The Secret Hidden from the Foundation of the World

In Paul's letter to the Ephesians, Paul says that Christ revealed a secret that was hidden from the foundation of the world.  The secret that was revealed was God's nature.  In the Christian tradition, we inherit the affirmations of the ancient Church Fathers who proclaimed that God and Christ were of the same nature and the same substance.  If we hold that God  Jesus have the same nature, then in the life and ministry of Jesus, we see a reflection of the nature of the God of all eternity.

God's nature, as revealed in Jesus, is ultimate concern for the creation.   This is what ties the story of Jesus together--the manger, the sermon on the mount, the Last Supper, and the final week of Jesus' life all reveal that Jesus lived as the servant of all people, putting the needs of others over his own needs.  This is the nature of the God who lives and reigns forever and ever, and in the life of Jesus, the veil is lifted and we see God's nature revealed.

God did not place a veil over our eyes preventing us from seeing God's true nature.  We were inhibited from seeing God's true nature because of our own sin.  The veil that prevented us from seeing God's true nature was our own darkness.

The Church is the community that is the repository of this great secret that was hidden from the foundation of the world.  As such, the Church is simply called to act as if it knows and believes that secret.  If the Church truly believed that the nature of the God of all eternity was to life as a servant and to give His life for the life of the world, and that as God's children, we as human beings are called to do the same, there is no limit to the light that the Church could bring to the darkness of the world.