The Best Plan

          A quote from a television show went, “I love it when a good plan comes together.” I can make plans for something to take place and the more complex the plan, the more chances it won't come together. A comic strip once showed a father sitting at the dinner table. There was a lone pea on his spoon. He dropped a biscuit on the edge of the plate, hit the handle of the spoon, flipped the pea into the air which then landed in his glass of milk. He then states, “I bet I couldn't do that again.” His wife replied, “But you are going to try.” Complex plans are often doomed from the beginning because of the amount of things that have to be just perfect. If a plan depends on just one or two things, it will probably succeed but the more things that are added, the more improbable is the plan. John 1:29 says, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

        God's plan for salvation was one of the most complex plans that ever existed. The plan began in Genesis 3:15 where we first learn about the coming of a Messiah, but goes back even further than that, even before the foundations of the world. The plan weaves its way through the forming of a nation and then the sacrificial system and would go through almost 4,000 years before John the Baptist would utter the words in today's verse. We often notice the passage in Galatians 4:4 where we read about the “fullness of time.” It was at the precise moment that God brought everything to fulfillment and His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ went to the cross to pay the penalty for our sin. It wasn't just for one sin of each person, but all of the sins for every person. The sins of the whole world were paid for on that day at Calvary. All of the types and shadows of things to come were fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ. We might think, “What are the odds that it would take place?” Well, the odds were against it taking place but with God, all things are possible and that's what happened. It all came to a head even with Pilate, Herod, the Pharisees, Judas and the mobs and the mock trials. The words of the prophets foretold what would take place and it came together just as they said it would. When you read the words of the story of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, you can't help but be so thankful for God's wonderful plan that came together just as He said it would. The odds were indeed against it, but the empty tomb nails the conclusion to the whole matter. What are the odds that Jesus will come again just as He said He would? There might be some who say it is impossible, but God's record is 100% accurate. It will all come together just as God prescribed. If you feel a tad lonely, depressed or discouraged at your current predicament, just take a moment and say to yourself, “I love it when a good plan comes together.” Keep listening for the sound of the trumpet. It may be closer than you think. Praise God today for His plans.