"For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen" (Romans 11:36).
The Bible teaches that history has meaning and purpose. In philosophy and theology, the study of the goal of history is called “teleology,” from the Greek words telos (end, goal) and logos (science). Christian teleology shows that God’s plan is the alpha and the omega of history.
The Bible opens with the phrase “In the beginning.” In contrast with the pagan civilizations of the ancient world, which held that history is a series of endless repetitions with no beginning and no end, the Bible states that history did have a beginning and that it has a goal. There was a point at which God brought the universe into being. Time and space began there, and from that point on they were under God’s control. God’s control of history has a purpose, and that purpose is to bring glory to His Son, who came into the world to save us. The world was created through and for the Son and was redeemed by the Son. The world is growing and developing under God’s guidance for the glory of the Son.
The entrance into time by Jesus Christ marks the beginning of the end of time. It marks the last chapter of history. It marks the manifestation in world history of the supreme telos, the supreme purpose or end of history. All of God’s providence, His governing power, is orchestrated to bring history to that climactic moment when Christ will be all in all.
When the Christian looks at Providence, he looks at the Father, who has made all history, and who ordains all history for the future exaltation of Christ. We participate in that redemptive plan, a plan that must come to pass. Thus, there is no room in the Christian life for despair. History is not meaningless because God is in control. Nor will history be defeated by human sin because God has already defeated sin at the Cross.
Have you realized that you are a part of a gigantic plan that stretches from the creation to the consummation of the world? Because God loves you, you have an important part to play in His huge strategy of history. Maybe you don’t think your part is all that important, but as a child of the King, you are important.
