Site icon Dr. Abidan Shah

God’s Covert Operation by Dr. Abidan Shah

Abidan Paul Shah

GOD’S COVERT OPERATION by Dr. Shah, Clearview Church, Henderson, NC

Introduction: How many of you love a good mystery? Growing up, I was hooked to the mystery book series of the English writer, Enid Blyton. They were like the Hardy Boys and the Nancy Drew books, some of you may remember. Over the years, I have continued to enjoy mystery movies, but now, what fascinates me are covert operations like the one by Churchill and the rest of the Allied forces against Nazi Germany. This was no fiction. The fate of the world was hanging in the balance. In today’s message, we come to the place where Paul uses the term “mystery,” more specifically, “God’s mystery.” Better stated: “God’s Covert Operation,” which is the title of our message today. It will help you understand what God has been doing, is presently doing, and will be doing in this world. This covert plan is far greater than any that Churchill and the rest of the Allied forces were trying in World War 2. This sermon will radically change your perspective on the past, the present, and the future. Recently, I heard someone make a comment that we humans might be in danger of facing extinction. Today’s message will help put that fear to rest and answer many questions that you have been struggling with.

Ephesians 1 (page #1795) 9 “having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.”

Context: As you may know, we are in a miniseries of messages on how the Triune God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Two weekends ago, we saw the blessings of God the Father. Last weekend, we began to see the blessings of God the Son. Today, we will see the second half of these blessings from God the Son. Not only have we received redemption through Christ – our ransom for sin has been paid to God the Father through the sacrifice of God the Son on the cross – but he has also lavished us with the riches of his grace in all wisdom and prudence. In emphasizing God’s great power, we tend to de-emphasize the magnitude of the plan of salvation. The cross was God’s unparalleled plan for the church of the ages and all creation. In other words, this was no cut rate plan, no mediocre plan, no wholesale plan. 

Application: Have you ever received God’s plan of redemption in Christ?

What is entailed in this unparalleled plan? Let’s read again Ephesians 1 (page #1795) 9 “having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself.” The word that is used to describe God’s incredible unparalleled plan of redemption is “mystery.” The Greek word is “musterion.” Much ink has been spilled in trying to understand the meaning and the source of that word (A good summary of the discussion is found in the following works – “Excursus” in Hoehner’s commentary; articles in Dictionary of Paul and His Letters, 1st and 2ndeditions; and “The Use of Mystery in Ephesians” in Hidden But Now Revealed by Beale and Gladd).

Some scholars have suggested that this word “mystery” might have come from the mystery religions of the time. That concept “mystery” goes back as far as the 6th cent BC to refer to the “sacred rites associated with certain gods, esp. Demeter (the Eleusinian Mysteries), see Moses Silva, NIDNTTE of “musterion.” Such mystery religions were widespread in that Hellenistic period with gods like Artemis, Isis, Attis, Cybele, Dionysius, Mithras, etc. Similar mysteries were also common among the Gnostics. The big difference is that in all such mystery religions and mysteries, the knowledge was only for the initiates, members of the cult. Outsiders were forbidden from such knowledge. This is completely contrary to what we find in Christianity. There are no secrets!

A better context is the Old Testament. In the LXX, the word “musterion” is found repeated in Daniel’s book in the context of the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar. As you know, he had a very disturbing dream. He asked for all his wise men – sorcerers, magicians, astrologers, and Chaldeans to assemble. Then, he made the most incredible demand: give me the interpretation of my dream but first tell me the dream. When they failed, he demanded all of them to be killed. Since Daniel and his companions were in exile in Babylon, they were also set to be killed. He asked the king for some time. Next:

In a previous message titled “The Silver Kingdom,” we saw how Nebuchadnezzar had a dream of a colossal statue with the head of Gold (Babylon), chest and arms of Silver (Medo-Persia), belly and thighs of Brass (Greece), legs of Iron (Rome), feet of Iron and Clay (kingdoms of the Antichrist – Islamic East and Woke West, fragile and odd unity). A stone cut without hands struck the feet and broke them in pieces. The statue crumbled and no trace was found, and the stone became a big mountain and filled the whole earth. This is what Christ has done and will do.

Bottom line: Only God is the revealer of this mystery/secret. This mystery/secret is about the coming kingdom of Christ.

There are other words for this mystery or secret plan. There’s the Hebrew word “sod” = secret council: 

God reveals his plan to save humanity through the death and resurrection of his Promised Son only to those close to him. This plan was revealed to Adam and Eve, to Abraham and Sarah, to Moses, to the people of Israel, to King David, to the kings, to the Prophets, and to many of those who received his Promise of the coming one. They were to share the good news with others. Not much was said but it was enough for them to be saved. Why not more? Threat of Imitation or Destruction.

In passing, it is worth noting that in Jewish apocalyptic literature and the Qumran literature (some of the Dead Sea scrolls), much is made about this “mystery,” but it is only for the insiders and focused on the end of the world. It is not the same.

Now we come to the New Testament: Mystery is found 27 times in the NT; 3 times in the gospels; 4 times in Revelation; 20 times in Paul’s letters; and 6 times in Ephesians.

Let’s begin with the Gospels: Matthew 13 (page #1511; Also see Mark 4 and Luke 8.) 10 And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” 11 He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. 13 Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: “Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,And seeing you will see and not perceive; 15 For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. That is a reference from Isaiah 6:9. Jesus’ revelation of the ministry was similar to God’s operation in the Old Testament. He revealed his plan to his own, but not to his enemies (the corrupt religious leaders, the Sadducees and Pharisees, Herod, the Roman Empire). And then Satan is there too. They all had their agenda. So, the plan had to be kept covert. 

Later, this idea was connected with tongues in 1 Corinthians 14:2 “For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.” This speaking of mysteries began on the Day of Pentecost when the disciples in the upper room began to speak in various tongues (languages) and Jewish people from other countries began to hear in their language of residence. It was the gospel in the language of a person spoken by someone who did not know the language. What had become a sign of judgment was now a sign of awakening that the Messiah had come. By the way, Jesus maintained that sign before his death on the cross. After his Asension, it became a tool for evangelism. In explaining the purpose for tongues in 1 Corinthians 14, Paul quotes from Isaiah 28:11 “For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people, 12 …Yet they would not hear.”

Here is the full definition of the mystery/God’s Covert Operation:

Some important marks of this mystery/God’s Covert Operation:

1. Christ in us is the mystery – Colossians 1.       26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

2. Stewards of the mystery – 1 Corinthians 4:1 Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

3. Satan is still trying to sabotage this open mystery – 2 Thessalonians 2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. In Revelation 17:5 (page #1893) “And on her forehead a name was written: Mystery, Babylon the Great, the Mother of Harlots and of the Abominations of the Earth.” Satan’s greatest ploy is to offer an imitation covert plan.

4. Prayer is needed for this mystery to be proclaimed – Colossians 4:3 meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ…” Also, Ephesians 6:19 “and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,”

5. Bringing all things under Christ – Ephesians 1 (1795) 9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him.

6. Gentiles and Israel together as the church – Ephesians 3 (page #1797) 3 how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: 6 that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel,

7. Israel is not done – Romans 11:25 (page #1747) “For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.”

8. Our coming resurrection – 1 Corinthians 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—

9. A pre-requisite to serve – 1 Timothy 3 (page #1820-21) 8 Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, 9 holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience….16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.”

10. Love is greater than any knowledge of mystery – 1 Corinthians 13:2 (page #1768) And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

Invitation: Have you received God’s mystery, his covert operation? Are you part of it? Are you sharing God’s great mystery with the lost world? Are you doing so with love?

Exit mobile version