Things Kept Secret

We would all like to know the future—what is going to happen to us and our family. Movies are made on that premise of avoiding terrifying events, destruction, and death. But terrifying events, destruction, and death are coming in the very near future! We can know what is coming and how to avoid it!

Throughout history, God has given warnings of coming events through His chosen servants. God warned humankind through Noah of coming destruction. Through Joseph, God warned of a coming famine. God used Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and other prophets to foretell things to come. God revealed to Daniel “deep and secret things” (Daniel 2:22). Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar: “There is a God in heaven who reveals secrets” (vv. 28–29).

Jesus Christ sent out seventy disciples, empowering them to preach the gospel and heal the sick. They excitedly reported that even the demons were subject to them in Christ’s name. Jesus rejoiced, thanking the Father that He had “hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes.” Then Jesus said to the disciples: “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it” (Luke 10:17–24).

God has kept things secret from the world at large, only revealing them to His followers. Many believe that Christ spoke in parables to make His message more easily understood. Christ’s disciples asked Him why He spoke in parables. Christ answered: “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given” (Matthew 13:10–11). Christ added that the multitude would not see and perceive, would not hear and understand (vv. 12–15). Jesus spoke in parables, fulfilling prophecies that He would speak in parables, and “utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world” (v. 35).

The Apostle Paul understood this. In his epistle to the Church of God in Rome, Paul closed by mentioning “the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began” (Romans 16:25).

A secret is information kept hidden from others and only revealed to a few. It may be a secret formula for a soft drink, a secret recipe, a process, a method, a design, or some other trade secret locked in a corporate vault. Governments classify some information that is vital to the nation’s security as secret or top-secret. A secret may also be a mystery, such as the purpose of life or the understanding of end-time prophecies.

God reveals secrets to His people. No one can know God’s secret things except for the things God chooses to reveal to us (Deuteronomy 29:29). The Psalmist David said, “The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant” (Psalm 25:14).

Everything has not yet been revealed. The Apostle John explains that we are now the children of God, but that it has not yet been revealed exactly what we shall be—but when Christ returns, we will be like Him and then be able to see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).

There are prophetic warnings about terrifying events, destruction, and death that are going to happen in the very near future. We can know the future! We can act to avoid these coming events. The secret can be known. Psalm 119:2 explains that those who keep His testimonies and seek Him with their whole heart are blessed, and the Prophet Isaiah warned people to seek God while He may be found (Isaiah 55:6). To help you understand how you can be among those who do so, please be sure to order or read online the free booklets Do You Believe the True Gospel? and Armageddon and Beyond. Be sure to also watch “Your Future in a King’s Dream.”