Did God Take Too Long to Roll out His Plan of Salvation?

At the outset of the fall of man in Genesis 3, God promised that he would send a 'serpent crusher' to defeat satan and save mankind from the consequences of sin.

And I will cause hostility between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring.
He will strike your head,
and you will strike his heel.”

Genesis 3:15

However the 'serpent crusher' only arrived on the scene many eons later, with the incarnation of Jesus Christ. A lot of proverbial water had already passed under the bridge by that time.

Why did God's plan of salvation require such a long period of time from inception to fulfilment? Should God have sent the promised saviour right after man sinned?

What is God’s big plan of salvation, from before time to all of eternity? What is the ultimate goal and purpose?

Sometimes we might become too inward looking, and see salvation as just that of individual souls. Of course a major goal of salvation is to redeem mankind from God’s punishment, and to reverse the effects of sin.

However, salvation goes beyond just personal redemption. God has a much wider focus.

When God saves us, He saves us into a new body - the universal church - where Christ is the head.

...He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.

Ephesians 2:15

So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself.

Ephesians 2:19-22

All believers in Christ make up the church, Christ body - the dwelling place of God. This church is not just the local church down the road, but the gathering of all believers on earth, where Christ is the cornerstone. We become part of God’s family of believers everywhere - one new people.

...But we have all been baptised into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:13

Being a 'Lone Ranger' Christian is not an option. (even the Lone Ranger had Tonto)

Sin not only destroyed mans relationship with God and with each other. The rest of creation also suffered as a result of Adam’s sin. Man and nature were now at odds. So, besides saving mankind and forming the church, God's purpose of salvation also includes restoring the whole of creation

Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay.

Romans 8:20-21

What then is God's all-encompassing plan for his creation? It is summed up in Ephesians 1:9-10

God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfil his own good plan. And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.

God's will, his purpose for creation, is that in Christ, all creation will be brought together in unity under the rule of Christ. God’s plan is centred on the risen, ascended Christ in whom all God’s purposes for the entire creation will be fulfilled and brought into a wonderful unity as God sums up all things under Christ.

Another way of stating God's purpose is to talk about the establishment of the 'Kingdom of God'. The Kingdom of God can be described as the concept of God's people, in God's place, under God's rule and blessing.

In light of this grand scheme of things, we see that the coming saviour must accomplish more than just saving individuals from death. He must restore and redeem creation and place the entire universe under his authority, where he will rule as Lord and King.

A key phrase in Ephesians 1:9-10 is 'at the right time', (or 'the fullness of time' in some bible translations). In his wisdom, God devised a plan that has a definite time frame. A plan where things fall into place and come together at the perfect moment.

Thus God's plan of salvation cannot be executed in haste. It must materialise according God's flawless design and timeline. It is a glorious and magnificent plan that involves God himself taking the form of a man, coming into this very world he created, becoming the sacrifice to redeem creation, and placing all things under his rule.

Paul, writing to the Galatians reiterates the importance of timing in God's plan of salvation.

But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.

Galatians 4:4-5

Even under normal circumstances, God's amazing plan would be something difficult for humanity to grasp. What more a humanity that is hostile and rebellious towards God. It is a plan that encompasses the entire realm of time and creation. It must therefore be revealed carefully and progressively to fallen mankind so that they can understand and embrace it when God sets it in motion.

God gradually revealed his plan of salvation through a series of promises - his covenants, in which God revealed his heart, his intention and purpose.

God's plan would involve

1. Gathering a special people for himself

2. Teaching them what it was like to live under God’s rule

This would include establishing certain patterns and structures that would clearly point ahead to his salvation. These would illustrate such concepts like

• redemption through suffering
• shedding of blood for the atonement of sins
• killing an innocent life to redeem the guilty

These difficult concepts and patterns would not only reveal God's standards of holiness but also how salvation would ultimately be achieved.

However, such structures and systems were only a shadow. They were inadequate in solving the deepest problems of humanity. They had to be repeated year after year, but yet could not decisively remove the stain of human sin. As Paul writes

For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality.

Colossians 2:17

3. Bringing forth the saviour of the world from this people.

The saviour, the one who would carry out and accomplish God's salvation, would come from this people. That person is Jesus Christ, God the Son, the second person of the trinity.

In Jesus Christ, the promises, pattern of salvation combine in fulfilment. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 1:20

For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding “Yes!” And through Christ, our “Amen” (which means “Yes”) ascends to God for his glory.

Jesus fulfils the pattern and plan of salvation God established through Israel - redemption through suffering, shedding of innocent blood for the atonement of sins.

this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

Acts 2:23-24

Christ sacrifice on the cross ushered in the new covenant between God and man.

That is why he is the one who mediates a new covenant between God and people, so that all who are called can receive the eternal inheritance God has promised them. For Christ died to set them free from the penalty of the sins they had committed under that first covenant.

Hebrews 9:15

Christ now reigns in heaven until he returns to usher in the new kingdom. Peter, preaching to the crowds shortly after pentecost declared

For he must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his holy prophets.

Acts 4:21

History and the future is running according to God's time table. Nothing happens too soon or too late.

So too with the rolling out of God's plan of salvation. From the promise of a 'serpent crusher' in Eden to the sacrifice on the cross at Calvary, and to the return of Christ as Lord and King, everything is running on time according to God's schedule.

May your kingdom come,

and your will be done

in earth as it is in heaven