³³ Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! ³⁴ For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who became His counselor? ³⁵ Or who has first given to Him that it might be paid back to him again?

Theology, if it is good theology, always leads to praise. How often does the Christian’s heart wax and wane in the deep things of God, between bewilderment and amazement, confusion and clarity? But it always leads to overwhelming appreciation for God. The study of doctrine should not lead to frustration, but to humble adoration and exclamation of that which we don’t fully understand but that our souls deeply enjoy. We enjoy God most when we praise Him sincerely. He is rich in all wisdom and knowledge. Who could ever have thought up the way of salvation and righteousness that God has laid out in the first 11 chapters of the book of Romans? No mere human author is creative or ingenious enough to even come close to the plot line of salvation.

Libraries are filled with commentaries trying to piece together the minutiae of the biblical text. In our searching for greater understanding of God, we always come back to the exhilarating conclusion, “How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways.” We do so agree with Paul. While we may have more difficulty in agreeing among ourselves how all of the Bible’s teaching on these things is to be interpreted, we can all agree that whatever the correct interpretation, God is wonderful. We struggle, because “[w]ho has known the mind of the Lord?” Who among us has ascended to attain a modicum of knowledge worthy to bring us into the inner recesses of God’s counsel? The best and the brightest of our theologians and exalted Bible teachers are all brought together with even the most simple-minded Christian to proclaim God’s greatness.

Stop right now and read through the passage for today. Meditate on it. Simmer your soul in its wonder. Marinate you mind in its flavorful truth. Dwell on it; let these thoughts richly dwell in you. The goal of theology is praise, and we must never forget that. If our study of God does not lead in this direction, but is only useful for winning debates or self-righteous and smug attitudes for our orthodoxy, then we have completely missed the point of Paul’s teaching. Let us take our cue from the venerable, inspired apostle, who really couldn’t help but break out in praise for His wonderful Lord and Savior.

Lord, how could I say it any better than the apostle Paul? You are great, far above and beyond even my wildest imaginations. I humbly praise You, for You alone are worthy.