The Drama of the Ages

Many feel they live unfulfilled, disconnected lives in an unsafe world.

Every society seeks answers to this colossal struggle between good/evil. Like a drama with seven acts, Jesus came and brought a new kind of life to fulfill God’s original design and intent. This astounding life-to-death-to-life drama is simple enough to diagram on an envelope.

1^st ACT: PRIOR: The relational God, Father, Son and Spirit, is the eternal Creator & King of all, both in the heavens and on earth.

 

He has always existed before time as a Community-of-Three. What God creates reflects who He is. God is relational at His core, good (6 times in the creation account), great (God spoke; it happened), and generous in His bounty (vast variety in creation).

2^nd ACT: CREATION: This generous, loving God created the universe as the theater of His glory, placing His crown-jewel in the center.

 

God initiated to create image-bearers, vessels as much like Him as created beings could be. Why? To receive and give away His life and love. God created humanity for (1) relationship (image/likeness), (2) purpose (cultivating our unique world of people to release life), and (3) to be blessed. God’s drama of the ages begins with this “original goodness” as His Eden-intent.

3^rd ACT: FALL: Part of God’s creation rebelled against their King and Creator, choosing to go rogue.

 

A third of the angelic beings followed their leader, Satan, in his rebellious coup against God. Sin seeks to pull others down. So God’s arch-enemy deceived the crown-jewel of God’s creation at the point of God’s simple test of love and obedience (Gen 2:16-17). All humanity joined Satan’s rebellion, pulling down all of creation with them since God delegated rule to humanity. This choice to join Satan’s coupe fractured who we are as image-bearers, separating us from God’s life, removing our “original goodness,” and making us less human than God designed. Satan then usurped humanity’s forfeited trusted rulership over the earth (Eph. 2:2).

4^th ACT: TESTING: From Genesis 4 until the coming of Jesus, God initiates to demonstrate His faithfulness despite the unfaithfulness of His people.

 

Humanity is now born in Adam’s likeness and image (Genesis 5:3), a distortion of God’s original intent. Read the repeated cycle of humanity in the Old Testament (OT) as they fail every test. Even though God blesses His people, their eyes wander, turning to their own ways. When the weight of their fractured lives becomes too heavy, they cry out to God. God then faithfully and patiently intervenes… until His people turn away again. Humanity repeatedly proves it cannot lead a satisfying life on his/her own.

5^th ACT: RESTORATION: Because of God’s compassionate heart, King Jesus invaded His world to pay the greatest price imaginable to restore humanity.

 

Only the Creator could stand in the place of His creation, providing the unique way back to the Father’s heart. Jesus came from heaven, lived and died, and was raised by the Father’s love and power to make relationship with God accessible for all. Through these acts of full abandonment to the Father, Jesus defeated Satan and made His eternal life and authority available to all by faith. Only you can keep you from God. As we give our full allegiance to our Creator and King, He breaks the chains that bound, restoring us to the Father’s love. The rescued then become the rescuers as Jesus calls together a multi-generational, multi-racial Kingdom army to restore the world of people to Him. We are all-in as we become more like Jesus in both our being and our doing out of our restored image.

6^th ACT: PARTNERSHIP: We now live in the gap between Jesus’ smashing victory and its consummation. Jesus now calls each of us to merge our small stories into His one Big-Story by responding to Jesus with: “I give you my wholehearted allegiance, my King!”

 

At the instant of faith (faith = resting our lives completely on Jesus), we receive His life in full, authentic life with His delegated authority, like in Genesis 1. At the instant of faith, God restores His original design and purpose for His crown-jewel, restoring spirituality, calling us to belonging and purpose, releasing true beauty and engaging us in His battle for justice. God’s call is to something greater than ourselves, something worth investing our entire lives into. Now God has placed all His people in strategic places to actively invite those in our sphere of influence to join Jesus in this epic adventure. We must be all-in since battlefields do not have bleachers for spectators.

7^th ACT: CONSUMATION: We eagerly await the great Day of the LORD when Jesus returns again, triumphant in His great power and glory. At that time, He will bring completion to all He began in the Garden…PLUS!

 

On this Day of the Lord, God will reward His people and punish those who chose to rebel. His 2^nd Coming will restore the full Reality of His creation-intent since Jesus’ victory over God’s arch-enemy was full and final. Satan is defeated, but not yet destroyed, the “already, but not yet” of the Kingdom of God.

Commission: Until Jesus returns again, God’s people stand in His authority at the intersection of the clash between the Kingdom of God and the dominion of Satan. Partner with Jesus in this warfare (1:38-39).

This is Reflection #35 in my book, Foundation Stones. I also have a web-site with tools, books and "more than Bible studies" that have helped me to live out of this spiritual DNA, www.JimFredericks.com