God's Eternal Plan

Introduction

God has a plan for redeeming man. Because of His love for you, He wants you to spend eternity with Him. Jesus is the center of that plan for our salvation. God destined him before creation for that purpose (I Peter 1: 18-2 1)

I. Creation

  1. Creation was not by accident. It was God's active force which brought all things into existence (Gen. chapters 1-2).
  2. God created mankind with a free will (Gen. 2:15-17).
    1. ACTS 17:24-27 - God created us free so that we could seek Him, reach out for Him and find Him.
    2. GEN 3 - Adam and Eve were created with the ability to obey or disobey God's will. Would they choose God's direction for their life, or would they follow their own desires?

II. The Condition of Mankind

  1. The rejection of God led to a world dominated by sin (Rom. 3:10-11, 23).
  2. This rebellion against God grieved Him (Gen. 6:5-10).
    1. Noah was instructed to build an Ark. He had the freedom to choose to build the Ark, or not to build it. The CHOICE was his.
    2. The difference between Noah and the others was FAITH. It was faith in God that caused Noah to act upon God's word. And, it was the LACK OF FAITH that resulted in the others' destruction. They CHOSE to ignore God.

III. The Plan of God Unfolds Through Men of Faith

  1. God's Promise to Abraham (Gen. 12:1-7; Heb. 11:8-12)
    1. Numerous descendants (Gen. 13:15-16; 15;5)
    2. A land and protection conditioned by obedience
    3. Into this "people" God would send a blessing through which all nations would be blessed (Gal. 3:15-16).

IV. The Nation of Israel

  1. Abraham becomes the father of the Israelite Nation.
  2. The people of Israel fall into slavery in Egypt.
  3. God delivers his people through Moses - a man of FAITH (Heb. 11:24-28).
  4. God reveals His Law through Moses 430 years after the promise to Abraham (Exo. 20)
    1. God provides his people with his directives
    2. God's people disobey God to follow their own desires.

V. The Prophets

  1. The prophets' purpose was to bring people back to following God through faith and obedience.
    NOTE: Use contents of the Bible to show how the Old Testament is divided into four categories: Law - History - Poetry - Prophets

VI. The New Testament

  1. The people of God in the Old Testament were the Nation of Israel. This changes in the New Testament. In the New Testament, God's people are spoken of as "THE CHURCH" OR "THE BODY OF CHRIST".
  2. The New Testament people are a part of God's Plan from "Before the creation of the world." (Eph. 1:3-4)
  3. The new promise for Ms Church "Living with Him eternally in heaven."