But the purpose of the ages was already in place before the foundation of the world. God did not plan our sin, but He knew it would happen and planned a solution for our sins before they ever began.
"Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you." (1 Peter 1:18-20)
This scripture clearly shows that our salvation in Christ was already planned before the foundation of the world.
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 5Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will." (Ephesians 1:3-4)
This scripture again explicitly says that God had already chosen us for salvation from our sins before the foundation of the world.
"But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 2:4-7)
And this scripture tells us that the reason for all this is outside of us. The purpose of all this is to demonstrate "the exceeding riches of his grace" through "his kinbdness toward us." But the time for which this demonstration is planned is "in the ages to come."
I would remind you that the things before the foundation of the world were "mysteries" and they were hidden "from" the foundation of the world.
Mt 13:35 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.
The church is said to be a hidden mystery. 1Co 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, [even] the hidden [wisdom], which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
Why is it important to know this? Because these mysteries required special revelation that could be received no other way. A parson could not ever learn them from studying the OT scriptures although the doctrines of the mysteries are hidden in its pages in types.
The wisdom of God is such that foreknowledge does not equate to pre-determine and fore-ordination of Jesus Christ does not mean that he created men to sin so he can carry out a plan. If Adam and Eve would have passed the test, which they could have, then these mysteries would have never been revealed. Such is the wisdom of God. I am not buying into fatalism. Men and angels were created with free will.
The foreknowledge of God is a doctrine associated with Jesus Christ who was fore ordained to carry out his purpose in preparing a people unto glory, (predestination if you will}, the church, in this age because of the failure of man. It was not his will for Israel to reject him but God knows all things by one eternal act of knowing. If God had prophecied the church in the OT then it would have had to come to pass The offer of the kingdom to Israel in fulfillment of OT prophecies was a real and legitimate offer and had she received her Messiah and saviour, history would of necessity have been written differently. The gentiles were graffed in to provoke Israel to jealousy because of her "unbelief" and the mysteries began to be revealed. The mystery of the partial blindness of Israel and the believing remant according to the election of grace and the mystery of Christ, the theme of the epistle to the Ephesians, which pertained to the believing gentiles.
What is on display in this age with the church is not a fatalistic oger that some false religions present to us, but the magnificent wisdom, kindness, long-sufferering, patience, and grace of an all wise God in spite of all the sin and rejection of man.