winning souls for Jesus Christ is the work that all believers are called to do.

When we start traveling outside the boundaries of God’s purpose for our lives, we can go down the path of arrogance and confusion very quickly. Jesus Christ said in Luke 10:2(NLT), “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his field.” What many would call their quest for truth can become a diversion or procrastination that they unconsciously use to keep them from laboring for the harvest. Not only should we be praying for the harvest, but as the disciples were when Jesus spoke these words, we should be in the fields ourselves.

Regarding the wonderful truth of God’s Word, Heavenly Father revealed through the Apostle Paul in 2Corinthians 2:7-11(NIV), “7 No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 However, as it is written: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived”— the things God has prepared for those who love him—10 these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.”

There are seasons for which God has appointed that His knowledge and wisdom is revealed to us. We should never try to overstep His timing. If there are burning questions for which we have not found an explanation or clarity in God’s Word, this should not cause us to be disappointed, disillusioned, or frustrated in the faith. Our desire should be to continue living, sharing, and loving through the example of Christ as we wait joyfully upon the Lord’s revelation.

Our desire to know more should be matched with a desire to live more fully in Christ so that we can love others in the way that he did. In John 14:26(NIV), Jesus Christ said, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” In John 16:13(NIV), he said, “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” We are not to seek the position of leader when it comes to our spiritual growth and maturity. Jesus Christ is the Lord of our lives. We are followers and we must be guided by God’s Holy Spirit.

As followers of Christ, we are all truth seekers. It is the truth that guides us, and there is no greater feeling than having confidence in the knowledge we’ve gleaned through God’s Word. When God’s wisdom is revealed in a way that illuminates our understanding, there’s nothing like it, but fulfilling our call in Christ and expressing our faith through love is what’s most important to our Heavenly Father. We all want to have an increasing confidence of knowing and growing in spiritual truth, but we must remember that Hebrews 11:1(NIV) tells us, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Faith isn’t about having all the answers at once, it’s about trusting God to live the Word you know. ■

 New International Version (NIV), Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

 Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights res

“You Don’t Have to Know All the Answers” written for Christian Encouragement and Inspiration© 2021. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.