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. Jeremiah 29:11
One of the hardest things to understand about God is that he was – he is – and will come! God is called the Ancient of Days which one can only speculate that this term may mean he could have been around when the antiquities of his realm were being created. Yet, the terms of Eternal life and everlasting life describing the lifespan of God are scattered throughout the bible.
How does one comprehend Immortality from a position of being mortal? For the most part human beings live as if death was not a part of their life but accepted when we reach a certain age. They think that the medical profession will make every effort to save lives but men still pass on. However from God’s perspective he drove mankind from the tree of life because he sinned by eating from the forbidden tree of knowledge of good and evil.
And the Lord God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." Genesis 3:22
Death in the spiritual realm is being driven from God’s presence. While we are alive we are just a vapor that passes from one existence to another. Birth is the beginning for man but as he ages he dissipates to become part of the world. By the same token vapors are weakened by the environment it is formed in and then vanishes in the overpowering changes his surroundings make to its nature. The man empowered by the word of God can return to his source of strength and be renewed. On the other hand the unrestrained man who indulges in the pursuit of pleasure will pass away with the world.
We might want to consider that a vapor is only present when it overcomes the surroundings it is formed in. Jesus was just a vapor in life but he overcame the environment he was sent to set us free from decaying. He came as an example so all of his chosen people will learn to overcome.
Christians are more aware of God’s eternal nature than the world but are they telling the world of God’s immortality? God was alive before the world was conceived as a thought and became a plan to fulfill. The human race is a part of his overall plan but it is a plan that every man and woman has a choice to take part in of their free will.
God sees and explains life in times known as ages and he explains the past age, the present age and the age to come spoken of throughout the bible. The past age is where God conceived and planned his kingdom. The present age is fulfilling his plan, inviting mankind to enter his kingdom with the promise that he would be with you until the end of the age. Yet there is an age to come that Christians are anticipating, after the Day of Judgment it will be an age where God will be our God and we will be his people.
I think everyone understands that God both created the universe and has the Authority to rule over it. God has the right to own everything he created and has the authority to demand obedience from everything he created. That concept is shared by mankind as when men buy a car they expect the car to do everything the car was designed to do and when it doesn’t they get a different car and the old car is traded in or sent to the junk yard. Have we considered that God will do the same with the things he owns that don’t work as they should?
Mankind as a whole understands that God rules over the universe he created. The earth is a part of the universe and the dust of the earth is what man was made of. Strange as it may seem mankind does not recognize the authority of God to rule over mankind. Within this contradiction of knowledge some pay attention to God but the majority of mankind refuse to seek God and listen to his commands. They have not connected the thought that they are a part of the universe God created and God expects his creations to perform in a specific manner.
God conceived and planned his kingdom before the beginning of this age. The Lord Almighty has sworn, "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand. – This is the plan determined for the whole world; this is the hand stretched out over all nations. For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back? (Isaiah 14:24,25-27)
I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished (Matthew 5:18).
There is no question to what God planned but God is also saying is that his plans cannot be changed, altered, or made void. God assures us that everything he planned will take place as he has determined it will. His plan may not be our plans but it is a plan that has our best interest in mind. If we choose to take part in his plan there is a great reward. However there is a severe consequence in neglecting his plan.
On the other hand those who refuse to accept Jesus Christ as Lord will serve God as an example of those who do not submit to God and refused to repent of their wicked ways. In contrast we have been given the opportunity to serve God of our free will. Keep in mind God has always been God and will be God in the ages to come.
Perhaps we need to understand God’s plan from a different way as if his plan were a computer. When we purchase a computer all we get is a basic operating system and it can be compared to a new born who only knows how to cry. The computer is then costumed programed by God to function in a prescribed way. The outcome becomes your life. And in the same way the mother and father programs their child to behave in a way the parents approve of. In this manner your children have become what you desired it to become.
Still God’s plan is worth the time to look into for God’s plan is not asking mankind to do things that God does not adhere to. When you look into God’s plan you will find everything has a logical and practical way to live. Furthermore God’s plan gives the dignity of choice and the ability to live according to God’s plan. The outcome humbles your life to be God’s servant, to love one another and show respect for the people like ourselves. With this concept in mind you will not be alone in heaven, but everyone in heaven will have the same respect for you as you have been taught to give to everyone else.
The present age gives us the opportunity to prepare our disposition for the coming age. Many of the things we have to deal with in this age will be no longer with us for the old order of things has passed away. The anxieties of life caused by death, mourning, crying and pain will cease and the way God has taught us to live will be the order of the day.
When we look into the heavenly age we can see this promise being fulfilled. 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 (Jeremiah 29:11). You see God does not have plans to harm you but he wants to give you a hope for the future when we enter into his Kingdom. 1/19/2015
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