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Before Time Began



Before time began! No, I am not writing about some space odyssey movie or some wild adventure novel involving a time-machine. I am thinking about a moment long before earthly time began. A spectacular and incredible moment occurred that touches every human life that ever existed, now exists or will exist well into the future.

This incident was recorded in the Bible in the New Testament book of Ephesians. We see in Ephesians 1:4-5, “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.”

Grasping the love of God can be very challenging for our finite, human minds. Can we work on fully grasping the fact? The fact that God took the initiative, paid the price, absorbed the penalty of sin by giving up and sacrificing His Son Jesus….all for us…all because He loved us that much! His desire for a relationship with us was that intense!

If you read back over the Ephesians passage it tells us that this was not only His great plan, all along, but He wanted to do it because it gave him great pleasure. When God initiated this plan it wasn’t done grudgingly or in a deep sense of irritation and aggravation because we were so sinful.

His great plan for you was not an afterthought to “fix things” after sin entered the world. The plan was not a futuristic plan devised to “take place” once Jesus died on the Cross and rose back to life. Everything God planned for us was determined long before He even created the Earth.  

God is never haphazard or scattered in His planning nor does He experiment or take chances with His will for us and His creation. God’s plans are holy and perfect. His purpose for us is to bring Him honor and glory and to give us perfect fulfillment and joy in helping Him build His Kingdom and to bring others to His Son Jesus.

This is why one of my favorite verses is Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

God’s plan in creating you and allowing you to be born was to involve you to be engaged in His work on this earth. After all, John 15:16, tells us “You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last….” God’s plan is based on His desire and purpose for a loving, intimate relationship with you. This is what He wants. This was His plan all along….before time began!

God has a special plan that is designed just for you! He loves you dearly. It gives Him great joy and pleasure to see you working each day and succeeding. He made you and designed you just the way you are for a specific purpose. He colored you…gifted you…allowed you to be born into the family you have….and equipped you in a very special and unique way with talents, abilities, personality, sense of humor, tastes, and everything else that makes you who you are!

There is no one else just like you! You are specifically designed for an intentional mission assigned just for you. You are that special to Him that He would intentionally create you for that handcrafted mission that He needs you to accomplish for Him. But you must accept believe it and live your life working to complete it.

This is why John 3:16 is so powerful: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God chose you. God designed a specific, intentional plan just for you. God sent His Son Jesus to die for your Sins.

He wants you to be forgiven and reconciled back to Him through Jesus. God wants to have a loving relationship with you now and for all eternity. He wants you to fulfill His will for your life on this earth!

All of this….every minute detail was His plan all along….not upon the day you were born, but decided long before time began. Will you accept His plan for your life? Will you surrender your life to His Son Jesus? Your decision will last for all eternity. You will never regret surrendering to Jesus Christ.

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