Matter Of Time | Galatians 4:4-5

I enjoyed the play so much. Truly a wonderful job by all involved.

I appreciate the hard work the kids put to prepare for it. They’ve been practicing those songs religiously for about 6 weeks.

Now they’re back in the back enjoying some time and celebrating a job well done.

As I was thinking about the best way to summarize the play, I think we can boil it down to one word: TIME.

TIME is a foundational part of our lives.

The Oxford English Dictionary informs us that the word “TIME” is the most commonly used noun.

TIME is a limited resource, we can’t buy more of it. We can only spend it.

TIME can’t be created or destroyed.

TIME just is. It’s a constant

It never slows down or speeds up, even if it feels like it.

Knowing how significant TIME is, we must continuously consider it in our daily decisions.

The play taught us that our choices today will impact our lives in the future.

And before you think I’m being too philosophical or over-analytical, Time Matters To God.

Consider the verses we read

Galatians 4:4–5 “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”

“When the fulness of time was come, God sent forth his Son.”

Jesus was born of Mary in Bethlehem at God’s perfect TIME in history about 2000 years ago.

Jesus was sent, according to verse 5, “to redeem them that were under the law…”

What that means is that God sent Jesus not just to be born but to die on a cross to pay for the sins of all mankind and give us all the opportunity to be forgiven and become part of God’s family.

So we know why Jesus came, but we don’t know exactly why God picked that TIME.

Ever since the Garden when mankind sinned, God promised to send a Savior to reconcile the human race back to Himself. No one knew when, but they knew He was coming.

Then God promised Abraham that his family would bless all the nations of the earth. That was a promise of Jesus Christ.

Years later, King David came along and he was promised that His throne would have no end. That’s the promise of King Jesus.

And finally, about 1,000 years later, along came the Savior.

Why would God pick that point in TIME?

The Romans ruled that part of the world. And one unique thing about Rome was they allowed the regions they conquered to keep their culture and their religion as long as they didn’t cause problems. They were tolerant. Which allowed Christianity in its infancy to grow and strengthen.

It was also a time of peace. Caesar Augustus ushered in an era of relative peace, which allowed roads and infrastructure to be developed. The Gospel of Jesus Christ was able to move freely from one city to the next on those roads.

It was also the time just after Alexander the Great had conquered the world, which spread Greek culture and the Greek language was spoken in much of the known world. That allowed the Gospel to be spread quickly.

All of these could have been factors in God choosing that moment in time, but the point from this verse is this: Time Matters To God and Salvation Matters To God.

So if TIME matters to God, then right now matters to God.

And if salvation matters to God, then your salvation matters to God.

Right now matters to God. And, your salvation matters to God.

God is keenly interested in what you do with this information right now.

So the question is:

How do we make the most of this moment in TIME?

1. Believe that God has you here right now for a reason.

We have no reason to doubt that this moment was brought about by God on purpose.

Read your Bible to know that God is constantly at work in people’s lives.

We can assume that He’s at work in our lives.

He’s already proven He’s interested by sending His Son to redeem us.

2. Be willing to submit to His plan for salvation.

In the fulness of time, God sent Jesus to be born so that He could become a man and die on a cross to pay for our sins.

Even Christmas is about salvation. He was born to die so that you could be saved.

So what do you do?

1. Recognize that sin is our problem

Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”

2. Hell is the consequence

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death”

3. Jesus is the answer

Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

4. Salvation is your choice

Romans 10:13 “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

It’s natural to think about gifts this time of year, but the greatest gift ever given. Jesus. He came to die on the cross for our sins and offer us forgiveness and eternal life. What a Gift!

But what must happen before you take possession of a gift? You have to receive it. How?

Romans 10:9–10 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

You must make a choice of faith to admit your sin and place your trust in Jesus Christ alone.

We can’t travel through time.

Wish we could. We’d all go back and change things if we could. We’d all like to go forward and see what’s coming down the road.

But we can’t. But you know what we can do? We can make the most of the moment in TIME right now by making the right choices. You can’t go to the future, but you can impact your future.

Doing what’s right in this moment of TIME will impact our eternity.

So we can’t travel through TIME, but we can impact it.

Your decision to place your faith in Jesus Christ can change your future.

And what’s great about salvation is, your past doesn’t impact whether or not God accepts you.

So your past can be forgiven and your future can be changed all by choosing Jesus in the present.

One day, we will all stand before God in judgment.

If you don’t know Jesus Christ, you will probably look back on this moment.

At 6101 E. 49th Street

Eastside Baptist Church

On Dec. 15 at 7_____.

So here’s the question: How do you want to view this moment at the end of your life?

If you respond to the Gospel by placing your faith in Jesus Christ to forgive your sins and save you, you will look back on this moment as the most important night of your life. And when you stand before God, suppose He says, “Remember that night?” And you can say, “Yes I do, and I’m so glad I chose Jesus.” What a relief.

But if you reject Christ in this moment, this could be the worst moment of your life. It will be known to you as the point in time that you could have changed your future and you didn’t. And you will one day look back on this moment with regret.

And when you stand before God and He says, “Remember that night?” You’ll say, “Yes I do, and I can’t believe I didn’t choose Jesus.” What regret.

Your decision tonight will impact the rest of your life and your future.

If you’ve never received Jesus Christ as your Savior, make this moment in TIME matter.

Invitation:

I’m going to ask you to close your eyes in an attitude of prayer.

How many of you would say that you’ve made the decision to place your faith in Jesus Christ alone? You know you’re saved?

Not baptism, not good works, not good intentions, not because your dad was a preacher. But because you made a choice to believe?

To those that have raised their hands, if TIME matters to God, have you been making good use of your time to make a difference for God?

You may be going to Heaven, but it doesn’t mean you’ve been spending good time walking with God or serving God or being a witness for God.

If TIME Matters to God, then your TIME on Earth Matters to God. Choose tonight to live for Him.

To those that didn’t raise their hands. Maybe you couldn’t say that you’ve ever placed your faith in Jesus Christ. And if you died today you’re not sure that you’d go to Heaven.

If that is your testimony and you’re not sure, would you raise your hand so I can pray for you?

You’d say, “I’m not certain I’m saved or that my sins have been forgiven.”

If you’d like to place your faith in Jesus Christ tonight, would you be willing to ask Him right now?

If so, would you simply raise your hand and say, “I’d like to pray and be saved tonight”?

I’m going to pray and have you follow along in your heart. If you’d like to be saved, please join me in this and mean it from your heart.

“Dear God….”

“I know that I’m a sinner”

“I know my sin separates me from you”

“But I also know that Jesus died for my sins”

“I ask you to forgive me for the sin I’ve done”

“I place my trust in you alone for salvation”

“Come into my life tonight and save me”

“In Jesus name, Amen.”

If you prayed that and meant it, would you simply raise your hand and let me know?

You talk about making the best use of your TIME.

God forgives in spite of our past and then He changes our future.

Your life will be different based on your decision tonight.

If you made that decision, please let one of us know.

If you have any questions or would like to set up a time to talk to myself, please let me know.

DISMISSAL