Uncontainable God in a Containable Ministry

Uncontainable. A few years ago, I preached before a group of seminarians in Venezuela. I challenged the students not to be restrictive in their views of God. In my sermon I used the phrase, “Do not put God in a box.” My interpreter translated the phrase and the response was priceless. All the students looked totally confused. Apparently, “Do not put God in a box,” is not a common phrase in Venezuela.
I realized that, in my attempt to speak on the limitless possibility of God, I was “putting God in a box.” Psalm 145:3 says, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; his greatness is unsearchable.” God’s greatness is beyond our discovering. Because God is infinite and we are finite, we can never fully understand God. As the psalmist says, “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure” (Psalm 147: 5). In chapter 11 of the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul goes to great lengths to speak on the history of God’s plan of redemption. As a way of conclusion he says, “O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and inscrutable his ways” (Romans 11: 33)! Many times at the end of a sermon, bible study, or sharing of personal testimony, I often declare the same.
Ministry has taught me that God overreaches my comprehension. The first article in The Articles of Religion of The Methodist Church declares, “There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body or parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness; the make and preserver of all things, both visible and invisible.” Ministry is an attempt to communicate the infinite power, wisdom, and goodness to those entrusted to our care. As ministers of this uncontainable God we will never run out of things to say or truths to declare on the nature of God. We will never be able to know too much about God. God is a subject we will never master. Ministry as a calling can be viewed as a lifelong pursuit of growing in our knowledge of God and God’s relationship to us and the world. This truth will keep us from the danger of intellectual pride. It will keep us from remaining complacent in our study of Scripture. It also reminds us of the importance of intellectual openness in our profession.