“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” Romans 11:33

There are many objections that you will hear as you share the Gospel with the lost. Do not be surprised if someone throws you a curve ball by claiming that he just does not know all there is to know about salvation. Until he knows everything, and has all his questions satisfied, he will not believe.

There are so many things wrong with this thought that it is hard to know where to start.

The first question to be answered is whether there is evidence that the Holy Spirit is working in his heart. If the Holy Spirit is working, then conviction of sin, opening his eyes to his lost condition, and implanting a personal sense of needing a Savior, would take place and he would not be as clinical in his objection. There is a fine line between gathering facts and applying those facts.

Biblical faith is summarized by three concepts—doctrinal truth, personal commitment, and living obedience. Each concept is a necessary part of being a man of faith. Each transforms a man from the inside out. Somewhere between hearing doctrinal truth and personal commitment, is where a sinner becomes converted to a believer. The Gospel message is sharing of doctrinal truth. It is the work of the Spirit of God to cause a sinner to be converted and personally commit, and then to cause the believer to walk in faith.

To the average individual, it is patently obvious that a mere mortal will never be able to comprehend all there is to know about the plans of God, let alone comprehend all there is to know about God Himself! Romans 11:33 is a fantastic passage to put before someone who objects that he needs to understand salvation completely before he is willing to commit. It forces man to submit to his own limitations before our sovereign God. The wisdom and knowledge of God refers to the attribute of His omniscience. His judgments refers to His eternal purpose and decree and all their various manifestations in the world of men. There is a reason why we have to accept God’s salvation by faith.

Faith may simply be defined as “believing what God says.” In other words, the Bible is God’s special revelation to all men concerning Himself. Within the Word He has stated truth which reveals to us what would otherwise be humanly undiscoverable about Him. God stoops to man’s limitations in intellect and experience and reveals only what knowledge man is capable of receiving from Him. Even using human language limits. Fortunately, God does not set a high bar for the content of saving faith. Salvation is not limited to only those who are members of Mensa International or listed in Who’s Who. Instead, salvation is for all men, as Acts 17:30 says, “…[He] commands all men everywhere to repent.” God’s invitation is for all men, rich or poor, young or old, ignorant or wise; He is not a “respecter of persons” (Acts 10:34; Romans 2:11ff).

While there is nothing wrong with a lost man seeking answers to his questions, I do believe that an unsaved man eventually crosses a line when he is asking questions just to have his curiosity satisfied. If God is not bringing him under present conviction then the man is merely gathering facts. Perhaps the Holy Spirit will, at some point in the future, bring conviction to bear because of the facts that you have painstakingly laid out for him, but without the agency of the Holy Spirit the unsaved man will remain lost, at least for the moment.

Several Old Testament passages may be useful to promote a bit of humility in an arrogant heart. Job, though a righteous man, had to be taught a lesson in humility in Job 38:1–3: “Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind, and said: ‘Who is this who darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Now prepare yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer Me.’” A man who is questioning God and His wisdom needs to be reminded that soon it will be God who asks the questions of him.

Isaiah 55 is both an invitation to come to Christ for salvation and a warning to those who would question God’s judgment. Verse 1 says, “Ho! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat. Yes, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.” Isaiah 55:6f reads, “Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.”

Isaiah 55:8f includes a warning about crossing the line between genuine seeking and fact gathering: “’For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.’”

If the man is truly seeking answers, but still not understanding you, he might find a measure of satisfaction in the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 2:14 concerning the natural man. Then take him to Psalm 119:18 and Mark 9:23f! Trust and obey.