Devo 47: The Story of the Ages

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel…”

Genesis 3:15

Throughout the entire history of the world, there has been one continuous story underlying the stories of man. One story has pervaded history and has superseded even the greatest stories of mankind. This prevailing story is His story—the story of God pursuing the affections of man. Since the time of Genesis 3:15, through the present, and until the fulfillment of the book of Revelation, there has been one story of a Man passionately pursuing his bride. It is one story of a Man who came to redeem all mankind from sin and bring them back to Himself.

Genesis 3:15 is known as the proto evangelium (Latin, “first gospel” or “first good news”). This verse was God’s declaration to Satan that he would be crushed by the woman’s Seed even though Satan would have some victory.

The proto evangelium was the first revelation or unveiling of God’s redemptive plan. It pointed toward the first coming of Christ and also toward the Second Coming (parousia, Gk). Satan bit the heel of Christ in the Crucifixion, but Jesus crushed him in the resurrection and will ultimately crush him through the events in the book of Revelation.

The complete crushing of Satan will not yet take place until after the Millennial reign, but Paul encouraged the church of Corinthians by telling them that “the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly” (I Cor. 16:20). He was encouraging them with this hope that one day this promise of Genesis 3:15 would be fulfilled.

From the first unveiling of the Gospel in Genesis 3:15, saints throughout history have been pursued by a God who loves them. In Genesis 12:3, Abraham was promised that all mankind would be blessed through his Seed.

The book of Ruth further shows the line of the Seed that would come as Ruth was the grandmother of David. Ruth was the young widow who was blessed and cared for by Boaz who was a type of Christ. He pursued her and covered her, and thus, he was blessed to be a part of the Davidic line.

God promised David that his seed would be established forever and that one would reign from Jerusalem on the throne of David (II Sam. 7:12-13; I Kings 2:3-4; Ps. 89:29).

Even though Israel disobeyed and rejected the Lord many times, the Lord continued to pursue her and continued to keep His covenant promise to David.

Hosea knew firsthand the pursuit of the Lord for His bride Israel. The Lord called Hosea to take a prostitute as a wife and encouraged Him to continually pursue her each time she was unfaithful to him. He was inviting Hosea to identify with His pursuit of Israel and her rejection and unfaithfulness to Him.

The Song of Solomon shows the leadership of the Bridegroom for His bride. It is a picture of the ultimate plan of how He will lead her into the fullness of her calling as a pure and spotless bride who has made herself ready (Eph. 5:26-27; Rev. 19:7). He desires a Bride who is equally yoked with Him which is a principal of His leadership for our lives (2 Cor. 6:14).

Over and over in the Old Testament, the judges and prophets called Israel back to her first love. In the Gospels, Jesus came to show us the Father and to draw all men to Himself (Jn 14:7, 12:32). In the Epistles, the apostles repeatedly focused the church back on the work of the Cross and the hope of the resurrection and Second Coming. Finally in the book of Revelation, Jesus appeared to John with a message for the seven churches to encourage them, correct them, and call them back to their first love (Rev. 2-3). He also laid out the plan for the End of the Age and showed in detail the plan for purifying His Bride that was given in the Song of Solomon.

When we see the broad scope of God’s pursuit of mankind, it encourages our hearts when we face difficult circumstances where we cannot see the intimate workings of His hand in our lives. If we look back on how He has pursued us throughout history, and we look forward to the hope of the completed work when He will crush Satan once and for all, it will encourage us during our day to day struggles.

Also, it will build our faith to pray and reach out to those who are hurting and dying without hope. It will build our endurance to continue loving people who do not have the ability to love back. This hope will fuel our passion for purity and holiness and will help us identify with Christ in His longing and passion for the lost.

This week, I encourage you to look at the big picture and find yourself in it. Look at the picture of redemptive history and follow it all the way through to your story. Let it encourage your heart to know that God is big enough to work a plan with so much detail that the overwhelming circumstances of your life fade away in the context of the big picture.

Secondly, I encourage you to think of one person in your life who is running from God or not convinced that God loves them. Maybe they are unsaved. Imagine that entire strand of redemptive history took place for that one person. Let this revelation fuel your intercession for that person and interaction with them.

Lastly, take one entire day and ask the Lord to give you a revelation of this picture for every person you come in contact with. If you are at the store, gas station, school, work, or home, ask the Lord to show you how each person fits into the picture of God’s redemptive plan. Ask Him to give you a revelation of His love and pursuit for each person you meet that entire day. It will inspire you in intercession and evangelism.

“Lord, I ask for a revelation of Your redemptive plan and Your passion for relationship with us. Let us see beyond life circumstances into the big picture of Your eternal plan. Open our eyes. Give us a passion for the lost and teach us how to pray.”

The God of Peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. Amen!

Love,

Amanda
 
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