The Mystery of Godliness
“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”
1 Timothy 3:16
Every twice-born saint redeemed by the blood of the Lamb should fall on his or her face in breathless adoration in light of the “mystery of godliness”—the great truths of salvation and righteousness through Christ, which produce godliness in those who believe. Apart from the doctrines pertaining to the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ revealed to us through His Word and life, none of us would be saved or sanctified. For indeed, as the great English Puritan clergyman Thomas Manton (1620-1677) once stated,
The gospel is a mystery . . .Theology is natural, but not Christology. Nature believes there is a God, but not that there is a Christ. The sun and moon preach up a God, their sound is gone out into all lands, and proclaim everywhere that there is an infinite and eternal power; and conscience preacheth up a judge. But all these natural preachers are dumb and silent concerning Christ, not a word concerning a savior and mediator. It could not enter into the thought of an angel to pitch upon such a remedy if God had not revealed it to them by the church: Eph. 3:10, “To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God.”
The miracle of Christ’s condescension to take on human flesh and voluntarily give His life as a sacrifice for sin is a mystery beyond the light of reason, beyond the realm of human cogitation, even beyond the limits of imagination. It is a mystery that could only be revealed by God and for His glory, and every believer has the responsibility to proclaim the “mystery of godliness,” which generates righteous living in the redeemed. And to think, this great treasure has been entrusted to every Christian, who by grace is a member of “the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15).
Moreover, the weighty responsibility of every preacher and teacher is to rightly divide the Word and preach it in all its purity and power, regardless of the quality of response it may elicit. We are called to be faithful, not popular—one or the other—for we cannot be both. Indeed,
“we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; but just as it is written,
“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard,
And which have not entered the heart of man,
All that God has prepared for those who love Him.”
For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God”
1 Corinthians 2:7-10
Therefore, as God-ordained messengers of these divine truths that have saved us, transformed us, and caused us to pass from death to life, “Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy” (1 Cor. 4:1-2). May we all gaze upon these truths with the eyes of our soul and remain lost in the wonder of God’s design, for indeed, “great is the mystery of godliness.”
© COPYRIGHT NOTICE 2023 BY DAVID HARRELL AND SHEPHERD’S FIRE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
