However, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” the things God has prepared for those who love him. 1 Corinthians 2:9 NIV

These beautiful and encouraging words concerning what no eye has seen come from the prophet Isaiah. Paul quotes Isaiah 64:4 to reveal the mystery of God’s plan for our salvation in Jesus Christ. Isaiah prophesied the Messiah but the rulers of the world and religious teachers did not understand. Paul indicated that had they known, they would not have crucified Christ.

Isaiah 55:9 gives a statement of the incomprehensible wisdom of God saying, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. WEB” Our human experience and limited understanding prohibit us from fully understanding our heavenly Father. Paul, quoting Isaiah, places the reason of God above the reason and logic of mere men. The indescribable greatness of God or what no eye has seen is beyond the scope of human understanding.

All the Work of God

Similar to today, the people of Paul’s time placed high value on reason and human wisdom. The bible also encourages reason and thoughtfulness. However, God’s intelligence far exceeds human intelligence. As we read in Ecclesiastes 8:17, then I saw all the work of God, that man can’t find out the work that is done under the sun, because however much a man labors to seek it out, yet he won’t find it. Yes, even though a wise man thinks he can comprehend it, he won’t be able to find it. WEB”

Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians reveals that God’s wisdom ifar surpasses human understanding that we must trust, through faith, the plans our loving Father has for our eternal life in heaven. As the wisest men on earth could not understand that Jesus was the Messiah and even his disciples were discouraged until they saw the resurrected Christ, our worldly wisdom and reason falls short of the wisdom and reason of God. 

Yesterday’s Devotional: One Who Believes