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STAND & COMFORT Newsletter Why Did God Create Man Knowing He Would Fall? I recently received an inquiry concerning God's creation of man - knowing he would fall, knowing sin and death would enter the world. It caused me to ponder once again God's absolute self-sufficiency and wisdom in handling His creation, no matter what comes about after He created. It caused me to ponder again God doing things for His own good pleasure according to His own will and purpose. It caused me to think again of God's total self-reliance and total ability to bring about what He alone designed. It made me think again of God as one who finishes what He's determined to do without a hint of failure on His part. It made me consider again the wonder of His creating a being with a free will that could throw a wrench into what God intended to bring about, yet He will not be deterred from what He intended. This creature - man - was a necessary part of the plan. Make no mistake about this, though: God in Himself was all He needed before creation. Scripture says over and over again that what God has done and is doing, He has done and is doing according to His perfect will and for His own good pleasure. Scripture also says that, before the creation of the world, God had determined what He would do. Concerning His Son and created man, God had first determined that: 1. Christ would be the center of, and exalted over, all things (Eph. 1:10-11). 2. Man would not be able to hinder His plan. Knowing man would fall only created the perfect opportunity for God to accomplish His purpose for Christ. God knew that man would fall. He knew that some would reject His restoration of man to a place of righteousness by which God could accomplish His purpose for him: Eph 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: God's will and purpose and good pleasure for man was that he live forever - with Him - filled with love and holiness, always before Him to serve Him. When man sinned and therefore fell, God didn't respond by biting His fingernails, muttering to Himself about what to do now. When spiritual death came to Adam, God didn't stand there scratching His head, confused about what to do next. When the first man died a physical death, God didn't say to Himself, "Well, that shot down all my plans." Some look aghast at the fact that God created man knowing that he would fall and that some would have to suffer His wrath and damnation. They ask, "How could He create, knowing that would happen?" and decide in their own wisdom that this is not the God they want to believe in. But the problem is not in the questioning, but in the attitude of the questioner. As Christians, we need to maintain a sharper perspective. The question should be, "How, in his arrogance, can man reject such a perfect, loving God and His plan to repair what man broke: a relationship with his creator God?" God is not responsible for any of the pain and sorrow of this life and world. He is not responsible for the fall of man and the sin and suffering and death that resulted from it. That is all man's fault, and any rejection or attempt to change or hinder God's way of restoring things as He wanted them in the first place is based on various combinations of ignorance, arrogance, pride and rebellion. The charge of cruelty against God for creating man while knowing he would fall and be damned is an evil, false accusation because of the gospel. This gospel glorifies the act of salvation on God's part as an absolutely astounding venture: the creature who lives in ignorance of God and His ways actually comes into a knowledge of Him and accepts salvation from His hand by grace through faith. How is that done? Through the gospel, hidden in God since before the creation of the world, until the time came for it to be made known. The revelation of the mystery openly presented Christ to the world: His birth, ministry, death, resurrection and ascension. Who was this Christ who came? Jesus, God the Son come in the flesh. The coming Of Christ was God's shout to the world: "I will have what I intended." The gospel went out to the world as the COMMAND of God for all to believe: 2 Cor 4:5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. In His justice, God not only commanded "the light to shine out of darkness," but also commanded that men respond to it through the "obedience of faith." To not respond in faith is to remain in ignorance, arrogance, pride and rebellion. Such evil attributes deserve damnation, especially because the gospel is there to accept. All one needs to do is to humbly acknowledge that one is a sinner worthy of damnation while believing on Christ and His finished work. The gospel, therefore, silences all the accusations against God for creating man when He knew he would fall. At the same time, it furthers the pre-creation plan of God. It satisfies the justice of God, the righteousness of God, and the holiness of God for both Jew and Gentile, a vital part of this mystery revealed. Any man, Jew or Gentile, can be saved through the gospel. This body of believers is the Church. The attributes of God, including His infinite wisdom, are now seen even by the principalities and powers simply because the Church exists. 1 Cor 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: The wisdom of God saturates God's plan and His good pleasure. What a ponderable attribute of the Almighty! He made His plan according to His good pleasure to glorify His Son and to bring to Himself a community of those who desire Him in holiness and love. When the fall occurred, He didn't respond in wrath, but in mercy: Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Man's free will had now interfered with God's pre-creation plan and purpose. God watched the fall of man take place on the one hand and looked at His plan on the other. Did God rise up in anger and destroy what He created? No, He sent man out of the garden. What was God's intention in driving man from the garden? Was this because of His good pleasure? If so, why? It was His good pleasure to do so because He had a plan already in Himself and He would see it fulfilled no matter what man did. He sent man from the garden to preserve him, because in Adam and Eve were all those who would respond to Him when he revealed Himself in the flesh by His Son. It was and is God's purpose to have His Son as the center of all things and to be exalted over all things, and He is going to have that. Man's arrogance cannot hinder it or stop it: Ephesians 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him: How far would God go in His good pleasure to bring about that which He intended? Scripture tells us He went this far: Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? Isaiah is speaking of God come in the flesh. It is a very graphic description of God's love for humanity, but what we dare not miss is that the events described here ARE ACCORDING TO HIS GOOD PLEASURE FOR THE PURPOSE OF BRINGING ABOUT HIS PRE-CREATION PLAN AND WILL: Isaiah 53:10 YET IT PLEASED THE LORD TO bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. "Yet it pleased the Lord"! "Pleased means, "to incline to; . . . fig. to be pleased with, desire," and is translated as ". . .(have, take) delight, desire, favour, like, move, be (well) pleased, have pleasure, will, would." Oh, I hope you didn't miss the full story here. Look at the word "satisfied" in verse 11. It means "to sate, i.e. fill to satisfaction." God's good pleasure was filled to the full with satisfaction ACCORDING TO THE PURPOSE OF HIS WILL: "the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand." The horrible sufferings and crucifixion and death of His Son brought utter satisfaction to God because He had the power to raise Him from the dead. Indeed, Jesus is THE resurrection, and it is in this fact that "the pleasure of the LORD SHALL [NOW continue to] prosper in his hand." The resurrection enthroned Christ over death and gave Him power over all things. He is in a place of power to be the center of all things and to exalted over all. And it is here we again see the great mercy of God: He is being forebearing, wanting all men to repent that they be saved to and for Himself. Who are those that are saved? His seed, which He now sees because of His finished work at Calvary: "he shall see his seed. . . and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand." Man cannot judge God or dictate to Him what is right. Nor can man do anything to prosper the plan of God. But in His mercy, God allows us to have part in that through the sharing of the gospel. That sharing alone will prosper God's plan until, when all have heard and made their decision, His forebearance will end and sheer disgust will take over. God's word continues to entreat and call until time runs out and He brings about the culmination of His plan: Isaiah 55:1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. God's salvation is nearer than when we first believed. Christ is closer to returning than when we first believed. Yes, He shall come, and he will reign, and He will be the center of all things and exalted over all as Lord of lords and King of kings, and God will rejoice in His good pleasure with great satisfaction. When that occurs, we will be able to look back at 6,000 years of history and see man in his rebellion and ignorance and opposition to what God had ordained, and rejoice at His wisdom and presence and good pleasure. His will will have been done. He will not have failed in any segment. Jesus Christ and His wounds will shine with glory and we will see Him as He is. And when we see Him, the question - How could God have created man knowing that he would fall? - will not be heard, because Jesus,: Phil 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: ========== This newsletter will be sent out whenever I think there is something the body of Christ needs to consider, to build it up, to give it encouragement or comfort in hard times. To sign up for this newsletter, email Ed at edju@velocity.net
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