God’s Master Plan

God’s Master Plan

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

Romans 8:28-30

In looking at God’s master plan, you may be wondering first; what is it, and second; what part do I play in it?

To answer the first question, we will look to what God says it is in Isaiah 45:18.

For thus says the Lord, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create it in vain, Who formed it to be inhabited: “I am the Lord, and there is no other.

He also tells us in Habakkuk 2:14 what would inhabit this earth that he created.

For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, As the waters cover the sea.

In these two verses we should understand what the master plan is: to create a place that is filled with the understanding of the Lord’s glory. Just as there is no part of the sea where there is no water, in like manner, one day there will be no place on the earth where God's glory is not found. What an exciting plan!

So then, what is His glory? Yes, I know it is another question sandwiched in between the first two questions, but it is necessary so that you can understand what part you play in the whole master plan thing. Okay, so it is found in Exodus 34:6-7.

And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”

Just as you and I have a character, something that describes you, the Lord has a character as well, and that is God's glory - His character, the very essence of what He is. God was telling Moses that His glory is revealed through His compassion, grace, patience, love, faithfulness, and His justice.

Now understanding what is meant by the glory of the Lord we can now better understand the meaning of God's Master Plan. God wants to fill the earth with His character. In other words, it is God's plan to fill the earth with characteristics such as love, faithfulness, justice, and grace; just as the waters cover the sea. But looking at the way of the world today, it leaves us wondering if God’s master plan will succeed.

Okay, so let us now tackle the second question of what part we play in the master plan. We form an essential part of God's Master Plan. We provide the vehicle through which God will fill the earth with His glory. Strictly speaking it is only humans who can truly reveal the glory of the LORD. The mountains, stars, and other items of God's natural creation, beautiful as they are, cannot fully reveal God's character, they reveal God’s existence and creativity. A tree cannot show love, a mountain cannot show grace - they all lack the essential characteristic that gives humans the capacity to reveal God's character - free will. Remember what God said in the beginning: “Let Us make man in Our image and likeness.” We were designed to be Christ-like, who is the express image of God.

We all have the freedom to determine our behavior and to mold our characters. We can reveal the many wonderful characteristics of God, or not. God wants us to use this gift to reveal His character in our lives. This is the purpose of life as told to us by Jesus in John 17:22-23.

And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

So, let me use my favorite show (Mission Impossible) to restate what I just said. Now, this is not the Tom Cruise garbage, but the TV series that ran in the mid-60s with Peter Graves, Greg Morris, Peter Lupus, and others.

Good morning, Congregation. The people you work with, live with, and have associations with we have recently discovered are those that do not have faith in the God of creation. For a time, we allowed them to live their lives as they wished because we did not believe it was our job to act upon them. Your mission, Congregation, should you decide to accept it, is to point those people you know to Christ. As always, should you or any of your beliefs be changed or killed, the Lord will disavow any knowledge of your actions and your name removed from the book of life. This tape will self-destruct in five seconds. Good luck, Congregation.