(Photo posted on the Facebook page “Last Call”)

History is the chronological flow of events.  History explains why things are the way they are.  Certain events are of critical importance in the flow of history to this point in time.

Inventions such as the wheel, the sextant, the printing press, the steam engine, the telegraph, the light bulb, the transistor, and the Internet were of profound impact on human life on earth.

The Battle of Tours, the Reformation, the American Revolution, and the Battle of Stalingrad were pivotal points in conflict that had things turned out differently, we would not be where we are now.

In our individual lives, marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, the death of a child, studying abroad, or an automobile accident are examples of pivotal events that shape or re-shape our personal histories.  We all have them.

There are also events that transcend all human history (3 past and 1 future) and invade our personal histories.  I can think of four, and only four.

1.  The Fall of Man:  Man (Adam and Eve) disobeyed God and death corrupted all of creation.  Every person born since the Fall of Man has been born spiritually stillborn and emotionally crippled.

2.  God became a Man:  God so loved Man that He sent His Son in the form of a man to pay for all the wrongs man has committed against Him.  Jesus was supernaturally conceived in a virgin i.e. incarnation  (Jesus was given a human body and placed in a virgin’s womb), not fertilization (the result of marital relations between a man and a woman).  His birth was announced with “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

3.  “It is Finished”:   The Son of God, Jesus Christ, became a man for the purpose of paying the price for all of man’s wrongs.  He did so on a cross, where He voluntarily laid down His life as payment for me and you and all men.  But it was not possible for death to hold Jesus so on the third day, He arose from the dead to defeat death and the fear of death for those who chose to believe.  That belief/faith results in being made new on the inside, spiritually re-born unto eternal life.

4.  The Return:  Man has reigned on earth since the Fall of Man.  He has not done a good job.  As promised, Jesus Christ is going to return to earth and He will reign forever, and His government will establish perfect peace on earth.  The citizens of His kingdom will be those who chose to believe in Him.

These four transcending events, more than any others in the history of the world, are pivotal.  More than any other events, these explain why things are the way they are.  More than any other events in my personal history, these four invading events define who I was, who I am, and what my future will be.

The four transcending events have invaded your life to some extent.  Have they all invaded your life?  Perfect peace comes when all four do.