God's Redemptive Plan- 09/3/2023

Jesus was the solution to the sin of humanity. In Genesis 3, we find the story of the fall of man through sin. However, it is also in Genesis 3 that we see God's redemptive plan for Jesus as our Savior (Gen. 3:15). God saw the sin of humanity and all the trouble it would bring, yet His love for us refused to let our sin ruin His plan to form a great family of children. He wanted to fellowship with His children for eternity. So even though He knew we would misuse the freedom He gave us, He also knew there was a way to save those who would choose to use that freedom to repent of their rebellion and return to Him. God’s plan would be very costly to Himself and His Son. It would require His Son to leave Heaven and be joined to humanity. 

God's plan contained another element as well. Jesus' cross would cleanse the guilt of sin from the physical bodies of those who believe in Him, and that act would make possible a new relationship between humans and the Holy Spirit. And because their bodies would be considered holy, He could send the Holy Spirit to dwell in each one, empowering believers to serve Him in ways that would have been unimaginable before those events took place. Now, Jesus' disciples could go out into the world with a new power and a new message. They could minister to lost and broken people just like Jesus, and they would proclaim a new message. They would declare that Jesus had come and died, and that God had raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand. They would proclaim that Jesus has become Lord of all creation, that His cross and resurrection had defeated the ruler of this world, allowing humans to escape Satan's grip. Jesus knew that if His disciples understood God's plan, even though they would face opposition in the future, they would be able to remain joyful. And He knew that if we believed in Him through that new message, we would understand God's redemptive plan and remain joyful, as well.