Ministry of Grace Church

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory,

Truth to Learn

Christians are to openly proclaim the good news to everyone.

Behind the Words

“Mystery” is transliterated (a word taken directly from one language to another) from the Greek noun mustērion. It is derived from the verb muō, meaning “to shut the mouth.” In the first century a mustērion involved a hidden “truth” that was only revealed as part of an initiation. In the New Testament, mustērion identifies something which was hidden in the past, but which is now openly revealed to everyone.

The Greek word translated “hidden” is apokruptō. This word is made up of apo, meaning “from” or “away from” and the verb kruptō, meaning “to hide.” Thus, apokruptō means “to hide away” or “to conceal.”

Prooridzō is the word translated “ordained.” It is a compound word made up of pro, meaning “before, in position or time” and horidzō, meaning “to determine or appoint.” Therefore, we see that prooridzō literally means “to determine ahead of time.”

Meaning Explained

From the first century BC through the second or third century AD, Greek and Roman societies were heavily influenced by mystery religions. The three most prevalent were the cult of the Syrian goddess Cybele (known as the Magna Mater, or “Great Mother”), the cult of the mother-goddess Isis and her son Osiris (having originated in Egypt), and the cult of Mithra, which began in Persia. All of these religions shared several common themes: the central god of the religious cult was miraculously born, this god provided protection in this world and immortality in the after-life, and full participation was accomplished only after multiple initiations in which hidden knowledge was revealed to the initiates. It is no wonder that many in the Roman world pictured Christianity as simply another of these mystery religions.

In today’s verse and those following, Paul shows how Christianity is different from all of the mystery religions. He starts off his explanation by showing that Christianity also involves a mystery, the wisdom of God. However, in verse ten he will declare that the mystery is now openly revealed through the Spirit of God. This is something that the mystery religions would never do. He also goes on to show that this mystery and its revelation to all of mankind was part of God’s plan from the beginning. The gods of the mystery religions had to perform some act in order to obtain their divine status. They were subject to the workings of fate. Our God is in control of all things. He was divine from the beginning and reveals Himself to all of mankind as part of His eternal plan.

Paul’s purpose seems to be to distinguish Christian faith from cultic devotion by showing that this mystery is fully revealed to all in the person of Jesus Christ. Faith in Christ is the sole requirement for salvation, not a series of ritualistic initiations.

Application

The central truth of Christianity is that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, the sinless one for the sinners. It is not a mystery and we are not to keep it to ourselves. We are commanded to openly proclaim the truth.