• Colossians 2:9-10 NIV - For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority. 


    Colossians 2:11-12 NIV - In him you were also circumcised with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self ruled by the flesh was put off when you were circumcised by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.


    Colossians 2:13 NIV -When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,

     

    Colossians 2:14 NIV - having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.

     

    Colossians 2:15 NIV - And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

     

    Ephesians 6:12 NIV - For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

     

    Colossians 2:14 NIV - having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.

     

    Revelations 12:10-11 NIV - Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.

     

    1 Timothy 2:5 NIV - For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus,


    Romans 10:4 NIV - Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.


    Romans 8:1 NIV - Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,


    Isaiah 54:17 NIV - no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lordand this is their vindication from me,” declares the Lord.

     

    2 Corinthians 3:6 NIV - He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.


    2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV - And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.


    2 Corinthians 2:14-15 NIV - But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 

  • The Credit of Righteousness   


    Romans 3:20 NIV - Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.   


    Romans 3:21 NIV - But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.   


    Romans 3:28 NIV - For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. 


    Romans 4:1 NIV - What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter?


    Romans 4:3 NIV - What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”   


    Romans 4:4-6 NIV - Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:


    Romans 4:7-8 NIV - “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”  


    Romans 3:23 NIV - for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,


    Romans 6:23 NIV - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.


    Isaiah 64:6 NIV - All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.  


    1 Peter 1:18-19 NIV - For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.


    Hebrews 9:12 NIV - He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining[a] eternal redemption.


    Titus 2:11-12 NIV - For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,

  • Crossing the Jordan


    Romans 5:19 NIV - For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.


    1 Corinthians 15:21-22 NIV - For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.


    1 Corinthians 15:45-48 NIV - So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. The first man was of the dust of the earth; the second man is of heaven. As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the heavenly man, so also are those who are of heaven.


    Joshua 3:1-4 NIV - Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. After three days the officers went throughout the camp, giving orders to the people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about two thousand cubits between you and the ark; do not go near it.”


    Joshua 3:11-14 NIV - See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them.

     

    Joshua 3:14-16 NIV - So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho.


    Joshua 3:17 NIV - The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

     

    Exodus 25:10-22 NIV - “Have them make an ark of acacia wood—two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high. Overlay it with pure gold, both inside and out, and make a gold molding around it. Cast four gold rings for it and fasten them to its four feet, with two rings on one side and two rings on the other. Then make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. Insert the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry it. The poles are to remain in the rings of this ark; they are not to be removed. Then put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law, which I will give you. “Make an atonement cover of pure gold—two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. And make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover. Make one cherub on one end and the second cherub on the other; make the cherubim of one piece with the cover, at the two ends. The cherubim are to have their wings spread upward, overshadowing the cover with them. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the cover. Place the cover on top of the ark and put in the ark the tablets of the covenant law that I will give you. There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites.


    Hebrews 9:3-4 NIV - Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.


    Hebrews 9:5 NIV - Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.


    James 2:13 NIV - because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

     

    1 Samuel 6:19 NIV - But God struck down some of the inhabitants of Beth Shemesh, putting seventy of them to death because they looked into the ark of the Lord. The people mourned because of the heavy blow the Lord had dealt them.


    Psalm 30:5 NIV - For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

     

    2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV - God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

  • WE CAN KNOW GOD'S PLAN


     2 Corinthians 3:6 ASV - who also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.   


    Amos 3:7 NIV - Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.   


    John 15:15 NIV - I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 


    John 16:13-15 NIV - But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you." 


    Daniel 7:27-29 NIV - Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him. “This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself.”   


    Revelation 21:1-7 NIV - Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. 


    Isaiah 46:10-11 NIV - I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off land, a man to fulfill my purpose. What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that I will do. 


    THE BEGINNING


    Genesis 1:1 NIV - In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.   


    Genesis 1:31 NIV - God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning - the sixth day.   


    Genesis 1:26-28 NIV - Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”   


    Genesis 6:5 NIV - The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time.   


    Romans 5:19 NIV - For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. 


    GOD HAS A GRAND PLAN


    Genesis 6:5, 11-12 NIV - The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways.


    Genesis 8:21 NIV - The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: “Never again will I curse the ground because of humans, even though every inclination of the human heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done. 


    SIN MULTIPLIED AGAIN


    Genesis 12:1-3 NIV - The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” 


    Exodus 24:7 NIV - Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.” 


    Exodus 31:18-32:1 NIV - When the Lord finished speaking to Moses on Mount Sinai, he gave him the two tablets of the covenant law, the tablets of stone inscribed by the finger of God. When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods[a] who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” 


    Exodus 32:25-28 NIV - Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him. Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died.   


    Romans 3:21 NIV - But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 


    Deuteronomy 28:1-6 NIV - If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock - the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. 


    Deuteronomy 28:15-19 NIV - However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you: You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the country. Your basket and your kneading trough will be cursed. The fruit of your womb will be cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. You will be cursed when you come in and cursed when you go out.  


    Deuteronomy 31:26 NIV - "Take this Book of the Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God. There it will remain as a witness against you.


    II Corinthians 3:7-18 NIV - Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts! Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate[a] the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.


    Colossians 2:14 NIV - having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.


    Romans 5:20 NIV - The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more,  


    Romans 3:20 NIV - Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.  


    THE ANSWER: JESUS


    John 1:1 NIV - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  


    John 1:14 NIV - The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  


    Romans 5:19 NIV - For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.


    John 1:10-11 NIV - He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.


    John 1:12-13 NIV - Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.


    2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!


    1 John 4:17 NIV - This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.


    Romans 6:14 NIV - For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.


    GOD'S GRAND PLAN