Why Did Jesus Come? Galatians 4a

Galatians 4:1-7

We have arrived at the end of yet another year. So I thought it would be good to turn our attention to Christ’s Advent. But why did Jesus become a man? Why not an angel? What was God’s purpose in sending His Son into the world? Why did He come 2,000 years ago? What was special about that time? What was the result of His ministry?

The Name Of Jesus

Jesus is a precious name to all believers because it reminds us that He is our Savior. It was the name given to Him by God when He came into this world. It teaches us the purpose of His incarnation. The name Jesus means, Jehovah Saves. It is His human name reminding us that He who is God also became man. Peter made much of this name when healing a crippled beggar. He said there is no other name given for our salvation. In Galatians 4: we will see 3 things about what Christ has done for us; Slaves, Saved, Sons.

1. Slaves

a. Children

Galatians 4:1-2: Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father.

Firstly, Paul describes our position before salvation as being children. Why are children slaves? Paul gives a number of reasons. 1. Children are immature and need guidance. Parents or guardians watch over them so that they won’t harm themselves. Children do some pretty foolish things because they don’t know any better. 2. Children have so much to learn. They must be taught to read and write. Parents teach their children about life so that their children will grow into mature adults. 3. Children can’t do very much because of their limited physical strength and knowledge. They have great potential but need to grow and mature first.

In the same way God made us with great potential. Adam and Eve were given dominion to rule over the world. Tragically, they lost that dominion to Satan when they disobeyed God. Adam and Eve had only one law to keep and they broke it. After this they knew both good and evil but were dominated by evil. As a consequence they plunged the whole race into sin. The early chapters of Genesis describe man’s failure. Mankind became increasingly wicked and God judged him by sending the flood. Ever since then man has not obtained what God has intended for him.

b. Chained

Galatians 4:3: Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.

Secondly, children aren’t free to do what adults can. Parents make rules for their children to protect them. There’s no denying it, rules limit a child’s freedom and rightly so.

But, boundaries also provide a safe environment for children to grow up. They need a balanced diet to remain healthy. Late bed times aren’t good for growing children. Tired children usually get sick and don’t do well at school. There are many harmful shows on TV. So parents make rules for their children for their own good; love motivates this. Because children don’t understand this they often question their parent’s rules.

Safe Play Areas

Today, society is very safety conscious. In fact everyone is aware of the need for safety. Play areas for children have strict guidelines. Play equipment must meet certain standards. Dangerous play equipment has been banned. Play areas for small children are usually fenced in. Usually adult supervision is required or at least recommended. Why do we have all of these rules and regulations? To protect our children from harm. Children need boundaries so that they can play safely. Such boundaries are for our kids own good.

Galatians 3:23-24: But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

God gave us the Ten Commandments for our own good. Before sin entered the world they weren’t needed. In the beginning, Adam and Eve didn’t know how to do evil. They didn’t need the 10 commandments. But since the fall man needs rules to make us aware of sin and its consequences. The Law provides guidelines for us to live by. The Law reveals God’s perfect standard. It tells us our responsibilities to God. The commandments protect the rights of all men. The Ten Commandments do limit our freedom; and rightly so. Real freedom is the ability to do what is right, not what you like. The law is not God’s choice for us, but because of the fall and our sinful nature we needed it.

c. Conquered

Galatians 4:3: Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.

Society today is governed by all kinds of Laws and regulations. There are road rules, building codes, regulations for food production, etc. You would think that with so many laws society would be perfect; That policemen would be out of a job and jails empty. But that’s not the case. The Law simply shows us that we are a bunch of Law-Breakers. Paul said that the Jews received the Law but couldn’t keep it. Although God’s Law has kept us from becoming as wicked as we might have been, it hasn’t removed evil from the world.

In fact one of the main purposes of the Law is to show us that we have been conquered by evil. We are enslaved to it. Even when people want to do what is right they can’t. Why do I say that we are enslaved to sin? Because we choose to obey sin rather than God. Romans 6:16: Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? God’s law shows us that sin is our master.

Peter’s Drug Addiction

I was working with a drug addict in Orange. He came to church very irregularly. He owned very little because of his addiction. I saw quite often, although he broke many of our appointments. Sometimes it seemed we were really making progress. It looked like he was turning his life around. One time stayed clean for a few months straight. His sister was proud of the way he was changing. She was quite well off and brought him a new car. Peter was so proud to drive around instead of riding his bike. He got a job. Then he met one of his old dealers and started all of his old habits up again. Before long he had sold his car for about 1/10 of its value. He did this to get money to buy drugs. Why?

Sin is like drug addiction. It enslaves people with a terrible bondage that leads to hell. Only Christ can free us. Gal 3:13: Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us for it is written, cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree,

Application

Why did Jesus come? Because the whole human race was enslaved by sin. We were in bondage to sin, death and hell. We had totally missed God’s plan for us. Like children we rejected God’s love and hadn’t become what He intended for us. God gave us the Law to keep us from going astray. The Law not only chained us up it showed us that we had been conquered by sin. It showed us our need for a Savior.

2. Saved

a. God Revealed Jesus

Galatians 4:4: But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,

At just the right time, God sent His Son. God sent Jesus Christ when we needed Him most. The world religions were bankrupt, creating a spiritual hunger amongst the nations. People were searching for spiritual truth. Mankind had no hope. We were desperate. Many people were looking for the Messiah that the Jews had proclaimed in their Synagogues. It was then that God stepped in and sent forth His Son at just the right time.

Saving A Drowning Man

A man was once struggling to stay afloat in a river. He wasn’t able to swim very well and gotten out of his depth. Fortunately an experienced swimmer came by. A few people were watching with a lot of concern but they couldn’t swim either. They asked why the experienced swimmer didn’t go into save him immediately. The experienced swimmer gave a wise reply. He said that the drowning man was a big man and very strong. If he went to help him straight away he would probably cling to him and pull him under out of panic. He couldn’t save the man until he weakened and gave up struggling himself. In the same way, when we became aware of our hopeless condition God sent His Son to save us.

But not only was God’s timing perfect so was His plan. How could sinful man see a holy God? God had the answer. He would send His Son into the world as a man. Colossians 1:15: He (Jesus Christ) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Galatians 4:4: tells us that the Lord Jesus Christ is both human and divine. God sent forth His Son; that speaks of divinity. He was born of a woman; that speaks of humanity. This was the perfect plan. As a man He identified with us and our plight, for He was born under the Law. He walked among us and experienced life with us.

John 1:14: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. Jesus became like us. He lived in our world and was placed under the Law. Yet He lived without sinning.

Bedlum

When I was a kid I loved to play a game called Bedlum. There were 2 teams, the chasing team and the running team. The running team tried to avoid being caught, we wanted to stay free. The catching team would chase after the running team and seek to grab hold of the running team. When caught you went to jail where you had to remain. The only way to become free was for a tea mate to run through the jail and free those imprisoned. To do this he risked being caught himself. This is what Jesus Christ has done for us. Becoming a man he joined the human race in order to free mankind who had become imprisoned by sin and death.

Hebrews 2:14-15: Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

b. God Redeemed Us

Galatians 4:5: to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Jesus became like us to save us from slavery. The word redeem, ἐξαγοράζω, means to set free by paying a price, to rescue from loss. There were 60 million slaves in the Roman Empire. Free men could buy a slave to keep. Or they could set them free. God bought us to free us. The price paid to redeem us was Christ’s blood. God paid the price to free us with His Son’s precious blood. On the cross Jesus took the punishment for our sin. We were slaves to sin, but the spotless Lamb of God died in our place. Praise God, we have been redeemed. God redeemed us to free us from the bondage of sin, not to enslave us.

1 Peter 1:18-19: knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

The Tale of Two Cities

In Dickens’s novel A Tale of Two Cities, a young French aristocrat was condemned to die by the guillotine during the bloody French Revolution. His punishment was based solely on his forefathers’ crimes against the peasantry. The hour before his execution he was visited by a young English friend who could have passed for his twin. After the guard had left, the friend overpowered the doomed man with an anesthetic and exchanged clothes with him. Then, pretending to be the one condemned to die, he called the jailor and asked that his unconscious visitor, supposedly overcome with grief, be removed and returned to his home. The nobleman was thus saved from death. On his way to the guillotine, the young Englishman spoke these final words: “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done. . . . And he comforted himself with these words: I am the Resurrection and the Life, says the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live

c. God Received Us

Galatians 4:5: to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Because of our redemption we are no longer rejected by God. He has transformed us sinners into saints. The Lord freed us from sin that we might not be slaves any longer. Then He adopted us into His family. The Lord received us as His own sons and daughters. Colossians 1:13-14: He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. We are no longer enslaved children.

God has adopted us as His own children. Through adoption Romans became heirs with all the rights of adult sons. When God adopts you into His family you become His Sons forever. We are slaves no longer. Ephesians 1:4-6: just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.

Application

When everything looked hopeless God sent His Son. God revealed Himself to mankind through His Son. Jesus Christ became like us to save us. Are you a child of God? If not, why not? Why not receive Jesus Christ as your savior today? He came to save you!

3. Sons

a. Regeneration

Galatians 4:6: And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, Abba, Father!

Birth marks the beginning of life in this world. From then on children begin to grow and display the characteristics of their parents. So too our spiritual birth marks the beginning of our Christian life. It is God’s intention that we show His character in our lives. God sent His Son into the world so that He might be able to send His Spirit into our lives. When we trusted in Christ, the Holy Spirit came to live within us; and this means we are partakers of the divine nature. Through the new birth we receive a new nature from the Holy Spirit. Through the new birth we become spiritually alive.

God lives in us and helps us to grow up into healthy spiritual adults. To start with the Holy Spirit takes up residence in our hearts. Christians are new people living a new life. 2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. God wants to transform us to be like Jesus. The Spirit fills us with love for God the Father and for our brethren. Becoming part of God’s family gives us many blessings. We’ve gone from death to life.

b. Relationship

Galatians 4:6: And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, Abba, Father!

The first benefit is that we have an intimate relationship with God. We can talk to Him at any time. He is always listening for our prayers. In fact Paul says that Christians call God Abba Father. This ἀββά, word means Daddy. Our English word Papa is just like it. These words show us the closeness of a child to his Father.

Romans 8:14-17: For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba, Father. The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. We know that we are God’s children and that we belong to Him. Jesus taught us to address God as our Father in heaven. Father or Heavenly Father is a very appropriate title when we address the Lord. We are His children. We have been changed from slaves to sons.

Children Calling Out Daddy

As children grow up they begin to talk. At first their words are very simple. Then they learn to identify cats and dogs, balls and cars. It is always thrilling to hear them say mummy or daddy for the first time. In our family they always say Daddy first. Maybe they know who’s important. They say it and seem to understand the special relationship behind the word. It’s so natural for them to say daddy. They know that they are our children. They know they belong in our home. The word daddy is comfortable to them.

c. Riches

Galatians 4:7: Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

All I Have Is Yours

A beggar gave this testimony. I got off at the Pennsylvania depot as a tramp, and for a year I begged on the streets for a living. One day I touched a man on the shoulder and said, Mister, please give me a dime. As soon as I saw his face, I recognized my father. Father, don’t you know me? I asked. Throwing his arms around me, he cried, I have found you; all I have is yours. This son stood begging for ten cents from his father, when for eighteen years he had been looking to give him all that he was worth! So the heavenly Father is waiting for you. Why not receive the unsearchable riches in Christ now?

As God’s children we are given all of the wealth that belongs to our Father. God has made us rich. We have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. We are named in His will. Romans 8:17: and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Our inheritance involves a mansion in glory. A house that will never need repair. God will provide all of our clothes, our food and our drink. The Lord has reserved crowns and the accompanying authority for those who serve Him faithfully. In fact believers can store up treasure in heaven.

Romans 8:31-32: What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? But our greatest reward is God Himself. We will see Him face to face and live with Him. We have gone from poverty to riches.

Application

Through the new birth of regeneration we have a relationship with God. Beloved now are we the sons of God. Are you enjoying your relationship with God? Do you talk to your heavenly Father? Do you thank Him for His blessings? He has made us rich.

Benediction

Numbers 6:24-26: The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.