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News From Israel MagazineRevealed Secrets
The Chaldeans hung their heads at the ruler’s demand, and said, “There is not a man upon the earth that can shew the king’s matter: therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, that asked such things at any magician, or astrologer, or Chaldean. And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, and there is none other that can shew it before the king, except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh. For this cause the king was angry and very furious, and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain” (verses 10-13).
Daniel did not stick his head in the sand, but boldly approached the king and asked him for some time, after which he would tell the king about his dream and then interpret it for him (verse 16).
“Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven …Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation. Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation.
The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof? Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king; but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream, and visions of thy head upon thy bed are these…” (verses 17-19 and 24- 28).
A God Who Reveals Secrets
Divine secrets are normally hidden from our understanding. But when it is God’s plan, they are revealed through the Lord Himself.
Not all divine secrets are revealed; some remain hidden from us. For instance, when Daniel heard of a tremendous prophecy, he then had to say, “And I heard, but I understood not” (Daniel 12:8). Then it was said to him clearly, “Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end” (verse 9). This prophecy remained a secret, then, even for Daniel. We see a similar thing with John on Patmos. He heard the seven thunders speak, and directly after that we read, “And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not” (Revelation 10:4). Here, too, what the seven thunders had spoken was to remain a secret, and we still do not know what it was.
Other secrets, however, are revealed according to the sovereign will of the Almighty. I believe I can say here that it belongs to the principles of the Lord to reveal hidden things. For instance, Amos 3:7, states: “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” This is more clearly translated in the NIV: “Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.” It is clear from this passage that the Lord God wants to reveal hidden things. It is as though He wants to say, “It is my will to entrust My servants with My secrets.” It seems to be a genuine need for Him to sometimes entrust people with the hidden things of His heart. For instance, regarding the impending judgment upon Sodom and Gomorrah, He said, “And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do?” (Genesis 18:17).
The Most Important Secrets the Lord Wants to Reveal
Two secrets surpass all others both in magnitude and glory. Our Savior, Jesus Christ, is such a great mystery that even the Apostle Paul struggled to find the words when he wrote to Timothy: “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” (1 Timothy 3:16). And in his letter to the Colossians, the apostle wrote, “the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:26-27). Jesus Christ is by far the greatest of all mysteries, and God’s Holy Spirit strives to reveal Him more and more in us. The Spirit of God wants us to get to know our Savior better and better—to grasp more and more whom He is and what He is. Jesus Christ will always remain a mystery because ultimately we are not able to grasp just how glorious He is. This will come to an end when we see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).
The other mystery that proceeds from the first is our imminent Rapture to the heavenly kingdom of our Savior Jesus Christ. Paul described it as follows, “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).
I am convinced that the Holy Spirit wants to lead us ever deeper into this secret, because all the signs point to the fact that it will not be very long before the Rapture takes place. We are living today during the time of which it is written: “For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry” (Hebrews 10:37).
Can the Lord Reveal His Mysteries to Us?
Are we the type of people to whom God can reveal hidden things, and to whom He can tell His thoughts? Could He reveal to us the two greatest mysteries, these tremendous truths, already?
In what way does the Lord reveal hidden things to His own? Basically, He does it more than ever before through His Word. For instance, Psalm 119:130 reads, “The entrance of thy words giveth light.” And Proverbs 6:23 states, “For thy commandment (Thy Word) is a lamp; and the law (the Word) is light.” In other words, God’s Word brings hidden things to light, and makes them clear to us. God’s Word reveals secrets and mysteries. We only have to think about the Apostle Peter’s statement in his second epistle: “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts” (2 Peter 1:19). The future is a hidden secret for so many Christians, and for this very reason, God has given His prophetic Word as “ a light that shineth in a dark place.” We do well to heed it!
Perhaps the Lord has not been able to reveal any secrets to you through His Word until now because you lack the power of the Holy Spirit and because you have prayed so little to experience the secrets of God. How was it with Daniel? He was a Spirit-filled man, and to such people the Lord God reveals secrets. He was a man of prayer who begged the Lord for clarity concerning secrets that he did not yet understand.
Let us look back a little farther in history.
When Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams and advised him of the course of action he should take, Pharaoh asked, “Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?” (Genesis 41:38). Pharaoh testified that the Spirit of God dwelt in Joseph. This was his explanation for the fact that this young Israelite was able to interpret the secret of his dreams with such precision. Daniel was also a Spirit-filled man who appeared before King Nebuchadnezzar at that time to tell him his dream, and to explain to him what it meant. The wise men of Babylon could not explain the secret, but Daniel said to the world ruler of that time, “There is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets” (Daniel 2:28).
The key to God’s being able to reveal secrets to a person lies in that person’s being filled with the Spirit of God, and whether such a believer prays concretely for a revelation of what is hidden. This is how it was with Daniel, who went home and asked his companions, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, “that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret; that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven” (Daniel 2:18-19).
God lifts the veil over hidden things when Spirit-filled people of prayer pray fervently. I am not saying that God will reveal hidden things to us every time we ask Him. God always hears us when we cry to Him, but He is absolutely sovereign in the way in which He answers our prayers. This is not to be our concern, but we should follow the Apostle Paul’s instructions to the Colossians: “Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2).
Prayer is a gift God has given us so we can receive light upon hidden things (compare Daniel chapter 10).
How is it with us? Does the Spirit of God really have room in us, and are we praying Bible-readers? When we quench or grieve the Holy Spirit in us, we will read the Bible, but it will be as though it is locked up. This is why we are warned
to “Quench not the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:19), and “Grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). When do we quench or grieve the Holy Spirit? When unforgiven guilt and sin remain in our hearts. A grieved or quenched Holy Spirit will not leave us entirely, but through our guilt, He will not be able to work in us as He would like to. His work will be hindered. This also means the Lord can no longer reveal His most important secrets to you, and no longer lift the veil over hidden things for you. The Lord God reveals His secrets through His Word and through the Holy Spirit, just as the Lord Jesus said: “the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26). And, “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come” (John 16:13- 14). Yes, the Spirit of God wants to reveal the secrets of His Word to us and explain it to us. But how is this possible if the Holy Spirit has been blocked in us through some unforgiven sin, or if certain flaws in us are preventing Him from lifting the veil over God’s greatest secrets?
Daniel and Joseph were Spirit-filled believers, and only to such people are God’s secrets revealed. Even Pharaoh said concerning Joseph, “Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?” (Genesis 41:38).
God cannot reveal His secrets to us if we are not praying, Bible readers. What did Daniel do when he stood before the unsolvable secret of King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream? He asked his friends to pray to God, “concerning this secret…then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision” (Daniel 2:18-19). Many people speak about the Bible as a book with seven seals, not least because they do not read their Bibles prayerfully. Even King David was able to clearly see that he only understood the secrets in God’s Word when he wrestled over them in prayer, which is why he prayed, “Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law” (Psalm 119:18).
Read the Bible with a prayerful heart. Pray before, during and after you read His Word. You will be amazed how suddenly “dark places” will become light, unclear texts will become clear, and “dry” passages will become a refreshing oasis. Become a Spirit- filled, prayerful Christian to whom the Lord can open His heart, with whom He can share His thoughts, and to whom He can reveal His secrets.
What To Do With Revealed Secrets
Of Daniel we read, “Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation. Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto
him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation. The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof? Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, shew unto the king; but there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days” (Daniel 2:24-28). Daniel did not doubt what had been revealed to him, but asked to be led to King Nebuchadnezzar to tell him the dream and its interpretation.
When the Apostle Paul wrote his first letter to the Galatians, he wrote of his calling, conversion and background, among other things: “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh
and blood: neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus” (Galatians 1:15-17). The secret of the Gospel was revealed to Paul in a wonderful way. What did he do? He did not confer with flesh and blood, he did not go to Jerusalem to ask the other apostles, and he did not hesitate for a moment to go the way God revealed to him: to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles.
After Andrew heard the words, “Behold the Lamb of God!” (John 1:36) from John the Baptist concerning the Son of God, Jesus Christ, he had one of the greatest secrets of all time revealed to him. He did not hesitate for a moment to go directly to his brother, Simon, and lead him to Jesus: “One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. Her first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messiah, which is, being interpreted, the Christ. And he brought him to Jesus” (John 1:40-42). Philip also acted in the same way later on. After he discovered the tremendous secret of the Gospel, he did not hesitate for a moment to pass it on to Nathanael: “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph” (verse 45).
Think about the Ethiopian eunuch to whom the secret of the Gospel was revealed in a mighty way through Philip. He did not hesitate to be baptized: “And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him…and he went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:36- 39).
Daniel, Paul, Andrew, Philip and the eunuch left the mighty revelation of the secret of Jesus Christ at that. Each one of them accepted the consequences for his personal life. Daniel went to the king immediately. Paul started on the way that was revealed to him: Andrew had only one desire – that this secret be revealed to his brother. The same thing applies to Philip concerning Nathanael. And the Ethiopian eunuch could think only of one thing: “I need to be baptized right now.”
What Are We Doing With the Two Greatest Revealed Secrets?
The two greatest secrets or mysteries are revealed to us in the Bible: The mystery of godliness: The incarnate Christ (1 Timothy 3:16). The mystery of our transformation:
The Rapture (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). What do we do with these mysteries? What effect do they have on us? Sometimes I cannot help but feel that Christians treat such tremendous revelations much too superficially. How we worry about earthly things! How upset we can become over trivial issues, and how we concern ourselves with things of this world that are actually insignificant! Yet we know so little of the great mystery—“Christ in us”— in spite of the fact that we are so close to eternity, the other mystery. What effect does this have on us? We pray daily that our unsaved family members receive Jesus into their hearts (John 1:12). Do we have a burden in our hearts to become pure and holy through the Word of God, and the precious blood of the Lamb? Are we filled with a deep longing to become more and more like our Savior? Are we waiting Christians? Our Lord calls to us to “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately” (Luke 12:35-36). Are we letting our “lights burn” and waiting consistently for Jesus?
Why should we be more watchful and active than ever? Because another mystery is simultaneously being revealed: the mystery of evil. If Paul wrote, “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [hindereth] will let [hinder] until he be taken out of the way” (2 Thessalonians 2:7), how near must it be today? My father, Wim Malgo, said the following many years ago: “The nearer the Rapture comes, the more the evil spirits and dark powers that live under the heavens will be forced down to the earth.” He was referring to Ephesians 6:12, which says, “For our struggle is not
against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (NIV). These evil spirits already belong to the mystery of evil today, and the nearer the mystery of the Rapture comes, the more the powers of darkness are being pushed to the earth and are oppressing us.
Are we aware of the responsibility we have when we know the mystery of godliness and the Rapture? Are we aware that this demands from us deeds as well as holy lives? May it be that we let ourselves be changed, as described in Romans 12:2: “Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” We must not be people who deceive themselves, but believers who know God’s will in the words of the Bible and do it: “Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (James 1:22).
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