Advent Series: Getting Ready for Christmas 

At Just the Right Time 

Galatians 4:4-7

CBC Bishop, 12/7/03

In a nutshell: If Jesus Christ came at just the right time in history, we can trust that God will still continue to work in our lives at just the right time.

I. Introduction

A. Our Timetables

I think you all know what it's like to be late. And most of us don't like to be late, but it still happens from time to time.

Joke: Now, I don't know if you realize it, but because of that fact, Baptists have incorporated lateness as an integral part of their theology. We believe very strongly in things like justification, regeneration, sanctification, and procrastination. If you're new here, please know that I'm just kidding. But I did hear one preacher several years ago say that one of the main reasons why God has not revealed the time of His second coming is because if He did, a significant number of Baptists would be late in showing up.

Well, the fact of the matter is that all of us know what deadlines are all about. And all of us have to work toward fulfilling deadlines-especially when some important event is coming up.

And everyone of us understands that the phrase, "at the right time" can mean the difference between success when it happens, or failure when the right time is missed. That's what expressions like "in the nick of time," and "just in time," are all about.

B. God's Timetable

So, it's not hard for any of us to understand that if we have timetables, so does God. But many times God's timetable and our timetable are not the same. Many times, we want God to act, and we want Him to act right now. But the truth of the matter is that in God's wisdom, He may choose to delay some action for our own good.

But the truth is that God is never late. …He who created this universe from nothing, …Who sees the end from the beginning, …Who is all wisdom and knowledge, …works all things out perfectly at just the right time. It may not always be "in our time," but it is always "at just the right time."

C. Transition to Christmas

Well, that brings me to the subject of Christmas. Because Christmas is a good reminder that Jesus came to Earth at just the right time. I'd like to invite you to turn in your Bibles to the portion of the New Testament that we're going to be looking at this morning…Galatians 4:4-7…

Let's look at the first verse of that section…

Galatians 4:4 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law,

Some of your translations say, "When the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son." Wow! That's an amazing statement!

Have you ever thought that there was a right time versus a wrong time…when Jesus should come? This verse is saying that there was one specific time in all of history when all things were perfectly in line for the first coming of Jesus. And Christmas is a reminder that God's timetable for all events is always perfect.

D. Why this is important

Now let me tell you why this is so important for you and for me. If Jesus Christ came at just the right time in history…, you and I can trust that God will still continue to work in our lives at just the right time.

-In fact, maybe today is the perfect time in your life for God to move in a special way. -Maybe a problem you're facing has "Solved Today" stamped on it by God. -Maybe the answers you have been seeking to an important question in your life, God wants to give you today. -Maybe God is telling you that now is the time for you to commit or re-commit your life to Him. If so, let me encourage you to respond to Him today, and He will meet you, just in time.

I think that what we're going to be looking at today will help us all see just how perfectly God works out His plan in history and in our lives. His timing is always perfect, and His plans for your life are always the best.

II. Preparation

Throughout the Old Testament there were numerous prophecies given concerning the coming of the Messiah. -There were prophecies concerning the manner of His birth, that He would be born of a virgin. -There were prophecies concerning the place of His birth, that He would be born in Bethlehem.

But for these events to be fulfilled, God had to pull together some very important things to get the world ready for the first coming of Jesus and for the beginning of the preaching of the Gospel. Let me show you some of those things this morning.

A. Religious Preparation

First of all, there were three specific religious events that happened that were specifically designed for Jesus' coming.

Now, you probably know that the entire Old Testament centers around God's interaction with His chosen people, Israel. Because it would be through them that God's Messiah would come.

1. But Israel was always straying from God and worshipping various pagan gods of the nations around them. They refused to simply worship Jehovah alone. Read the Old Testament, and you'll see that over and over God judged Israel for this idolatry.

In fact, we see the culmination of God's Judgment in what is known as the Babylonian captivity. God finally allowed the entire nation of Israel to be conquered by the nation of Babylon and taken from their homeland into that country. But one of the interesting effects that this Babylonian captivity had on Israel was that after their captivity, the Jewish people never were idol worshippers again. They were always monotheistic-or One God Worshippers. That's because during their captivity time, the Jews came into contact with the Persians who had captured the Babylonians, after the Babylonians had captured the Jews.

You see, the Persians were Zoroastrians, or monotheists-One God Worshippers. In fact, many Bible scholars feel that the Wise Men who visited Jesus when He was a child, were Zoroastrian priests.

And the influence of those "One God Worshippers" had such an impact on the Jewish people that from the time of their captivity to this very day, the Jews no longer followed after the idols of the pagan nations around them.

2. A second important religious event that happened at the tail end of the Jewish captivity was that the entire Old Testament Canon or collection of books, was gathered together for the first time, under the leadership of the prophet Ezra. This is significant because in that collection, for the for the first time in history…, …all of the prophecies about the Messiah, …and all the ways God oversaw the Jewish nation, so that Jesus could be born when He was… …were pulled together in a single volume, and could be studied and understood as a unit, rather than just a bunch of unrelated history lessons.

3. A third major religious event that happened was that the idea of the Jewish synagogue came into being. Until the time that the Jews were carried away from their homeland to captivity, they had worshipped at the Temple in Jerusalem. But in captivity, when they had no Temple, the Jews developed a method of assembly we now know as the synagogue. And it was the synagogue, that became the pattern on which the Christian Church was fashioned.

So from these events, we can see how God had superintended a significant religious preparation for the coming of Jesus.

B. Cultural Preparation

But besides the religious preparation, there was also a cultural preparation.

In 350 B.C., a man came onto the scene whose name was Alexander. He was the son of the Macedonian King, Philip. We know him from history as Alexander the Great. He conquered the entire known world in twelve years. And because of Alexander's influence, the world became Greek in culture, philosophy, institutions, art, drama, literature, architecture, thought and language.

The Greek influence spread to such an extent that the ordinary person who was living back then, become very familiar with a style of Greek known as Koine, or common Greek. This is very important because in 280 B.C., the Hebrew Scriptures-our Old Testament-were translated into Koine Greek, so anyone in the world could read and understand them. We call that volume the Septuagint. Never before, or since…has one translation of the Word of God been so available and so understood by the entire world, as it was just before Jesus was born.

C. Political Preparation

But not only was there specific religious preparation that had to happen, and cultural preparation that had to be just right, there was also political preparation that had to take place before Jesus could be born.

In Italy there is a city you have all heard of, called Rome. By the time Jesus had come, the Romans had conquered pretty much the entire known world. In doing so, they brought law and order to the world, and instituted a thing called the "pax romana," or universal Roman peace all across Asia minor, Europe and the Middle East. So that the world of Jesus' day wasn't focused on war and national defense, but could focus on peaceful events that were taking place in a little middle eastern province called, Judea.

God even had a hand in who the ruler would be in the Roman Empire. At the time of Jesus' birth, Caesar Augustus was the ruler of the empire. Little did he know that when he called for a census, he was in fact doing God's will.

You see, because of his edict requiring that all people to return to their place of origin and be counted…, a pregnant woman and her husband made a journey to Bethlehem. Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus, was guided by the sovereignty of God to the place prophesied in the Old Testament where the Christ was to be born.

Friends, God sent Jesus into this world at just the right time. If God would do that for the world, He would certainly do that for you. He will work in your life at just the right time. You can trust Him in any situation that comes into your life. You can rest in His timing. You can have confidence that He knows what He's doing and He does what He does, very well.

III. Purpose

Now, look at verse five in this section. Because it speaks to the ultimate purpose for Jesus coming to earth as a baby…

Galatians 4:5 5 (In order) to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.

There was more to that night in Bethlehem about 2,000 years ago than just a baby in a manger. Jesus had more in mind by His coming to this earth than just giving us a holiday. God had a great purpose for Jesus' coming. God had planned this event before the Earth was formed. Now the time was right. And Jesus came with purpose.

A. To Redeem Us.

He first came to redeem us. I think we hear this so much that we lose the true power of what it means. But the Bible clearly teaches the we were under the Law-that is, God's Law to live completely righteous lives. But no human being could keep that Law. So we were condemned by our own inability to live perfect lives like that Law requires. Just examine any of our lives and you'll see the fact that not one of us can be righteous in ourselves.

So Jesus came. -He took on our humanity. -He lived a life without sin. -He died on the Cross and went to Hell to pay the price that our sins demanded. -When He arose from the dead, He busted out of Hell, He conquered sin and the eternal death it leads to -And by that power, He makes the offer of the most incredible transaction ever imagined by human beings…He would give us His perfect righteousness in exchange for our unrighteousness. -He redeemed us by His life, death and resurrection.

So, that means we have one of two choices:

1. Either we can choose to live our lives in our own strength and power, taking our chances that we can live righteously enough to earn our way to Heaven;

2. Or we can accept God's offer of salvation by what Jesus did.

But just be aware of what you're choosing. You see, the Bible teaches that unless our righteousness is perfect righteousness, we have no hope of escaping Hell and living eternity in Heaven. If we were to keep the whole Law but stumble at one point, the Bible teaches that we become a lawbreaker. It only takes one rotten egg to spoil the whole omelet. It only takes a little sin to make us a sinner. God is holy, and as the holy God of the universe, any sin is intolerable for Him.

But by accepting Jesus' way of handling our sin we can stand before God-holy and righteous and justified; not because of anything we did, but because of the perfect work that Jesus did. Our sin is posted to His account, and His righteousness is posted to ours. That's what is meant by redeeming us.

B. To Adopt Us

Now, I like the way the NASB translates this verse 5, because it really captures the impact the Greek language is making on this second purpose for Jesus' coming.

Galatians 4:5 5 so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. (NASB)

You see, a second very important purpose for Jesus coming as the baby in Bethlehem's manger was so we could be adopted as sons and daughters by God, Himself.

The word "adopt" in Greek is (huio-thesia). That word comes from two Greek words:

1. "thesia," which means "placing," and 2. "huios," which means "son."

Wow! That means that when we come to have faith in Jesus, we are placed into the family of God by what Jesus did. He came not only to forgive us of our sins, but to place us into His family. Listen friends, He didn't merely forgive us to forget us. Instead, He adopts us and makes us a part of God's forever family.

And that's been God's plan for us all along. He has not merely wanted us to be forgiven, He loves us so much that He wants us to be family. Like I put on the front of your worship folders this morning…

The Son of God became the Son of Man that he might change the sons of men into sons of God. (Croft M. Pentz). That's the significance of adoption. We are somebodies, not nobodies! When we have a relationship with Jesus-we are sons and daughters of the Most High God!

IV. Privileges

And that family relationship brings certain privileges. Look at the next two verses…

Galatians 4:6-7 6 Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba, Father." 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.

A. No longer slaves

Those verses say that first of all, we are no longer slaves. We no longer have to serve the lusts of the flesh, the whims of the devil, or the pressures of our peers. We have been set free from that slavery.

It's a terrible thing to be a slave. But that is precisely the condition people are in without Jesus Christ. -You're in bondage to your desires; -bondage to habits; -bondage to the past; -bondage to peer pressure -and bondage to the Devil himself.

But when you're in God's family, that's all done away with. People who have accepted Jesus' redemption are set free because of what Jesus did on the Cross. We have received the Holy Spirit into our hearts. It is that Spirit who cries within us, Abba! Father! Abba means, daddy! "Daddy, I need your help!" And that cry unleashes the very power of Almighty God to come against those things that would hold you in bondage. Being in God's family means you're no longer a slave to anything. Daddy will see to that!

B. We are heirs of God.

But second, being adopted into God's family means we are heirs of God. We now have an inheritance. All the riches of the Kingdom of God belong to us. -You are a son, or a daughter of the King. -You are a recipient of the Holy Spirit. -You are a citizen of heaven for eternity. -You are not a slave, but are born again to reign and rule with Christ. And this reign begins now! Our reign with Christ is not just a future event. It begins in the here and now.

Romans 5:17 17 The sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over us, but all who receive God's wonderful, gracious gift of righteousness will live in triumph (note: present tense-not future) over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. (NLT)

We are given the privilege to live triumphantly and victoriously over any thing our past may hold over us, or our present or our future. Only children of God can say that! What a privilege!

V. Conclusion

Friends, about 2,000 years ago, there came a night when the fullness of time had come. The angels looked over the edge of heaven in expectancy. The plan of God from the beginning of time was about to unfold. It would be only moments before they got to announce to the shepherds and the world…

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be the sign unto you, you will find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." (Luke 2:11-12)

And unable to contain their joy any longer, the angels would explode with a cry of jubilation, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men."

The fullness of time had come. And friends, it will come yet one more time.

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

Are you ready? (Invite people to visit the "Tell Me More Table".) Prayer Offering and Offertory Transition into Lord's Supper: It might seem a little odd to go right from a message about the joy of Christmas and the baby born in a manger…, to remembering His death. But when you think about it, it really shouldn't be. As one theologian wrote: Sever Christmas from Good Friday and the result would be to doom Christmas as nothing more than a time to be merry and gay based on Lore. (Hulda C. Miller in The Creche and the Cross.)

The redemption and the adoption that belong to us are both the result of Christmas and Good Friday being a reality that is seamlessly woven together. So, let us come to this table at the beginning of this Christmas season and remember the complete work of our Lord Jesus Christ.