Some  ago I went to the doctor for help with some sharp pain in my neck.  The doctor ordered an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).  This procedure is a noninvasive medical test that physicians use to diagnose medical conditions.  An MRI uses a powerful magnetic field, radio frequency pulses, and a computer to produce detailed pictures of organs, soft tissues, bone, and virtually all other internal body structures.  When a physician knows what’s going on inside your body, s/he has a clear understanding of what can be done to correct the problem.

Other than some noise that sounds a lot like road construction, mechanical MRIs do not bother me.  I’m hoping something will show up.  I do not want the results of what the MRI shows to be hidden or obscured in any way.  I want whatever is broken or twisted or out of alignment to clearly show up so that the doctor can correct the problem and bring me some relief.  So, with a mechanical MRI, bring it on!  Reveal what is there.  Don’t miss anything. 

But it’s different with a spiritual MRI.  The spiritual MRI has been around thousands of years.

David spoke of a spiritual MRI when he wrote Psalm 139. 

“O Lord, You have searched me, and known me.  You know when I sit down, and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar.  You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways.  Even before there is word on my tongue, Behold O Lord, You know it all.”

In these verses, David says that God knows everything about him: He knows what he does; when he sits down, and when he gets up. He says that God even knows his thoughts: “You understand my thoughts from afar.”  God is “intimately acquainted with ALL his ways.” He knows every single thing about him! He even knows what he is going to say BEFORE he says it!  This is what is meant by the doctrine of God’s omniscience—God knows everything there is to know about us.

I have to be honest with you.  When I have a mechanical MRI, I’m actually hoping to see problems.  I want my pain to be validated, and I want the procedure to correct the problem causing the pain to be relatively simple, but thorough.  But as for spiritual MRIs, the idea of having my thoughts of my mind and heart revealed is downright scary!  And yet, David finds comfort in the realization that God knows everything about him.

We are just beginning a new sermon series titled, “Our Great God.”  Each sermon will focus on one of the attributes of God.  This week we are considering the omniscience of God.  The word, “omniscient” means “all-knowing.”  In classical theology, the doctrine of God’s omniscience means that God knows all things, past, present and future, real and potential, and He knows them all at the same time. He not only knows what was, and what is; He also knows what will be. On top of that, He knows everything that could be but is not.

I think that most of us understand this truth about God.  We understand intellectually that God knows everything about us.  And yet, owe live as though we can keep secrets from God. Maybe it’s because we’re afraid that if God knew everything about us, He would reject us. It’s hard for us to comprehend a God who can know the truth about us and accept us anyway. 

The omniscience of God is not just some lofty theological precept.  It has practical value for us. Here’s what the omniscience of God means for us:  Because He knows us completely, thinks of us constantly, and searches us intensely, we don’t feel spied on; we feel watched over. We feel secure. Having placed our confidence in Christ, no skeleton can come tumbling out of some hidden closet to expose our past and no character flaw can come to light that would make God turn away from us. He already knows everything about us ­ and still loves us!