“Omniscience” 8-28-22
Overview
The Omniscience of God
"If only I knew then what I know now." That familiar regret reveals something true about us: knowledge is something we acquire, piece by piece, often the hard way. We are never finished learning, and we will never know it all. The word omniscient—from the Latin for "all" and "knowledge"—does not describe us. It describes God alone. Scripture testifies that "the LORD searches every mind and understands every plan and thought" 1 Chronicles 28:9, that "the eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good" Proverbs 15:3, and that "he knows everything" 1 John 3:20. This rules out the modern error of "open theism," which claims God learns the future alongside us. He does not. His knowledge is perfect, complete, and eternal—he has never had to learn anything.
Psalm 139:1–6 draws this truth into intimate focus. God has searched us and known us; he discerns our sitting and rising, our path and our resting, every word before it reaches our tongue. He hems us in behind and before. There is no fleeing him—Jonah tried, and Adam and Eve hid in the garden, but God always knows where his creatures are and what they have done. He knows every thought screened before it is spoken, every word muttered when no one else is listening, every deed done and every good left undone. Honestly considered, this can feel terrifying. The holy God knows us at a level no one else does.
And yet this is precisely where the gospel meets us. In John 2:23–25, Jesus would not entrust himself to those who believed only because of signs, "for he himself knew what was in everyone." Luther called fragile, fair-weather belief "milk faith"—faith that sours when life turns hard. Jesus sees through it. He knows every weakness, every wandering, every sin we carry. And knowing all of it, he still set his face toward Jerusalem. The omniscient One willingly bore our sin on the cross "for the joy that was set before him" Hebrews 12:2, so that we could know we are forgiven, claimed in baptism, and held in his grasp.
This is why David exclaims, "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it" Psalm 139:6. God's omniscience is not finally a threat to be feared but a comfort to be received. Every concern, every struggle, every heartache, every uncertain tomorrow is already known by the God who has redeemed you. He is already in your future, waiting to meet you there by the same grace that meets you today. We will never be omniscient—but our God is, and he is for us.
Transcript
What you open up your Bibles, please, for our study this morning, to the book of Psalms, 3s
Psalm 139. 8s
If you're using a Pew edition of Holy Scripture, you're going to find that on page 540 10s
in the Old Testament. 16s
540 Psalm 139. 18s
If I only knew then what I know now, have you ever said that? 25s
Ever thought it? 35s
I would imagine that everyone here today has either thought that or said that several times 37s
over the course of our lives. 45s
If I only knew then what I know now, that phrases a reminder to us isn't it? 49s
That knowledge is that which we have to learn. 60s
We have to be taught things and hopefully over the years knowledge is accumulated. 65s
But we are certainly not born with all knowledge. 73s
In fact, we never have all knowledge. 77s
Do we? 80s
We have to constantly, constantly, keep learning. 81s
There'll be some things that we'll know better than others. 89s
But we're always the student. 94s
We're always the student in life, constantly learning. 97s
And sometimes we learn things the hard way. 102s
And sometimes we learn things perhaps a little bit easier. 106s
Sometimes that which we learn is an absolute surprise to us. 111s
Sometimes those things that we learn are just those aha moments. 117s
To put it another way, we are not omniscient. 123s
We're not omniscient. 131s
Comes from a Latin word. 135s
Omname means all and sentia means knowledge. 137s
To be omniscient is to know it all. 140s
We are not omniscient. 145s
But God is. 152s
God is. 156s
I think, for example, of first chronicles, the 28th chapter. 158s
And you, my son, Solomon, know the God of your Father and serve him with single mind and 166s
willing heart for the Lord's searches every mind and understands every plan and thought. 173s
Understand every plan and thought. 183s
Or we read in Proverbs, the 15th chapter. 191s
The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good for Samuel 193s
the second chapter. 202s
The Lord is a God of knowledge or first John the third chapter. 204s
He knows everything. 214s
Interesting about 30 years ago, there was this new teaching that showed up on the theological 222s
scene. 228s
It was called an open theism. 229s
Open theism. 233s
Open theism is the belief that God doesn't know the future. 235s
But that God learns it along with the rest of us. 241s
Now, ponder for a moment, which you startling absurdity of that belief. 248s
That the very creator of the universe doesn't know what's going to happen the next moment. 255s
But as the future becomes the present, then God reacts to it just like the rest of us. 265s
Scripture tells us in Psalm 94, 278s
he who planted the ear. 281s
Does he not hear? 284s
He who form the eye. 287s
Does he not see? 290s
The Lord knows our thoughts or Isaiah 40. 292s
Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord or as his counselor has instructed him? 299s
whom did he consult for his enlightenment and who taught him the path of justice? 306s
Who taught him knowledge and showed him the way of understanding? 313s
God's knowledge is perfect. 320s
It is complete. 323s
It is total. 326s
God doesn't have to learn anything or to put it another way. 329s
God has never learned anything. 335s
Why? 343s
Because he knows it all. 346s
He's absolutely omniscient. 349s
David, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, expresses the wonder and majesty of 357s
this truth. 364s
Look with me, please, at Psalm 139, verse 1. 365s
O Lord, you have searched me and known me. 371s
God knows you better than you know yourself. 379s
He has absolutely searched you. 385s
And he knows absolutely everything about you. 391s
Verse 2, you know when I sit down when I rise up, you discern my thoughts from far away. 399s
Every action, every thought is known by God. 408s
Verse 3, you search out my path. 416s
And my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. 419s
Everything that we do, he knows. 424s
Next verse. 429s
Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. 431s
But before the word makes it from the thought to the tongue and is expressed, God knows 438s
all about that word. 446s
In fact, he knows all about the words we would ever speak in our entire lifetime. 448s
He knows all about the words that we will speak into the future. 454s
He knows every single word before it is formed on the very tongue. 458s
Verse 5, you hem me in behind and before and lay your hand upon me. 465s
We are constantly under the scrutiny of God. 475s
There is no place that we can flee from Him. 482s
That's why when you reflect on Jonah in the scripture, it is comical. 489s
Is it not? 494s
Remember, Jonah did not like God's assignment for him. 495s
So, Jonah comes up with a bright idea that he's just going to get on a boat and he's going 499s
to sail away from God. 504s
He's going to flee from God. 506s
It is hard to flee from a God who always knows where you are. 513s
He is all knowing. 525s
Does that make you uncomfortable? 532s
Is it disconcerting? 540s
Is it terrifying? 548s
Adam and Eve are our first parents. 558s
God puts them in the garden. 561s
It's perfect there. 564s
It's perfect there. 566s
He would serve God. 569s
They would serve one another. 570s
They would be fruitful in multiply. 572s
Service was to permeate all that they would say and do. 575s
God established the boundaries between Himself and creation. 579s
So, don't determine for yourself what's right wrong. 585s
The minute you do that, you die, you die. 587s
What do they do? 592s
They sink their teeth into the forbidden fruit. 594s
And then what's the reaction? 600s
They're eyes are off of God and they understand that they're naked. 605s
And so when the Bible talks about the realization that Adam and Eve came and they realize 610s
that they were naked, that's the biblical way of saying, their eyes came off of God and 614s
it came upon themselves. 619s
And so what did they do? 621s
They went and hid themselves in the garden because they have knowledge now that what they 624s
did was a transgression against God Almighty. 631s
God comes in to the garden. 634s
Adam and Eve are hiding once again. 637s
It's hard to hide from an omniscient God. 641s
God never has to say, oh, the ox and free. 645s
Because he's just stumped at where Adam and Eve might be hiding and he's just frustrated 650s
at playing this game. 657s
No. 659s
He knows exactly where they are and exactly what they've done. 662s
God knows every thought, every word and every deed. 677s
He knows every thought that comes into the mind. 692s
He knows those thoughts that are screened, that thankfully never make it to the tongue. 705s
He knows every single one of those thoughts. 718s
He knows every single word. 729s
He knows not just the encouraging words and the words that build up, but he knows he knows 736s
all those words that destroyed. 743s
All those words that pulled the good apart. 751s
He knows all of those words that are muttered softly to oneself. 760s
When we think nobody else can hear. 773s
He knows all of those words. 780s
He knows everything. 787s
We've done everything. 791s
There's not one thing that we've done that he doesn't know about. 796s
He knows all of what we should have done, but we didn't do. 800s
And he knows all about what we've done, but we shouldn't have done. 812s
His omniscience is total, perfect and complete. 820s
There's nothing outside of his purview and understanding. 831s
Does that make us uncomfortable? 845s
Is that disconcerting? 847s
Frankly, is it terrifying that Holy God knows us to that level? 862s
Isn't it terrifying? 882s
I think of John, the second chapter. 888s
There are the second chapter of John. 894s
The scripture says when he Jesus was in Jerusalem during the Passover Festival, many believed 896s
in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing. 904s
They see the miracles. 908s
They see these fantastic things that Jesus is doing in the scripture says that they believed. 910s
But then verse 24 says this. 918s
It says, but Jesus on his part would not entrust himself to them because he knew all 921s
people and needed no one to testify about anyone. 930s
Interesting. 937s
The scripture says that they believed in Jesus. 940s
They were seeing the signs, but then it says that Jesus didn't entrust himself to them. 943s
Didn't entrust themselves. 950s
Luther talks about what's called milk faith. 954s
Milk faith is the type of faith where one will believe until they hear something that they 958s
don't like and then they'll say enough of this. 964s
Milk faith is the type of faith is that one will believe until things get bumpy and 968s
God just isn't doing what we think God should do. 974s
And then they just kind of like aged milk kind of just sour on God. 977s
Luther said that's milk faith. 984s
See what's happening here to use Luther's term. 987s
It's it's milk faith here. 991s
And Jesus sees it and Jesus knows it and Jesus doesn't. 995s
Jesus doesn't entrust himself to the people. 998s
And then the second part of verse 25 it says, for he himself knew what was in the Bible. 1003s
And then everyone, he knew it. 1013s
He knew the thoughts of the words and the deeds and what was done and what was left 1022s
under. 1026s
He knew all about the milk faith. 1027s
Why? 1031s
Because it's the omissions of God. 1033s
And yet the one who knows all that's in us, all that's in us, the one who knows all 1040s
that's in us yet sets his face to go to Jerusalem for the purpose for which he had 1055s
come. 1064s
The one who knows all of the sin, all of those words and all of those deeds and all of 1067s
that knowingly takes all of our sin upon the cross. 1076s
The one who knows us better than anybody, all of it. 1084s
Knowingly goes to the cross enduring what he had to endure for the, as the scripture 1102s
says for the joy that was set before him, knowing the joy of the redemption of the world 1111s
through his death and resurrection. 1121s
The omissions of God, the one who knows all, knowingly does that. 1129s
So, you now can know that you are forgiven. 1141s
You belong to him through the waters of baptism, that he has his grasp on you. 1151s
He gives us that gift for us to know. 1161s
Verse 6 of Psalm 139, David says, such knowledge is too wonderful for me. 1175s
It is so high that I cannot attain it. 1187s
As David is reflecting on the omniscience of God, he says, this is so wonderful. 1192s
I am struggling to comprehend how wonderful this is because you see the omniscience of 1200s
God is not something that needs to be feared. 1208s
The omniscience of God is an incredible source of comfort because all of the concerns, 1212s
and all of the struggles, and all of the problems, and all of the heartache, and all of our 1223s
weakness, and all of our wonderings, they are all known by him. 1228s
And the very one who is redeemed us is at work rushing to help. 1234s
You see, he already knows the future that we can be concerned about. 1245s
He already knows the future because we love it. 1252s
He's already there. 1255s
And when we come into the future, we meet him just as we meet him every day by his grace. 1259s
If I only knew then what I know now, but none of us are omniscient and never will be never. 1281s
But God is. 1299s