In the book of Genesis, Moses writes God’s story of creation. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” God created this vast universe out of complete darkness and emptiness. Over the course of 6 days, God created everything that we see. Land, oceans, animals and then Adam and Eve. He placed Adam and Eve into a perfect garden that he created for them; there was no work or toil, pain, or death. The garden was complete perfection. Adam and Eve had one rule, do not eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  Well, we all know the rest of the story…Adam and Eve disobeyed God and did in fact eat from the tree. God banished them from the garden, forcing them out into the cold world full of endless toil, pain, and death. So, why didn’t God just push the reset button and start over? And if we are asking that, why did God put the tree in the garden in the first place?

I have always assumed that God created this paradise and then Adam and Eve messed it up. Because of their disobedience, God had to reconfigure His plan and implement Plan B. But how does an all-knowing, all-powerful God, who knows the beginning from the end, have His plan upended? He doesn’t! God is omniscient. He knows everything. His plans will not be thwarted. “For the Lord of hosts has purposed, and who will annul it? His hand is stretched out, and who will turn it back?” (Isaiah 14:27)

The cross was ALWAYS part of God’s eternal plan. The cross was not His Plan B! Think about that for a moment. Even as the earth was being formed…even as the perfection of the garden was being crafted…God KNEW that man would fail and that our only hope in redemption was the cross. It was always part of the plan to begin with! I don’t know about you, but that completely changes how I look at everything! God wasn’t up in heaven looking down and then saying, “Great! They messed this up…Ok, Jesus, now it will be up to you to fix this.” God in His complete knowledge and sovereignty placed the tree in the garden, to glorify the Son, with His sacrifice on the cross. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.” (1 Peter 2:24)

God is not looking down shaking His head in frustration when we fail, as if He now needs to recalibrate His plan to adjust for our mistake. He was fully aware before the creation of the world, every single thought and action you and I would take. There are no surprises to God. There is no restructuring, no recalibrating, no plan B. So what is the takeaway I want to leave you with? Before the beginning of the world, God knew you and He loved you. Jesus died for you and nothing you can do is capable of increasing or diminishing the love He has for you. When it comes to you and me, there is no plan B. God’s plan has always been in motion and no matter what mistakes we may make, we cannot derail those plans. He will have His way, yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.” (Jude 1:24-25)