How does God carry out His big plan?
He does it through people.
Which people?
First, His chosen people—Israel—as we see in the Old Testament.
Then, the promised Seed from Genesis 3:15—Jesus Christ—revealed in the New Testament Gospels.
And now, in our time, it’s you and me—the Church—as we read in the rest of the New Testament.
Israel
From the Old Testament up until the birth of Jesus, Israel played a special role in God’s plan. But God’s plan was never just about one nation—it was always about rescuing the whole world (Genesis 12:3; Isaiah 49:6).
Genesis 12:1-5
Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Israel was like a delivery vehicle God drove through history to bring the Messiah, Jesus, into the world as Savior.
Along the way, Abraham got on board by trusting God’s promise, even when it didn’t make sense.
Moses rode along by leading Israel out of slavery, showing God’s power and faithfulness.
King David became a passenger too, pointing ahead to the true King who would come from his family line. All of them played their part as God moved His plan forward.
But what we really want to get to is how those guys and gals in the Old Testament discovered their own purpose and best lives by plugging into God’s bigger plan, so that we can learn how to do the same in our own lives.
Stay tuned.
Child of God, husband, father, grandfather, rabblerouser, songwriter, pot stirrer, waiting for the King.