Why does God Show us the Future?

God showed me the house I am living in now a year before I moved in. The job I am doing today I saw years ago. Some of the people I currently work with, God spoke about before I met them.

We were promised this. When Jesus returned to heaven, he sent his Holy Spirit that we would see the world through his eyes. We would all be able to prophesy and have dreams and visions (Acts 2:16). That means occasionally God will show us glimpses of the future. He will tell us “great and unsearchable things we do not know” (Jer.33:3). This is the privilege of every New Covenant Christian.

But seeing the future is not just to satiate our curiosity for what is around the corner. There are good reasons for why God shows us what he does…

1. So we get to know his heart
When God gives us a glimpse of his plans, it provides something far more than a crystal ball experience. It is an expression of his desires and his will; the things he intends and longs for. When he reveals the future, it is a statement of his purpose: I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please. (Is. 46:10)

2. So we can co-operate with what we see
Having a vision of the future is a thrilling experience. It gives us hope and encouragement for a better future (Jer. 29:11).

But sometimes we assume that the picture we see is a fait accompli. We adopt a fatalistic stance: a kind of “if it is God it will happen” approach. Yet a quick overview of the Bible shows us that not everything God revealed actually happened. Moses didn’t enter the Promised Land; Saul did not retain his kingdom - and many of the Israelites died in exile.

One of the main reasons for God’s acts of revelation is so that we co-operate with what we see. We partner with God to bring “his will to earth as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:10). That usually means action of some sort; an agreement with him in word and deed. Faith and obedience now needs to kick in.

3. So we know it's him when it comes to pass
Skeptics I know will often claim answers to prayer as mere coincidences. Things just happened to ‘work out’; the universe came to equilibrium; circumstances turned around ‘fortuitously’.

When God speaks the future and it then unfolds before us, there can be no doubt of his hand. Those who have heard him speak beforehand get a bird’s eye view – a front-row seat to his sovereign ways. There is nothing like it! As witnesses of his glory, we can only worship...

Which of them foretold this and proclaimed to us the former things? …"You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. (Isaiah 43:9-11)