Do you like to have a  plan? Does it make sense to you to look ahead and prepare? It makes sense to God. When we read the word “predestined”, some of us get concerned. When we read that God predestined us, we begin thinking of God as a man, and how a man makes decisions. But God is not a man. He is a loving and good God. In fact, many times we miss the first 2 words of v.5. “IN LOVE” He made a plan for us; a good plan in love.

I love it when people show organized love. When people invest time and effort to show love. And that is what and why God predestined us. He had a plan, and the plan is so great “according to God’s GOOD pleasure“. There is no malice, anger, hate or envy in God’s good plan. It’s like a parent giving a great gift to their child. When a good gift is given we do not assess the cost, or what it took to get the gift. We are just happy to give the gift. And that feeling of good pleasure and joy that we have when we give a gift is just a glimpse at the good pleasure of God’s predestined plan.

This good pleasure is His plan to adopt us into HIs family. This adoption is so amazing that is goes beyond human understanding. Because in our world adoption is legal. But in God’s plan it’s a literal DNA change. When we are “adopted” into God’s family as sons and daughters, God puts His DNA (The Holy Spirit) into us. That when we do good things we can see His DNA being revealed in our lives. And in this adoption He makes us more than children, but co-heirs with Jesus Christ. (Romans 8:17) The inheritance that is Jesus’, is our inheritance in Jesus. A rich inheritance that is immeasurably greater than we can hope or imagine.

Which reveals our ultimate purpose in salvation and life. That it is “To the praise of His glorious grace“. Grace would have been enough, but God thought, “no, I’ll tell them it’s glorious!”  We need these simple reminders of how great a God we love and that loves us! Grace that rejects “good behavior” or moralism and only accepts the perfection of God’s glorious grace. Grace only looks glorious to us when we are honest about how inglorious we are. So do you see how inglorious you really are? Think of the words you’ve spoken, the actions you’ve taken or not taken. And you will see how glorious God’s grace is. There is no depth of sin grace cannot overcome. This is no failure to great that HIS glorious grace will not conquer. So let you life be an anthem of praise to GOD”S GLORIOUS GRACE!