Psalm 139
Through God’s omniscience (Having all knowledge) He has purposed and planned for every believer, who comes to faith, to be transformed into the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. That which He begins, He also completes, and His plan is to bring every believer into a closer relationship with Himself.
(Isaiah 43:7, Romans 8:31-39, 2 Corinthians 3:18 )
“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6
Guaranteed Salvation
It is God’s will that everyone come to the saving grace and knowledge of His Son, Jesus Christ. Everyone who comes to faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, has been sealed by the Holy Spirit, guaranteeing salvation.
(Ephesians 1:13, Romans 10: 8-10, 2 Peter 3:8-9)
God’s Predestined Plan
In Psalm 139, David speaks of God’s Omniscience – God knows everything about each person who comes to faith and His plan is to keep them in faith until His purpose in them is complete. (Jeremiah 29:11,Philippians 1:6)
“For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.”
Hebrews 10:14
When a “born again believer” (John 3), child of God, wanders from following Christ, the Lord is faithful to go after that one; restoring him/her to Himself. This is what has been ordained – not the believer’s faithfulness, but the Lord’s faithfulness to complete the believer’s sanctification and salvation.
(Romans 8: 29-30, Luke 15: 3-7, 11-32, Isaiah 54: 1-17, 2 Timothy 2:13)
Israel Restored
Scripture tells us when Israel wandered away from keeping God’s commandments, He ordained seventy years for their exile into Babylon, but He never forsook them during their captivity and brought them back home according to His promise
(Jeremiah 29:10-14, Romans 11:29)
David Restored
David wrote about how He wandered away from God’s perfect will, but in repentance and through God’s faithfulness, He was restored.
(Psalm 23, Psalm 119:67, Isaiah 30:15)
The scriptures are full of examples of how God restored those who fell away. He knew they would and had a plan to restore them.
God’s Faithfulness to Restore
The disciple Peter believed He would have the courage to die for Jesus, but in Christ’s omniscience, Jesus warned how He would in fact deny Him three times and how it would take place. But Jesus also told Peter He was praying for him and he would be restored. (Luke 22: 31-34)
Jonah the prophet was disobedient and ran from doing God’s will, but God’s plan was to bring him to repentance in the belly of a great whale/fish. (Jonah)
God already knew Saul, who was later named Paul, would persecute Christians, but it was in His plan to bring Him to the place of repentance, calling Him to preach the gospel to the gentiles as He was ordained.
(1 Timothy 1:16-17, 1 John 1:9, Acts 9: 1-29)
Christ’s Eternal Provision
It is impossible for anyone to be saved through their works of self-righteousness. And it is impossible for anyone to stay saved through their good works. It is through faith in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and faith in His resurrection which makes a person righteous and saved. As believers, we take on the righteousness of Christ. Before the foundation of the world, God’s plan was to redeem mankind through faith in His Son, therefore Christ’s atonement is enough to cover all present, past and future sins.
“For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 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, 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 reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. Ephesians 1:4-10
