Pastor Rick Warren: God knows everything, and that’s good news

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13 NIV).

Ever gotten out of bed to make a midnight refrigerator raid, even though you were on a diet? I’ve stood there before with the refrigerator door open, thinking, “Just one bite . . .”

We get into a debate with ourselves: “Go ahead. It won’t hurt this one time.” “No! I’m on a diet!”

It’s in moments like these that Satan feeds us a devilish excuse: “No one will ever know.”

You may not be standing in front of the refrigerator. You may be sitting at work or filling out your taxes or hanging out someplace your parents wouldn’t want you to be. But you go ahead and do something questionable, because you believe the lie that “no one will ever know.”

But God already knows!

Hebrews 4:13 says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight” (NIV). God is never surprised. He knows everything!

The fact that God knows everything about you is good news, not bad. Here’s why:

God knows your faults and failures. I find it uncomfortable to realize I don’t have any secrets from God, because there are things about me I’d rather God not know. But the Bible says, “My sins, O God, are not hidden from you; you know how foolish I have been” (Psalm 69:5 GNT).

You’re not fooling God when you keep your sin hidden (see 1 John 1:8). He’s not shocked by your sin, and when you admit it to him, it will never change the way he feels about you. He loves you unconditionally, and that means you don’t have to fake it. You don’t have to pretend.

God knows your feelings and frustrations. You may think, “Nobody knows what I’m going through. Nobody feels the pain I’m experiencing.” God knows. He’s seen the crisis in your soul. No hurt goes unnoticed by God. Psalm 56:8 says, “You know how troubled I am; you have kept a record of my tears” (GNT).

Because God knows your frustrations and despair, you can give those feelings to him: “Leave all your worries with him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7 GNT). Cast them all permanently on God, once and for all. Don’t take them back.