Basic truth
Before we can understand what “It is written” is all about, we have to establish a basic truth. God’s will in Heaven, for the Earth, and even for all of creation, is not determined by nor limited by time, people, spiritual beings and powers, nor circumstances. It is determined by the “power of His Word”. It is His purposes, plans, and laws which have been recorded in “the book of the LORD” (Isaiah 34:16). Nowhere in the eternity of Heaven are purposes and plans of any of God’s creation written and established forever. This right only belongs to God. He is our Creator and He owns the right to determine the divine destiny of what He has created.
“It is written” gives us a sure foundation to live our life from
Man writes things down with the hope that they are not changed, such as instructions, literary works, or most importantly, laws. Oral compositions can change due to our human nature, but what is written down retains some sort of intent of purpose and security of continuance.
However, because of man’s changeable nature, even what has been written down has no real stability as man can change what he has written down by rewriting them, or even doing away with them, as circumstances change.
Since God does not change, things He has written down in His different books in Heaven have great stability and surety, as He has no need to change what He has spoken and written down.
The good thing about the written, unchangeable laws and purposes of God is that we can plan our future upon them, as they provide a foundation for our lives, when we know about them. What “It is written” by God means that it is so sure, so true, that, as the old timers used to say, “You can bet the farm on it.” Today, as believers, we can say that “You can bet your life on it.”
Because of “it is written,” things such as curses and blessings described in scripture will always operate, as well as physical and natural laws that govern the way Earth functions, such as time, seasons, certainty of death, the rising and setting of the sun, how far the sea can come onto land, the law of gravity, and many others.
God is an eternal being, therefore the word of God which is written in Heaven will never change as it is established as an eternal truth. Isaiah 40:8 states, “But the word of our God stands forever.” In Psalm 119:89 we find, “Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in Heaven.”
Since the spiritual realm existed first and then the natural realm, what is settled in the spiritual realm will always take precedence over the natural realm. The natural realm of Earth will never overrule the spiritual realm of Heaven, but the spiritual realm of Heaven can overrule the natural realm of Earth, when it is done legally.
Also, because God is eternal being, and man is not, His word is established forever as He is always around to back His words up and enforce them. Man’s words are only temporary, since he will not be around forever on Earth to uphold them. This fact gives us the ability to have total faith and security in the covenant promises God has made with us through Jesus Christ, just as Abraham had with his covenant from God.
Because the written word of God is established, Jesus was able to use it as a weapon to defeat the devil concerning the temptations in the wilderness. In Matthew 4:1-10, after Jesus declared “It is written!” He used the Word of God as the Sword of the Spirit against the devil (Ephesians 6:17).
Only good has been written for us
Our Heavenly Father’s unchangeable character of love means that He has only planned blessings for those who are His: believers in Christ who are part of His family.
In Jeremiah 29:11we find these words, “For I know the thoughts (translated “plans and thoughts” in the Amplified Bible, “plans” in the NIV Bible translation) that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
As believers, we are now His children, made in His likeness, now having the spiritual DNA of our Heavenly Father, through His Holy Spirit. Just as our Heavenly Father always succeeds in His purposes, so His desire is for us to succeed and be blessed in His purposes for us. God has it written in Heaven that way.
Our Heavenly Father has only recorded success for His purposes which are written in Heaven. The only way that they will turn out differently on Earth is the failure on our part to believe and act accordingly. No demon, no evil principality, no work of the devil will be able to stop what God wants to do through us unless we allow it (Isaiah 54:17; Romans 8:31; Philippians 4:13; I John 4:4).
Our purpose and future are predetermined
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 talks about events having a “time” to come forth: a time to be born, to plant, etc. This relates to time events on Earth only, as in Heaven there is no time, just eternity. Earth is in a time capsule in some part of eternity. It also mentions a “purpose” to be completed. Our time and purpose on Earth are eternally connected to God’s will.
Every human being on Earth is here to fulfill their purpose, which has been written by God in their book, and we collectively fulfill the will of God. This even applies to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as He came to Earth to fulfill the scriptures, or what was written in His book as the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ.
In Psalm 40:7&8 we find, “Then I said, ‘Behold, I come; in the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.” So Jesus came to Earth to work out what was written for Him to do on Earth, and all this was revealed to mankind through the scriptures, the Bible, which is really His Book, His book of His-story.
As other examples, when you look at what God said to Moses, Jeremiah, using Mordecai’s words to Queen Esther, and even the apostle Paul, you see the relation of time and purpose for every person created. Numerous scriptures reveal God working through people and events on Earth to complete His purposes and plans on Earth.
Special meaning in Ecclesiastes chapter three
While most people pay attention to verses 1-8 in Ecclesiastes chapter three, few pay attention to verse 15. In verse 15 we find this interesting statement “That which is has already been, and what is to be has already been.”
So what exactly does this scripture mean? That which is currently happening now on Earth, as well as that which is to happen in the future on Earth, has already been purposed, established, and some of it even played out in the timeless eternity of Heaven. It is God’s planning, and this is, for example, one way that He knows and prepares to meet your needs even before you ask for them to be met. Events, like divine appointments are preplanned as well. Because God is Omniscient, nothing that happens on Earth takes Him by surprise.
Our purpose on Earth is to work out on Earth what God has written about is in Heaven
When a music composer writes a musical piece, he plays it out note by note, part by part, and writes it on music sheets. When his work is completed, he then plays out the written work himself, with the chosen musicians and their instruments playing their assigned parts. It’s called a rehearsal. He then reveals his composition to the public and plays it to the world, all according to what is written by the composer for the musicians to play.
A playwright does the same thing. The play starts with a plot. Characters are added, with specific lines and actions, as well as events, and other things. It is written out, scene by scene. When completed, a dress rehearsal is done by the actors who have been chosen to participate in the play. Once the rehearsal is completed, then the play is introduced and played out before the public by the actors – all according to what is written by the playwright.
The future has already been planned out for mankind and it will come to pass as God has planned it. Jesus Christ has revealed this future plan of things, events, and people, through the scriptures - the Bible. Because our future has been established, our hope in Christ can also be established in our hearts, knowing that as what took place in the past was what was planned according to “it is written,” so also what will take place in the future will be because “it is written.”
We can see this throughout the book of Revelation, as Jesus revealed certain events that are to take place on Earth, yet were being played out in Heaven for John to see. John saw the people and beings involved, including the Beast and the Antichrist. He saw events, like the destruction of the Babylon system of rule and even the last battle of the kingdoms of this world against Jesus, the saints, and Jerusalem. He even saw physical structures that are to appear on Earth in the future, like the New Jerusalem, the new heavens and the new Earth. Again, it was all based on “It is written.”
These became past tense in Heaven, but are future tense for Earth. This means that in both realms – the eternity of Heaven and the time restriction of Earth – they will come to pass as God ordained.
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, used the Holy Spirit to reveal, not only to John, but to Old Testament prophets as well, what was to take place on Earth, as well as what had already taken place in Heaven. All the descriptions in the scriptures are eye witness accounts of what really happened in Heaven, with some events yet to take place on Earth. The prophets wrote what they saw, what was revealed to them.
Spirit of prophecy
In Revelation 19:10b we find these words of a fellow believer who was with John in Heaven, as he says to John, “Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”
So what does the words “spirit of prophecy” mean? In Isaiah 46:10 God declares that He is the only God, with none other like Him, “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done (on Earth).”
Since one of the names of Jesus is “The Word” (John 1:1-5, 14), part of Jesus’ total purpose on Earth is His prophetic ministry, as He reveals in His Book, the Bible, future events that concern His ministry, the nation of Israel, the Church, as well as all of mankind. This was done through the Holy Spirit using the writings of His prophets (Amos 3:7, “Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.”)
Jesus wants us to know what is in the future, as “it is written,” so that, no matter what we go through, what we believe, or what we even plan to do, we can be prepared for the truth of our future and have hope in it. Our faith in God can be secure because “it is written” has been secured in Heaven.
Your book has also been written in Heaven
Man’s choice of a faith response to what has been written, not only in scripture but in his own book, is what determines if what God has written in Heaven comes to pass in our lives here on Earth. Psalm 139:16, “”Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed (on Earth). And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.”
God wrote His will concerning your life, based on His vision of you, and wrote that down in your book in Heaven. He created you and your life events in the spiritual realm of Heaven before you and they come to pass in the time zone, or natural realm, of Earth. It will be your faith connection to His working it out in your life that will bring it to pass.
The devil will always be fighting you to keep God’s will for you from coming to pass. The devil has nothing written in any book in Heaven except his, and that includes his final destruction in the lake of fire.
Of a certainty, what has been written in Heaven concerning all of creation will come to pass. It is up to you if you choose participate in it.
God’s primary will for all mankind
God’s will is that all men be saved, to restore our oneness with Him through Jesus Christ (John 3:17, I Timothy 2:4). This will has been written in everyone’s book. Yet not all men are saved! Man has a choice in accepting the gift of salvation. But God wrote in every person’s book His will for their salvation. It was purposed by God to happen for every human being He has created to be saved, as well as blessed with abundant life, yet it does not always happen because of man’s ability to choose.
Heaven has not yet come on Earth and divine destinies have not been fulfilled because of men who have made a choice not to be obedient to God’s will in their lives.
You have a solid hope
As the book of Revelation reveals, in the end, God wins. And we win too because we are one with Him through Jesus Christ (John 17:20-23; I John 4:4). Because this “is written”, we can be assured that it is true, and that it will come to pass, as it is written in Heaven.
So, no matter what the devil may throw at you, no matter how much adversity you face from him, no matter the assault of evil, the many negative thoughts that he throws into your mind, you can be assured that the blessings of what God has written in your book, as well as in Holy Scripture, will come to pass for you according to your faith.
Your hope for God’s will to be done in your life, both now and in the future, can be anchored in these three words, “It is written.”
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