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Man's Destiny Planned Before Time Began

The apostle Paul tells us that God made plans for our marvelous future even before He created our first parents, Adam and Eve. He planned our destiny "according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began" (2 Timothy 1:9).

What Is Your Destiny? Our eternal future was a part of God's great plan and purpose before He created the universe—before He made the heavenly bodies by which we measure time. Even then, God had determined that only a perfect Redeemer could bring His master plan to completion. Both our future and the role of Jesus Christ in our destiny were planned by God before time began.

Then, at the creation of Adam and Eve, God gave humans a choice of two ways of life. He clearly instructed Adam and Eve to partake of the tree of life. As their Creator, God expected them to develop a close personal relationship with Him. The tree of life in the Garden of Eden symbolized an obedient relationship leading to eternal life (Genesis 2:9; 3:22).

However, God gave Adam and Eve another option—one that could lead to disaster! Instead of choosing life through obedience to God, they could select a life of deciding for themselves what is right and wrong. Another tree in the garden symbolized this choice: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2:16-17; 3:1-6).

By their actions, Adam and Eve rejected the way of living God had commanded (Genesis 3:6). Rather than relying on God to show them the right way to live, they chose to rely on themselves. They set out on a course that is a mixture of good and evil.

By their decision, they brought on themselves the penalty of sin, which is death (Romans 6:23). Since their time all of humanity has followed their example and become corrupted by sin (Romans 5:12). All have fallen short of God's revealed way of life (Romans 3:23). Humanity to this day continues in that way, which leads to death (verses 9-12).

For that reason God's plan includes a Savior, the Messiah—"the [sacrificial] Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Revelation 13:8). Through Jesus Christ's sacrifice, human beings can reconcile to God, and God's forgiveness of their sin will remove the death penalty (Colossians 1:20-22). With forgiveness, God's gift of eternal life becomes available (Romans 6:23; 8:11). The destiny of man takes on meaning because of eternal life. (Read how human beings can be reconciled to God in our free booklet The Road to Eternal Life.)

The awesome purpose of life

As we have already seen, all human beings descended from Adam and Eve. We are their extended family. Because of his parentage, Adam was literally a son of God (Luke 3:38).

Therefore, since we are descended from Adam, we are also children of God. God is our Father because He fathered our first human father. As Acts 17:29 tells us, "we are the offspring of God."

But God's purpose goes far beyond the creation of mortal, perishable human beings. He is in the process of fashioning and forming a "new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:17), fathering His own spiritual children—immortal and incorruptible children who will enjoy His very nature and character.

Paul describes this new creation by contrasting the "old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires," with the "new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:22-24, New International Version).

Paul is describing a much-needed spiritual transformation in humans. It first involves a change in a person's nature and character. This is followed by the resurrection—a literal, total change into a spiritual being with eternal life.

God is accomplishing this transformation through the power of the Holy Spirit. A biblical term for this spiritual transformation is salvation. Paul describes those who will receive salvation as the children of God: "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint—heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together" (Romans 8:15-17, King James Version).

Can we grasp the significance of Paul's inspired statement? It explains why we are here, the very reason for our existence, why we were born. It gives meaning to life itself. It explains why God wants all people to come to the knowledge of the truth. God, the Scriptures tell us, is creating a family—His own family. We have the priceless opportunity to be a part of that family, the family of God!

That family relationship—our becoming children of God the Father—is the heart and core of God's incredible plan for humanity. Notice how important that spiritual family is to God: "In bringing many sons to glory [salvation], it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation [Jesus Christ] perfect through suffering. Both the one who makes men holy [Christ] and those who are made holy [human beings in whom God is working] are of the same family" (Hebrews 2:10-11, NIV).

That truly converted Christians all have the same spiritual Father means they are members of the same family—God's family. The Scriptures continue: "So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers. He says, 'I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises.' And again, 'I will put my trust in him.' And again he says, 'Here am I, and the childrenGod has given me' " (verses 11-13, NIV).

Notice that Jesus is not ashamed to call members of His Church His own brothers (and sisters). That is how wonderfully close and personal this family relationship is.

Created in the likeness of God

From the beginning this purpose has been clearly stated by God. "Then God said, 'Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' So God created man in His own image; . . . male and female He created them" (Genesis 1:26-27).

Men and women are created in God's image and likeness, to be like God. The Bible often speaks of physical children as "sons" because that was the custom at the time the Bible was written. That custom has continued in many languages, including English, over the centuries. In the Hebrew and Greek languages, in which the Bible was originally written, "sons" was used to refer to "descendants." When used in this sense, the Hebrew and Greek words for "sons" refer to male and female descendants alike. We use the words mankind and brethren in a similar sense to include both sexes.

What Is Your Destiny? God makes it clear that His family includes people who are now physical men and women, both sons and daughters. "For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26-28).

God also tells us, "I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6:18). Men and women are God's children.

Now to the point of Genesis 1:26-27, which tells us we are made in God's image and likeness. How completely can we be like God when all is said and done?

We will be like Jesus Christ

God's purpose is to make us fully like Jesus Christ! In Ephesians 4 Paul makes this clear. He explains that members of God's Church are to "come . . . to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (verse 13). Paul's comment in Galatians 4:19, "My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you," expresses the same concept in different words.

Do you grasp the significance of what Paul is saying? We can become fully and completely like Jesus Christ-with His character formed in us. We can say as Paul said in Galatians 2:20, "it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."

As Jesus is God's Son, our destiny is also to be the immortal children of God. The apostle John explains what this means: "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! . . . Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" (1 John 3:1-3).

Human beings who are inducted into the family that God is creating will ultimately be glorified spirit beings like the resurrected Jesus Christ (Philippians 3:20-21), who reigns over the universe in His glorified state at the right hand of God. This is what is meant by Daniel's description of righteous people in the future "shin[ing] . . . like the stars forever and ever" (Daniel 12:2-3, NRSV). Humans resurrected unto eternal life will be like the glorified Jesus Christ!

The awesome potential of any person, as it is presented to us by Christ and His apostles, seems so incredible that most people cannot grasp this biblical truth when they first read it. Although it is plainly stated in the Bible, people usually read right over it. In fact, this awesome future is the whole purpose and reason that God made mankind. It is why we were born, why we exist.

God has always kept His purpose—that of making human beings His children—as the guiding principle in His relationships with mankind. He gave us His laws to teach us how to treat each other in a godly manner, the same way Christ treated people. God shows no partiality (Romans 2:11). He "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:4). And Christ came specifically to make it possible for the whole world—all people—to be saved (John 3:16-17).

Israelites to set an example

Many readers of the Bible have wondered why God chose the descendants of Abraham and his wife Sarah—ancient Israel—as a special people if He impartially offers salvation to everyone.

Abraham was a righteous man whom God called His friend (James 2:23; Isaiah 41:8). God chose to build a national family from the descendants of Abraham and Sarah so citizens of that nation could, if they would cooperate, set an example for all other peoples as a model of God's own family.

Those descendants, the people of ancient Israel, agreed to become just such an example nation (Deuteronomy 4:1, 6-8; 5:27). But they still had a carnal, selfish nature, as do all other people (Romans 8:7). Knowledge alone was not enough. God gave the Israelites His laws-the knowledge of right and wrong—but they did not have minds that could obey God from the heart. As a nation, they failed to set an obedient example as they had promised.

The example they did set, that of consistently abandoning their commitments to obey God, preserves an important lesson for the rest of mankind. Neither nations nor individuals can produce godly behavior without God's Spirit dwelling within them-even if God personally gives them explicit knowledge of right and wrong.

Having the Holy Spirit from birth, Jesus Christ never sinned and thus set a perfect example for humanity. Those who truly follow Christ repent of their sins and are led by God's Spirit. With Christ now living in them (Galatians 2:20), they set a similar though imperfect example, striving to grow in the grace and knowledge of their Savior (2 Peter 3:18). But, when Christians are granted immortality in the resurrection, they will set perfect examples of godliness and righteousness as the spiritual children of God.

God has revealed that He is "bringing many sons to glory" so that He, as our Father, and we, His children, will be "of the same family" (Hebrews 2:10-11, NIV). That astounding truth is the ultimate destiny of human beings as revealed in the Bible.

God is in the process of creating that immortal family. In the next chapter we will examine how you can become a part of it. We all have a vital part to play in God's plan.

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