God's Plan

The following briefly traces God's amazing plan to fulfill His intent for the human race.

Creation

God created the heavens and the earth. The highlight of His creative work was the creation of the first man, Adam, in God's own image. Subsequently, God created the first woman, Eve, from Adam.

Adam and Eve lived free of all fear and death. God set only one requirement on them - that they not partake of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The penalty for not obeying His command was spiritual death. Of course, they did not know what that was.

The Fall

Adam and Eve only wanted to do good, but they were deceived by Satan into thinking that God was not doing the best for them by restricting their access to the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They sincerely wanted to be like God, knowing the difference between good and evil, but preferred to do this independent of God. They willfully rebelled against God and ate of the forbidden fruit.

Consequently, God cursed His creation because of Adam's and Eve's disobedience. Spiritual death came upon them and all of their decedents. Of course, God knew this would happen. He already had a plan to fulfill His ultimate purpose for humankind. God never wanted anyone to perish (to be separated from the life of God), but for all humans to live eternally in Him.

God Sent His Son, Jesus

Jesus, the God-man, God's Son, was born in a miraculous way to a virgin. He was born as a Jew under the Old Covenant of Law that God had established through Moses. After approximately 30 years of life on earth, Jesus began a ministry of teaching and performing miracles, including many healings, to show that He was God in the flesh. While some believed His claims, most people rejected Him.

God's ultimate purpose for Jesus was that He would be a perfect sacrifice and die to pay the penalty for sins (falling short of God's standards) to redeem anyone of the human race that would believe on Jesus Christ and His finished work. Faith in Jesus results in the restoration of spiritual life as a free gift overcoming what was lost through the rebellion of Adam and Eve. Jesus suffered execution by crucifixion, was buried, and subsequently was raised to life again by God. After another 40 days of revealing Himself alive to His disciples and other witnesses, Jesus ascended up into heaven.

Jesus fully accomplished all that God planned for Him. Through His death, Jesus fulfilled God's Law completely. The obsolete Old Covenant system of Law was replaced by the New Covenant way of God's grace through the risen Jesus Christ.

The New Covenant Of Grace

The New Covenant is superior to the obsolete Old Covenant. It provides a way to be forgiven, reconciled, and have spiritual life restored by God to anyone who calls upon the name of Jesus Christ. It involves acknowledging that Jesus is God's Son with the power to save from sin. It is also agreeing to receive what God offers through the New Covenant as a free gift. Because of God's infinite grace, everyone is qualified to receive the benefits of the New Covenant regardless of circumstances or history. In summary, these benefits are freely available to you if you receive God's gift to be saved by faith through grace:

God's complete forgiveness of all your sins (past, present, and future) because Jesus paid the entire penalty and took away all your sins through His one sacrifice on the cross (crucifixion)
Never suffering God's condemnation or wrath
Being reconciled to God and never separated from Him forever
Having God put to death your old heart and human spirit and replace them with a new, living heart and human spirit compatible with Him (being born again by the Holy Spirit)
Being permanently and irrevocably fused into the body of Christ and indwelt by the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of Christ)
Now you are a temple of the Holy Spirit
Possessing the great Counselor, Comforter, and Guide to rely on 24/7, the indwelling Jesus Christ, available to you no matter your situation
Being adopted into the family of God possessing the righteousness of God (even though it is still possible for you to choose sinful behavior contrary to your new nature in Christ)
No longer being a slave to sin as those in Adam will always be (you can now choose not to sin)
Having access to God at all times through prayer and your fusion with Him in your heart
Abiding (living) in Christ to bear the fruit of the Spirit (good works) that God performs through you by His power at work in and through you
Receiving all of the resources (the riches in Christ) needed to live a truly godly life through your spiritual fusion with Jesus Christ (you in Christ and Christ in you)
Being raised and seated spiritually with Jesus Christ in heaven next to the Father (where you are spiritually present from the moment you choose to receive what Jesus Christ offers)

Under the New Covenant there are just two new commandments from Jesus:

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
Love others as God has loved you through Jesus Christ

Your life as a believer will continue as long as Jesus Christ lives (forever). He is fused to you and indwells you. You are one spirit with Him. He is your life. You receive His love and pass it on from the abundance of love that you receive from Him. You are a receiver, not a producer. God is the source that you rely upon for your life and how to live. Sin no longer fits. You will still be living in a fallen world and learning to make choices that are consistent with the new creation you are in Jesus Christ. You will see that sin can still tempt you, but the power of sin is external to you. It is not you. You don't need to give in to it. God has made you as righteous as Jesus. You are a child of God. You get to be yourself and express Jesus Christ through your life in every moment. Eventually, you will leave your physical body to receive a new, spiritual body that will continue throughout eternity. You will be in Jesus and He in you forever!