He Came and is Coming Again
Jesus came as a baby in a manger and will return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
This word elements means the basic principles, the ABCs. For some fifteen centuries, Israel had been in kindergarten and grade school, learning their “spiritual ABCs,” so that they would be ready when Christ would come
He came right on schedule, arriving on the earth when the time had fully come. Some suggest world conditions were ripe for the spread of the gospel. The Romans had ushered in an era of relative peace through law and order. Their network of roads made travel more convenient. Widespread use of the Greek language simplified communication. At the same time, the proliferation of empty religions among many people created a spiritual hunger for something genuine.
Redeem is the same word Paul used earlier (Gal. 3:13); it means “to set free by paying a price.”
Under Law, the Jews were mere children, but under grace, the believer is a son of God with an adult standing in God’s family.
Perhaps at this point a chart will help us understand better the contrast between being a “child of God” and a “son of God.”
The Child
The Son
by regeneration
by adoption
entering the family
enjoying the family
under guardians
the liberty of an adult
cannot inherit
an heir to the Father
In one sense, our adoption is not yet final, because we are awaiting the return of Christ and the redemption of our bodies (Rom. 8:23). Some scholars think that this second stage in our adoption corresponds to the Roman practice when a man adopted someone outside his family to be his son. First there was a private ceremony at which the son was purchased; then there was a public ceremony at which the adoption was declared openly before the officials.
Christians have experienced the first stage: we have been purchased by Christ and indwelt by the Spirit. We are awaiting the second stage: the public declaration at the return of Christ when “we shall be like Him” (1 John 3:1–3). We are “sons and heirs,” and the best part of our inheritance is yet to come (see 1 Peter 1:1–5).