he Eternal Role of Understanding Salvation
Proverbs 8:22-31
“It was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life…but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world.” I Peter 1:18-20
The cross was never Plan B. It was Plan A from the start. You were always on His mind! Before you were born, he determined the number of your days (Psalm 139:16) and the exact places you would live (Acts 17:26).
Three Facts About Jesus, Leading to Our Salvation:
He Reigns With God From Eternity Past
“The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old. I was formed long ages ago, at the very beginning when the world came to be.” Proverbs 8:22-23
The Hebrew word for ‘formed’ in verse 23 literally means ‘to pour out as a drink offering’, possibly foreshadowing the cross.
During the Arian controversy in the early 300s AD, these verses were cited as proof that Jesus was a created being, but the original Hebrew doesn’t support this. In John 8:58 Jesus affirms his pre-existence.
“By him [Jesus] all things were created”. Colossians 1:16
“In these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, through whom he made the universe.” Hebrews 1:2
Hebrews 1:3 reveals the master plan to redeem mankind. Before being born in Bethlehem, Jesus existed in spirit form (John 1:14). As the Angel [messenger] of the Lord, he made many pre-incarnate appearances to Hagar, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and many others (Genesis 16,18,31, Exodus 3).
He Creates With Precision In Six Glorious Days.
“I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep, when he established the clouds above and fixed securely the fountains of the deep, when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth. Then I was constantly [the craftsman] by his side.” Proverbs 8:27-30
Our Triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) created a Triune Universe (time, space, matter) in a Triune Manner (time is past, present, future; space is length, width, depth; matter is solid, liquid, gas). In *Miracles*, Eric Metaxas shows that our earth is just the right size, just the right distance from the sun, with just the right pattern of rotation to sustain life.
Jupiter is just the right size and in just the right place to absorb comets and debris that would otherwise hit earth. Our moon is just the right size and in just the right place to cleanse our oceans. Sun and moon appear to be the same size in a solar eclipse because of the freakish ‘coincidence’ that the sun is 400 times the size of the moon, but the moon is 400 times closer to earth than is the sun.
He Delights With Joy Over A Magnificent Mankind
“Then I was constantly [the craftsman] at his side. I was filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in his presence, rejoicing in his whole world and delighting in mankind.” Proverbs 8:30-31<
“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” Psalm 8:3-4
We are seemingly insignificant in the midst of a universe containing 70 septillion stars, 10,000 times the number of the grains of sand on earth.
“You have made them [human beings] a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hand; you put everything under their feet.” Psalm 8:5-6
You are the crown of God’s creation, priceless in His eyes. You are of such immeasurable worth that Jesus died for you.
“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand.” Psalm 139:17
That’s a lot, considering there are 7 sextillion grains of sand on earth.
Charles Wesley was so overwhelmed by the matchless love of God that he wrote the hymn *And Can It Be* in 1738 shortly after his conversion. Ironically, his conversion occurred after he had become an ordained minister and served as a missionary. You can know about God without knowing God. Have you accepted the free gift of salvation that Jesus offers?
The cross was never Plan B. It was Plan A from the start. You were always on His mind! Before you were born, he determined the number of your days (Psalm 139:16) and the exact places you would live (Acts 17:26).
Three Facts About Jesus, Leading to Our Salvation:
He Reigns With God From Eternity Past
“The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old. I was formed long ages ago, at the very beginning when the world came to be.” Proverbs 8:22-23
The Hebrew word for ‘formed’ in verse 23 literally means ‘to pour out as a drink offering’, possibly foreshadowing the cross.
During the Arian controversy in the early 300s AD, these verses were cited as proof that Jesus was a created being, but the original Hebrew doesn’t support this. In John 8:58 Jesus affirms his pre-existence.
“By him [Jesus] all things were created”. Colossians 1:16
“In these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, through whom he made the universe.” Hebrews 1:2
Hebrews 1:3 reveals the master plan to redeem mankind. Before being born in Bethlehem, Jesus existed in spirit form (John 1:14). As the Angel [messenger] of the Lord, he made many pre-incarnate appearances to Hagar, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, and many others (Genesis 16,18,31, Exodus 3).
He Creates With Precision In Six Glorious Days.
“I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep, when he established the clouds above and fixed securely the fountains of the deep, when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth. Then I was constantly [the craftsman] by his side.” Proverbs 8:27-30
Our Triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) created a Triune Universe (time, space, matter) in a Triune Manner (time is past, present, future; space is length, width, depth; matter is solid, liquid, gas). In *Miracles*, Eric Metaxas shows that our earth is just the right size, just the right distance from the sun, with just the right pattern of rotation to sustain life.
Jupiter is just the right size and in just the right place to absorb comets and debris that would otherwise hit earth. Our moon is just the right size and in just the right place to cleanse our oceans. Sun and moon appear to be the same size in a solar eclipse because of the freakish ‘coincidence’ that the sun is 400 times the size of the moon, but the moon is 400 times closer to earth than is the sun.
He Delights With Joy Over A Magnificent Mankind
“Then I was constantly [the craftsman] at his side. I was filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in his presence, rejoicing in his whole world and delighting in mankind.” Proverbs 8:30-31<
“When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?” Psalm 8:3-4
We are seemingly insignificant in the midst of a universe containing 70 septillion stars, 10,000 times the number of the grains of sand on earth.
“You have made them [human beings] a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hand; you put everything under their feet.” Psalm 8:5-6
You are the crown of God’s creation, priceless in His eyes. You are of such immeasurable worth that Jesus died for you.
“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand.” Psalm 139:17
That’s a lot, considering there are 7 sextillion grains of sand on earth.
Charles Wesley was so overwhelmed by the matchless love of God that he wrote the hymn *And Can It Be* in 1738 shortly after his conversion. Ironically, his conversion occurred after he had become an ordained minister and served as a missionary. You can know about God without knowing God. Have you accepted the free gift of salvation that Jesus offers?