Who are We?  Where are We Going?

Covenant Presbyterian Church

Sunday Morning Foundations Classes

God's Positioning System (GPS)
March 29, 2020 lesson #2

FOREKNOWLEDGE

While we live within the time and space continuum, the Bible teaches that God not only created all things (Gen. 1:1), but is outside of and free of the constraints of time and space, which He created. He sees the very beginning to the absolute end; all of time is laid out before Him like a tapestry--it would be like us watching a parade passing before us from the Goodyear blimp, simultaneously observing the entire parade--from beginning to end. The whole universe, both seen and unseen, are in His hands; He knows the beginning to the end of time (Psalm 139).

Paul's letter to the Romans 8:28-29 provides assurance that God is in control, with these words…
28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son….NASB 

Note: “predestined” – means something that is preordained to come about; being predetermined and appointed to occur as ordered.

God is omniscient in that He knows all things, even before they occur, with complete knowledge of every detail. He is omnipresent, being in all places simultaneously—the past, the present, and the future. All of history is stretched out before Him. There are no surprises; there are no situations that exceed His capabilities. In other words: He is God in the truest sense!

Let’s begin with a couple of difficult questions. But, it’s important to remain mindful of God’s attributes as we do.

Q.1. If God knew that the Fall would occur (and being omnipresent, He did), why then did He place the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the Garden of Eden, knowing that it would lead to Eve’s temptation and Adam’s disobedience, causing the Fall and with it a curse on all of creation?

A.1. We will cover this further as we go through our study.

But, first, let’s consider another related question.

Q.2. Couldn’t God have just intervened and prevented Adam and Eve from sinning—in the same way that He had put a protective hedge around Job to protect him from Satan?

A.2. Regarding the hedge, the answer is YES, He could have…but He chose not to. We may be tempted to question God’s infinite wisdom in this matter, but to do so would be utter foolishness. Our finite understanding can never extend to the reaches of God's infinite wisdom.

End of Lesson #2
Lesson #1 (3 parts) posted below.