The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth, and I announced them; then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass. (Is. 48.3) ESV

Since the judgment scene in the Garden of Eden recorded in Gen. 3.15 as the sentence upon the serpent, we humans have known of the promise of the Lord who will come from the seed of a woman. Subsequent revelation tells us that God decreed redemption through Christ and human election before the creation week of Gen. 1 (see Heb. 4.4-the context clearly speaks of redemptive work). Additionally, we read in Rom. 5.14 that Adam was created as a type which anticipates another. Therefore, the creation of Adam and the Fall all look forward to mercy in Christ.

Since God already decreed the outcome and disclosed it to us, can we find the reason as to why God is involved in this sort of activity? An obvious answer could be His love, and I would agree that God’s outworking displays His attributes and brings Him glory. There seems to be more however and in typical fashion Jesus reveals to His friends in the scriptures what He is doing.

From the text we know that God is Spirit while the creation is apart from Him conceptually. However, Jn. 1.14 tells us that “He became flesh”, and therefore God has taken an additional property previously not counted as belonging inherently to Him. Also, the promise toward the Christian of having a “spiritual body” like Jesus’ speaks to the redemption of the physical universe. Notice how Paul gives the big picture explanation to the Romans in 8.19-21: