Introduction

But Christ is all and in all. (Colossians 3:11 NASB)

When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. (1 Corinthians 15:28 NASB)

For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. (Romans 11:36 NASB)

And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." (Revelation 21:5 NASB)

This book is about the many scriptural proofs that God's ultimate purpose is to make all things new, and He will do this by becoming all in all in all His creation and in all mankind, none excluded. God is working out His purpose through His multi-faceted plan in, through, by, and for His Son, our Lord Jesus whose cross was, is, and forever will be an absolute, 100% success in the salvation and restoration of all. Christ is summing up all things in heaven and on earth and subjecting all things to Himself, so that God may be all in all.

Meaning of Purpose and Plan

In the Greek, the word purpose is translated from the word prothesis [Strong's G4286], which means "before-placing," and the word protithemi [Strong's G4388], which means "before- place." The thought conveyed is of a goal set before the mind. In other words, a purpose or goal is established before something is done or planned. These words are respectively found in Matthew 12:4; Mark 2:26; Luke 6:4; Acts 11:23; 27:13; Romans 8:28; 9:11; Ephesians 3:11; 2 Timothy 1:9; 3:10; Hebrews 9:2 [prothesis], and in Romans 1:13; 3:25; Ephesians 1:9 [protithemi]. Interestingly, the references in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Hebrews literally apply to the cake of bread in the Holy Place, the showbread, which points to Christ.

In the Greek, the word plan comes from two words: thelema, mostly translated as will; and boule, often translated as counsel. In most respects, the two words are the same, with the will of God being most associated with what will happen, based on God's command, and with the plan of God being most associated with how it will happen, based on the process to get there.

Peter clearly stated the very heart of the plan of God as he spoke to the men of Judea after Jesus' resurrection. Notice that the death of God's Son was according to God's predetermined plan, not according to His purpose. We could also say that God willed it to happen.

This Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan [boule] and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. (Acts 2:23 NASB)

Once a goal is set before the mind, a plan must be established to bring about the goal. A purpose without a plan merely remains in the mind, but a purpose with a plan goes beyond the mind into the realm of action. Another way of stating this is that a purpose is the endpoint of that which has been in view since the inception of a plan. When all is said and done, the purpose remains, for this is what the originator had in mind to bring about. A plan is simply all the details that have to be put into play and worked out to reach the goal or purpose. Once the purpose is achieved, we could say that the plan is history, while the purpose remains.

Generally speaking, a purpose is very simple or straightforward, while a plan is much more involved, with many facets. God's purpose and plan follow the same course. The fact of the matter is that many believers down through the centuries, including many in our day, have gotten caught up in debating about and dividing over the details of God's plan and have lost sight of God's ultimate purpose.

In one of the most profound set of verses in the entire Bible, Paul unveils the secret of God's purpose and plan that is in Christ.

(9) Having made known to us the secret of His will [thelema], according to His good pleasure, that He purposed [protithemai] in Himself, (10) in regard to the dispensation of the fulness of the times, to bring into one the whole [sum up or head up all things] in the Christ, both the things in the heavens, and the things upon the earth--in him; (11) in whom also we did obtain an inheritance, being foreordained according to the purpose [prothesis] of Him who the all things is working according to the counsel [plan, boule] of His will [thelema].... (Ephesians 1:9-11 YLT [NASB, DNT])

The New Living Translation (NLT) phrases the last part of verse 11 as: He makes everything work out according to His plan.

The crux of the matter is that the whole of God's purpose and the working out of His purpose through the ages according to His plan in Christ is summed up in one very small word of three letters, the word ALL. This is the Gospel of the Kingdom!

Meaning of All

By definition, the word all means: "1) the whole extent or quantity of; 2) the entire number of; 3) every one of; 4) the greatest possible, as much as possible; 5) any; 6) every."

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible defines the word all as translated from the Greek transliterated word pas [Strong's Concordance G3956]: "Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole: - all (manner of, means) alway (-s), any (one), X daily, + ever, every (one, way), as many as, + no (-thing), whatsoever, whole, whosoever."

There is only one conclusion to be drawn from these definitions and many others not cited: The word all is an inclusive, comprehensive word; there is nothing exclusive built into it whatsoever.

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Thus, when we see or hear the word all, it signifies the whole, with nothing left out or excluded from the subject at hand.

The ALL of God

Based on the meaning of the word all and its use in Scripture, there is only one conclusion to be drawn: God intends to reconcile and restore His entire creation back to Himself, and, in the process, He is making all things new. Reconciliation and restoration best sum up God's plan to achieve His purpose.

By the consummation of the ages, God will have brought all things in His creation, both in heaven and on earth, both visible and invisible, back to Himself as all things are filled with His very life and character. Love will bind His entire creation together.

However, the question is this: Does God include all mankind, from Adam to the last one born of his race, in all things? Another way of asking this is: Does God intend to save all mankind, none excluded? The answer that is unfolded in this book is an unequivocal YES!

However, this book is not about universalism, as many define it, or about restorationism, even though this comes the closest to defining God's purpose. This is about the ALL of God.

Universalism

When people hear the suggestion of the salvation of all mankind, most immediately respond negatively, saying that it is to be rejected, for it is universalism. As with most schools of thought, universalism has many permutations and has evolved in various ways over the years.

Without doubt, one of the most problematic issues from its past is the belief that there is no judgment, hence, no divine law to come into play in the salvation of all. On this count alone, universalism must be rejected, for Scripture is abundantly clear that God must judge and He will judge. Another problematic issue within the universalism camp is the belief that mankind can be and will be saved apart from Christ. It goes without saying that this too must be rejected.

So, at the outset, I want to be very clear: There is judgment for all; and there is only one way to God's end for all, and that is through His Son, the Lord Jesus.

Only One Foundation

According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But let each man be careful how he builds upon it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:10-11 NASB) 3

There is only one foundation upon which to build and that is God's Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords.

There is no greater subject in Scripture than Christ, who is our life, and who brings justification of life to all men (Romans 5:18). He is not only the very foundation of the life of the believer in this age, but He is the very Life of all creation, including all mankind. He upholds all things by the word of His power, and He alone will restore and reconcile all creation back to the Father.

(1) In many parts, and many ways, God of old having spoken to the fathers in the prophets, (2) in these last days did speak to us in a Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He did make the ages; (3) who being the brightness of the glory, and the impress of His subsistence, bearing up also the all things by the saying of his might [upholds all things by the word of His power]--through himself having made a cleansing of our sins, sat down at the right hand of the greatness in the highest, (4) having become so much better than the messengers, as he did inherit a more excellent name than they. (Hebrews 1:1-4 YLT [NASB])

(6) "But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain." (7) "I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. (8) 'Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession.'" (Psalm 2:6-8 NASB)

The firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. (Colossians 1:18 ASV)

There is only one object central and supreme and preeminent in all of Scripture--the Person of our Lord Jesus. Our vision must be of Christ, our work must be through Christ, and our relationship must in Christ. We are nothing apart from Him, and we can do nothing of value to God without Him.

The good news is that by the consummation of the ages (1 Corinthians 10:11; 15:24), all things in heaven and on earth will be reconciled and restored back to God as all things are headed up (or, summed up) in Christ and subjected to Christ, none excluded.

At Creation's Grand Jubilee, it will be proven that the cross is and ever has been an absolute, 100% success in the salvation of all mankind and the deliverance of all creation.

This is the glory of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

May this book help to restore a vision of God's ultimate purpose, worked out in and through His Son, to be not only all in all but to be the all in all new.

May it open the eyes of many hearts to see what the Kingdom is truly about!

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