In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment–to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
-Ephesians 1:7-10
When you are reading a story, don’t you enjoy discovering what the main plot is? Dr. Snyder explains why he considers this passage reveals the main plot.
“This passage comes as close to any other in the Bible to giving a thumbnail sketch of what it’s all about. It’s the main plot revealed. It’s the summary of what everything is here for. It puts in capsule form the meaning of creation, the entire history of the earth and the human race, the story of the Bible, and everything else up to and beyond the last day of the world as we know it. It gives us a cutaway view of the destination of the world and reveals all the hidden mechanisms operating behind the scenes.
There is a counterpart to this in the Old Testament. Chapters 40 to 55 of Isaiah describe the goal of all history. In particular, Isaiah 40:5 tells us that this goal is the revelation of God’s glory to the whole world.
In other words, God is moving all things everywhere toward the final disclosure of his glory to all living beings: the uniting in Jesus Christ of persons, nations, and dreams, and projects. He will be the focal point of every last thing in creation as each piece is brought into line with the will of the Father.
With the promise of that before us, what could possibly trip us up? We can get through anything this world throws us as we press on toward the goal.”
TODAY’S PRAYER: In the monotony of daily life, are you tempted to lose heart or lose the vision of what the whole thing is about? Ask for a renewal of the big picture in the center of your being. It’ll dwarf the thing you face today.
Photo by mendhak via Flickr
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