PURPOSE FULFILLED

Nothing happens in the world that our omniscient God does not know. For that fact, He knew every detail of every event that would occur before He created the earth. When He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, He knew that they would be disobedient to His instructions, “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die“ (Genesis 2:16-17).

After their act of disobedient God told the serpent who beguiled Eve, “Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Genesis 3:14-15). Jesus was the seed that would bruise the head of the serpent, and the crucifixion would be the bruising of Jesus’s heel. Predictions in the Old Testament of the coming of Jesus were also made by Isaiah, Micah, and Hosea (Isaiah 7:14, 53:5-9; Micah 5:2; Hosea 11:1).

Finally, that greatly anticipated day arrived, and Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea to Joseph and Mary, An angel of God went to the shepherds abiding in the field and told them, “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2 10-11). When they brought the infant to the temple in Jerusalem, Simeon, a just and devout man, took Jesus in his arms and blessed God, saying, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.” And Anna, the elderly prophetess, also gave thanks for the birth of Jesus, who would bring redemption to the people. (Luke 2: 25-32; 36-38)

At age thirty, Jesus began his earthly ministry and completed it within three years. John, the beloved disciple who accompanied Jesus during His earthly ministry, described Jesus’s ministry like this, “And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil” (I John 3:5a, 8). And Luke recorded in Acts 10:38, “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him.”

At the completion of His ministry, Jesus was betrayed by Judas, scourged, mocked, struck in the face repeatedly, and crucified on a cross at Calvary. For three days and nights, He was in the earth, but on the third day, He was resurrected. Now He is sitting at the right hand of God, interceding for us and awaiting the command of God to come to the earth and collect His bride. So as we gather on this Easter Sunday while the world celebrates the day, we believers will praise, worship, and thank God for the birth, earthly ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus, knowing His purpose was fulfilled.