His Cross Our Hopeનમૂનો

Even well-laid plans can have moments of chaos, but when the Planmaker is perfect, we can believe that everything will turn out right… Even when circumstances make no sense.

I watch a show called “Leverage.” In each episode, the team rights a wrong done to an innocent person. Often, there’s a moment when the heroes’ scheme has fallen apart. It seems the team is in a spot they’ll never get out of.

Ah, but the “mastermind” isn’t surprised. The team turns the tables on the bad guys. What seemed to be a disaster was the plan all along.

Lately, there are moments when I watch the news and wonder … What is God doing? It feels like the world is falling apart.

It would be easy to despair, but we have to remember… Our “Mastermind” knows what’s coming. According to Genesis 3:15, He’s had the ending prepared since the very beginning. Nothing surprises Him. This verse gives us our first indication of God’s grand plan. To us, the world around us might seem to be in chaos but no… It’s right on track.

Genesis 3:15 comes after the first woman, Eve, was tempted by the serpent. She’s eaten the forbidden fruit. She’s passed it to Adam–who seems to have watched this unfold–and he’s had a bite. They’ve realized their shame. They’ve hidden from God.

Genesis 3:15 comes when all is lost. God’s perfect world is in tatters.

But their story–our story–is not over, because before God even said, “Let there be light,” He knew. Our Creator was never surprised by man’s downfall. He made a way for His Son to come to earth in a human body and to suffer an unimaginable death on the cross. Through this, He traded our sin-soaked garments for His. What’s more, if we have trusted in Him for salvation, He has made us new creations, righteous before God and able to enter His presence in a way we could never deserve on our own.

Moments after that initial sin, God said, “I’ve got this. Satan, mankind’s enemy, might think he’s won, but this is just a wound. One of Eve’s kids is going to crush his head with a killing blow.” In Scripture, her offspring is referred to in the singular, meaning just The One. Jesus.

Amidst the unraveling in Genesis 3, God had already made a way. We can take comfort in that. As chaos seems to reign in our world, God has had a plan from the beginning, and it ends in restoration and triumph for all God’s children.

~Jodie Bailey

Novelist and cohost of the Faith Over Fear podcast