| John's Index | Greater Emmanuel | Email John |
The Origin Of Humanness
Part Six
Searching the Depths of God
By John Gavazzoni
| Origin Of Humanness Series | ||
| Part 1 Adamic Development |
Part 2 A Living Soul: Its Problematic Dimension |
Part 3 First The Natural Than The Spiritual |
| Part 4 Humanity's Commission |
Part 5 Deficiently Glory-Bound |
Part 6 Searching the Depths of God |
1 Cor. 2:10b, ". . . for the spirit is searching all, even the depths of God." (CLNT) . . . for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God." (NAS) or, ". . . for the spirit (or: the Spirit), constantly and progressively searches, examines and investigates all things -even the depths of God." (Jonathan Mitchell's NT Translation).
I have chosen to reference these three translations mostly because of their agreement that "the depths of God," is a better rendering than the KJV's "the deep things of God." [And yes, for my regular readers, believe it or not, in this last installment of our series, I'm proceeding in the conventional manner of basing my message upon a biblical text. :-) ]
The spirit, or Spirit (the original Greek does not specify a capital "S" or lower case "s," so it is left up to the translator to choose, as Jonathan Mitchell's expanded translation indicates) searching out the depths of God has, for years, pressed itself upon my mind, to give that amazing statement a level and intensity of reflection that it deserves, but which I have found lacking in messages, expositions, and commentaries pertaining to the passage in which it is found.
By Paul affirming that there are depths within God, we ought not, to be sure, infer that there are shallow regions within the Divine Nature. Everything about God is infinitely high, broad, long and deep.
Whether we choose "spirit" or "Spirit" is not as consequential as some might be prone to think, for though there certainly is a sense in which the human spirit is distinguished before God by a certain individuality that comes from the Spirit of God, the former derives from the latter, and the former, could do no meaningful spiritual search, except in union with the latter.
What has to be indicated is that there are depths within deep that call for the spirit's/Spirit's searching, examination, and investigation (thank you Jonathan). And the conclusion that God Himself is plumbing His own depths, I believe, is inescapable. Yes, I dare say that we are confronted with God digging deeply into His own Divine Nature.
At least two qualities within Deity that we should expect to become more and more evident as we descend into the depths of God, are glory, and fire. The supreme Excellency of God (glory) and the enlightening, corrective passion of God ("Our God is a consuming fire,") combine to draw forth from us worshipful awe and ecstatic delight. Among those who have been granted mystical descents with the Spirit, into the depths of God, one word stands out in their attempt to describe the "beatific vision," and that is "BEAUTIFUL."
God's wondrous beauty is found in our Lord Jesus Christ, who takes us into the depths of our Father, as we, by His faith, believe further and further into Him. Thus the hymn writer extols:
"Fair are the meadows, fairer still the woodlands, robed in the glittering garb of spring. Jesus is fairer, Jesus is purer, Who makes the woeful heart to sing!
"Fair is the sunshine, fairer still the moonlight, and all the twinkling starry host; Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer, that all the angels heav'n can boast!
"All fairest beauty, heavenly and earthly, wondrously, Jesus, is found in Thee; none can be nearer, fairer, or dearer, than Thou my Savior art to me."
It is to this truth that we are finally lead, as we contemplate the vulnerability, consternation, struggle, confusion and contrarian subjugation which appears in that order from the earliest stage of humanity's eonian origin. Is there a connection between the Spirit's searching into the depths of God, and the quickly emerging catastrophic entropy that appears from the very outset of humanness within the ages?
The answer is yes. And the relationship is of a nature, that when it confronts us, it evokes from the unaided natural mind, a reaction of revulsion, a revulsion that quickly leads to the conclusion that even the suggestion of such a relationship is scandalous. To the natural man, it is a profoundly indecent suggestion, not only to be refused the least consideration, but to be vehemently rejected as offensive in the extreme. It scandalizes the mind which sees itself as the protector of divine and human dignity.
Strange to the mind is the truth that the glory and fire of God require deprivation, hurt, resentment, enmity and rebellion in order that the glory and fire be more than merely a Divine disposition. When we speak of the glory of God, we refer to both the intrinsic Excellency of the worth of God, and of the same coming forth in all its fulness. The progression from a latent quality, to an infusing presence, requires that God confront Himself with a viciously challenging enmity.
It is in the face of that self-affliction, in union with humanity, that the Spirit searches the depths of God, and out of His reserve treasury of glorious and fiery love, He draws forth that which is required for the full revelation of Himself, and for that which is required to drag men into the depths of love that is otherwise inexpressible.
When divine love chose to give itself without reservation, glorious to the point of keeping nothing of its fulness to Itself, "the shadow of a cross arose, upon a lonely hill." The necessity and eventuality of Divine self-emptying appeared. Think not that the power of God is such that our Father, Lord and Savior, as it were, said, "No big thing, bring it on." Oh no! Both a compulsion to get on with it, AND a terrible suffering at the very thought of it, combined, as a complex, in order for the Spirit to search out the depths of God in search of what would be required.
"And none of the ransomed ever knew, how deep were the waters crossed; nor how dark was the night that the Lord passed through, e're He found His sheep that was lost. Out in the desert, He heard its cry, sick and helpless and ready to die. Sick and helpless and ready to die."
But Oh the joy set before Him as the moment arrived when: "Out on the mountain thunder riven and up from the rocky steep, there arose a glad cry from the gates of heaven, rejoice, I have found my sheep." Can we in some small measure, dare to consider that, with our Lord's initiation all the way, that this which I've so inadequately described, has been a joint-venture that involved, not only that we had to suffer becoming lost, but even that God, being in the eons, in solidarity with His creation, with the humanness within His Deity, bound to be brought forth fully, became lost to Himself.
Righteousness needed to suffer becoming sin. The Blesser, became a curse. The Lord of life suffered death. The Lord of glory, was reduced to the meanest humiliation. The eternally inseparable suffered eonian alienation. Dear God, let us never think of such things as mere doctrines. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, whose strength is found in how much He gave Himself over to weakness.
"Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee; how great Thou art, how great Thou art."
| Origin Of Humanness Series | ||
| Part 1 Adamic Development |
Part 2 A Living Soul: Its Problematic Dimension |
Part 3 First The Natural Than The Spiritual |
| Part 4 Humanity's Commission |
Part 5 Deficiently Glory-Bound |
Part 6 Searching the Depths of God |
| John's Index | Greater Emmanuel | Email John |
