The birth of Jesus was not something that just happened without planning. Not long after the fall of Adam and Eve into sin, God made the plan to save humans. He said in Genesis 3:15 that he would send Jesus Christ to crush the power of the devil one day. When God created the earth, everything was good, even very good: there was no conflict, everything was in harmony, no violence, no sickness, no natural disasters, and problems. But after sin entered the world, all these things started happening.
So, what is happening in the world today is not new! When we talk about conflicts in the family or workplace, for example, these things were already happening when the world's population was only two people. Violence was already committed by the first man who was born on earth. He even murdered his brother. How can we expect global and total peace when the world's population is more than 7.7 billion people today? How about terrorism? Look what king Herod did? He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity, two years old and under. How about mental illness such as depression, which globally affects about 350 million people of all ages? It's not new either. The Bible talks about King David and the prophet Elijah, who showed the symptoms of depression.
Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, "there is nothing new under the sun." Basically, all problems that humans have faced worldwide since the beginning of the world till now fall into at least one of 5 groups: health (physical, emotional, and mental problems), financial, relationship, safety, and spiritual problems. So, God is NOT surprised with what is happening in the world today! But He is very sad to see that so many of us are suffering and in pain. Sin has caused damages to humans physically, emotionally, mentally, socially, intellectually, and spiritually. Sin breaks humans' relationship with God, others, and themselves! The only One who can solve humanity's problems is God because He created humans. and it's only Him who can transform their lives. God loves us. He cares for us and wants to help us. Throughout the centuries, God told us through His prophets that He would send Messiah to save humans from the bondage of sin. And two thousand years ago, God thought it was the right time to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to come to the earth. Let’s read Galatians 4:4-5, "But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship."
Let’s dig more into what Paul said in Gal 4:4-5 word by word.
"But when the set time had fully come. ' There are two words for time in the Greek language: "Kairos," which means "opportune time,"; you seize an opportunity that comes your way, maybe quite by accident. Then there's "Kronos," from which comes our word "chronology," the orderly progression of events when everything follows its proper sequence and is exactly right. The term used in Galatians 4:4 is "Kronos," indicating that God didn't decide on the spur of the moment to take advantage of an opportune time. But instead, God planned and orchestrated the sequence of events, and when the time was just right, He sent His only begotten Son into the world.
Illustration: Responsible parents will prepare and provide everything their babies need before birth, and they won't wait until the last minute or after they see their babies are born and then start to find clothes, pampers, and beds for them. The birth of Jesus has been planned and prepared by God. And "when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son," or Jesus was born on earth.
What does "when the set time had fully come" mean? There are at least four possible meanings of it:
1. Culturally. In 334 BC, Alexander the Great broke the power of Persia and overthrew the Persian King Darius III. By the age of thirty, he had created one of the ancient world's largest empires, stretching from Greece to Egypt into northwest India and modern-day Pakistan. God knew the need for a UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE so that when Jesus was born, everybody would be able to hear about His birth and mission on earth. When the Greeks conquered the world, the Greek language became the universal language. Everybody knew a little Greek. They read and wrote Greek. All legal documents were in Greek. I studied Greek in Seminary. Why? Because the New Testament was written in Greek. Pilate wrote an inscription over the cross of Jesus: "This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews" was written in GREEK, Hebrew & Latin. Everybody knew a little Greek (like English today). After Jesus ascended to heaven, the Disciples could take the message of Jesus to the whole world because there was a UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE. I believe history is His story, God's story. God is in control of what happens in this world! He set the right time for Jesus to come.
2. Political stability. In 63 BC, the Romans conquered the Greeks. God knew the news of His Son should spread throughout the world. When the Romans took power, there was one strong government over the entire world. During Augustus's reign, the Roman Empire had solidified control over the Italian peninsula, established North African colonies, and controlled large swaths of territory in Spain and Gaul. Under the emperors, Roman territory expanded farther, dominating most of the European continent, including Britain and major areas of modern-day Eastern Europe. The Disciples could travel to Europe, Asia Minor, and North Africa to preach the Gospel.
3. A good road system. God knew the need for a good ROAD SYSTEM so that people could travel easily to spread the Gospel. Everyone has heard about the Roman road system … "All roads lead to Rome." Roman roads were everywhere, led everywhere.
4. Spiritually. God knew it was the right time for the world to know that there is only ONE GOD. At the time of Jesus' birth, the world was a Pagan world. The GREEKS had many gods and goddesses, and the ROMANS had many gods and goddesses. The ROMANS even brought to the world the idea of worshipping a MAN, and Caesar said that he should be worshipped as a god. For 4000 years, God had been preparing the world through the Jews that there was only ONE God: Jehovah Elohim. The Jews proclaimed that the MESSIAH would come to save the world from their sins.
"God sent his Son." God had spent 4000 years planning the birth of His Son, Jesus. That's why, when Jesus was born, the blueprint had already been drawn. A universal LANGUAGE, political stability, a good ROAD SYSTEM, and the concept of ONE GOD, the MESSIAH. The world was ready for Jesus! Therefore, God sent his Son two thousand years ago.
"born of a woman," When Jesus, the Son of God, became a human, He was born from the womb of a virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy in 7:14 – “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”
"born under the law," Jesus was born in a nation, and of a parent, under the law; he was circumcised, and submitted to the ceremonial law; he in all things conformed his life to the rule of law.
"to redeem those under the law," Because of sin, all humans are under the power of Satan. When the devil tempted Jesus, he told Jesus to worship him. If Jesus did that, the devil would give everything to Him, and Jesus would not need to die on the cross to redeem humans. But if that happened, the entire world would perish! Thanks to Jesus! He refused the devil’s offer. Instead, three years later, because of His love, He was willing to give His life by being hung on the cross to redeem both the Jews and the Gentiles. That is why Apostle Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 6:20, "you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies."
"that we might receive adoption to sonship." Redemption is followed by adoption. John 1:12 states, "Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God."
We live in a fallen world that has caused various problems in our lives. But He loves us. Jesus came for you and me. He wants to give us His love, peace, joy, hope, and meaningful life. Millions of people who believed in Him have experienced all these things. Their lives are no longer the same. Jesus changed their hatred into love, selfishness into selflessness, hopelessness into the fullness of hope, confusion into finding the truth.
Jesus, whose birth we are celebrating today is more than a baby or a child. He fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 9:6 that says, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
To close this message, I would like to share with you someone who experienced a life transformation after accepting Jesus as his Lord and Savior. Testimony: Josh McDowell's father was an alcoholic and abusive. He was sexually abused repeatedly as a child by a farmhand from the age of 6 to 13. He was an agnostic in college when he decided to prepare a paper that would examine the historical evidence of the Christian faith to disprove it. However, he converted to Christianity after, as he says, he found evidence for it, not against it. He is the author or co-author of some 115 books. His best-known book is Evidence That Demands a Verdict.
Jesus wants to save you and transform your life too. So, accept His invitation, believe in Him, and you'll become His child. Have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year 2022!
