God’s Great Plan
“Remember the former things long past,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is no one like Me,
Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, ‘My purpose will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure” (Isiah 46:9-10).
Due to His pre-planning, God is able to give a summary of events from eternity’s past and into eternity’s future. Through Isaiah, God told Israel, “I declared the former things long ago And they went forth from My mouth, and I proclaimed them. Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass” (Isaiah 48:3). And speaking of future events, God said, “Therefore I declared them to you long ago, Before they took place I proclaimed them to you, So that you would not say, ‘My idol has done them, And my graven image and my molten image have commanded them” (Isaiah 48:5). These two verses summarize God’s perfect knowledge of everything, past, present, and future. In Genesis 1:1, God begins His description of the history of creation up to the time of Moses. John 1:1-5 shows the knowledge and craftsmanship of Christ at work in creation and introduces His earthly work. 1 John 1:1-4 is a testimony from the apostle John that the things God said about the Son being “from the beginning” came true, that he had seen Christ, and that he witnessed the things Christ did. And Revelation provides a look at the work and wonders of Christ in the present and on into eternity.
The word, BEGINNING, used in (Genesis 1:1) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth,” ראשׁית (rê’shı̂yth) means “first, beginning, best, chief, or choice part,” (BDB). Thayer describes the Greek equivalent ἀρχή ( archē) as having five possibilities. But as used in the New Testament, only the first three apply. They are “1) beginning, origin; 2) the person or thing that commences, the first person or thing in a series, the leader; 3) that by which anything begins to be, the origin, the active cause.” Godhood, being the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as evidenced by the name ‘ĕlôhı̂ym, as the planner, creator of the universe, and shaper of the earth, displays all of the definitions. Elohim is the first cause of all things. He causes matter to come from nothing except His own energy. He shaped plants, fish, birds, animals, and humans; and then breathed a life capable of reproducing into them all.
God also established the “natural laws” that people have discovered in the sciences of physics, chemistry, meteorology, geology, climatology, and others. By using perfect knowledge of these laws, the Moon exists with the Earth, the Earth and planets revolve around the sun, and the Solar System has a place in the Milky Way. People have learned to calculate and use the force of motion (centrifugal force) to overcome gravity (centripetal force) and place an object in orbit around a planet. God did that, by His knowledge and planning, “in the beginning.” “He established the earth upon its foundations, So that it will not totter forever and ever”(Psalms 104:5). Notice the questions He asked Job. “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding, Who set its measurements? Since you know. Or who stretched the line on it? “On what were its bases sunk? Or who laid its cornerstone” (Job 38:4-6).
Mounce’s Expository Dictionary has this to say about the word beginning. “In the New Testament, archē means both beginning and ruler. The double meaning of this Greek word is derived from the idea that something long ago put the world into motion and established the rules by which the world itself is obligated to obey.” The creator, who was in the beginning (John 1:1; Colossians 1:15-18), also commands obedience (Matthew 5:22-44; 29:19-20). Jesus created water in the beginning, directed its limits (Job 38:8-11), and water still obeyed Him as He walked on it (Matthew 14:25).
The central part of God’s plan had to do with a population created in the image of The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth” (Genesis 1:26). From that point in time on, God’s will and attention were focused on the people He created. He wanted them to love and obey Him. God gave them everything they needed to live, work, and grow old in His service. But He also knew they would rebel against His commands and require a savior to remove the guilt of their sins. We see a long series of prophecies concerning the savior who would come to save humanity, allowing them to inherit an eternal home with Him in heaven.
The prophet Micah introduces the next part of God’s plan this way. “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity” (Micah 5:2).
