New: 14 February 2025; Update: 17 August 2026:
Meta-Narrative:
Salvation History
Romans 5:14-19
For as through the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous.
Romans 5:19 NASB
Meta-Narrative
The biblical Meta-Narrative is the overarching explanation of God's plan of salvation; it is the 'big picture' to understand salvation history; it is an overview in order to understand the parts within the whole. As Creator, God has providence over creation and history. Although man fell into sin, God had a plan of salvation. God did not surrendered His beloved creation to sin, sickness and death. He is Saviour, Father and Redeemer. The Meta-Narrative of salvation history shows God's plan to redeem, restore and recreate. From the Garden of Eden where Paradise was lost, to the Garden of God in heaven where Paradise will be restored. Jesus dedicated His life in the Garden of Gethsemane to redeem humanity through His atoning death. The access to the Tree of Life that humanity lost in the Garden of Eden will be restored through Jesus in the Paradise of God.
Salvation History
Salvation History from a biblical perspective stretches from Creation to Consummation. Biblical history is linear, not cyclical, nor chaotic or random. God created a perfect Creation with peace and harmony. All was well, until man disobeyed God and violated human existence in a fundamental way: eating from the wrong source. The Tree of the knowledge of good and evil represents a rejection of God's order and moral system, replacing it by a human moral system. Man became the 'measure of all things,' as Greek philosophy later called it. The Fall explains how human beings got separated from God and lost access to true life by eating from the wrong tree. The Tree of Life represents the true source of life. Humans wanted to define their own morality and chose a life apart from God. This brought death and destruction; it shifted harmony into chaos and exchanged peace for strife. This explains human existence today. Despite the beauty in creation and all good things that still exist in the world, there is much evil and suffering, too. The Gospel is the answer to the Problem of Evil (see A10).
After humanity plunged deeper into sin, God decided to start over with a family of eight: Noah. God gave a Promise and would bless His people. With Abram God chose a man to be father of a nation that would bless the whole world. God also gave a Law to express His will for His people and for them to be a light of morality in a world of sin. Human weakness kept them in sin, falling short of the glory of God, yet God's plan of Salvation came into fulfilment by sending His Son Jesus Christ, Saviour of the world. He died on the cross to carry the sins of humanity so that provision for the forgiveness of sin was made. Jesus ushered in eternal salvation. God is offering a restored relationship with humanity by forgiveness (A7) reconciliation (see A8) with the Meaning of Life (A11) and Newness of Life (A12). One day, Jesus will return as Judge of the world which is the Consummation of all things. Justice will be established and the world will be recreated towards a glorious future without sin and its destruction. There will be a new creation in which righteousness will dwell.
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Salvation History & the Human Condition
Each stage of biblical salvation history has an event, people involved and a state of the human condition. At Creation the first human beings were innocent. God created humankind in His own image (Genesis 1:26-27) and through His breath they became a living being, a soul (2:7). They had access to the Tree of Life; all of creation was 'very good' (1:31). It was almighty God who brought order into the chaos and light into the darkness of the tohu vabohu (1:1-4). By His word and Spirit He created all things (Psalm 33:6), and therefore all things are His (Psalm 89:11; 24:1). Jesus is the Logos of creation (John 1:1-4; cf., Hebrews 1:1-3).
Through eating from the forbidden tree, the first human beings fell into sin and became guilty before God at the Fall. They lost Paradise and access to the Tree of life and were in need of redemption (Genesis 3:21-24). Adam and Eve's sin had consequences for all of humanity and creation. But God gave a Promise of salvation in the proto-Gospel: the enemy of mankind would be crushed, although the Seed/Offspring (i.e., Messiah) of the woman would be bruised (Genesis 3:15). God gave a renewed promise to Noah (Genesis 8:12) and to Abraham (12:1-3), righteous men in their generations. God would redeem sinful humanity. Christ was the fulfilment of this promise (Galatians 4:4-6), revealed in the Gospel (Romans 16:25-27). Humanity became hopeful again. The Law was given to Israel through Moses and with it humanity was instructed how to live. The Torah defined sin and pointed to the Saviour, Jesus Christ, through whom we can have Salvation and become righteous before God (Romans 1:16-17; 5:1-11). This will lead to the Redemption which will restore redeemed humanity to a perfect state with access to the Tree of life in Heaven (Revelation 2:7; 22:1-2).
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Paradise lost, Paradise restored
The Paradise lost at the Fall in the Garden of Eden will be restored at redemption in the Garden of Heaven in the Consummation of all things. God's Salvation is the 'red thread' running right through Scripture, from Genesis where Paradise was lost to Revelation where Paradise will be restore to humanity redeemed by Christ. The access to the Tree of Life in Eden was lost because of sin (Genesis 3:21-24), yet the access to the Tree of life in Heaven will be restored because of Christ's atonement (Revelation 2:7; 22:1-2). What Adam lost because of disobedience, Jesus restored because of His obedience on the cross (Roman 5:14-19). He died for our transgressions and was raised for our justification (4:25). Believers are forgiven, reconciled and redeemed through Christ's blood (Ephesians 1:7), saved by grace through faith (2:8).
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Creator, Saviour & Father
God the almighty Creator is Saviour to sinners and Father to His children. By faith in Christ we can receive the adoption to sonship (John 1:12-13; Galatians 4:6). God wants all of humanity to received the love and forgiveness of redemption at the cross (1 Timothy 2:4), because Christ died for all of humanity (1 John 1:8—2:2). God sent His Son to redeem and save, not to judge and condemn (John 3:16-17). There will be a divine judgement when God will remove all evil and restore Paradise. Until that Day, we proclaim the Apostolic Gospel and peace in the Name of the Messiah, the Prince of peace.