In The Fullness Of Time

In The Fullness Of Time Galatians 3:26–4:7 (NIV84) 26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, 27 for all of you who were baptised into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. 1 What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2 He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3 So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. 4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. 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. Friends, who are we and why are we here? We call ourselves Christians and we are here to worship God. Isn’t it? And this time of the year we mainly express our thankfulness to God for sending Jesus the first time to save us. But we also come together to acknowledge that He will one-day return again as King to collect us and all believers and to rule over the universe in glory unto eternity. And for this very reason, the Christmas season is filled with excitement and joy—and busyness. Advent is not about us filling our time with activities but rather about taking time to remember how God fulfils time: “In the fullness of time, God sent forth his Son” (Galatians 4:4). In the church, the Advent season lasts four weeks. And these four weeks is a time of reflection, a time to remember God’s coming to us and wait in hopes of His coming again. However, I’d like to suggest that we must make sure that our hectic schedules filled with activities, festivities, and other special events leave no time for the real purpose of Advent: Acknowledging God at work in our Salvation and continued Sanctification. Friends, this statement clarifies that Christmas is essential not for economic reasons, but because Jesus’ birth reveals that the fullness of time has arrived. What does “the fullness of time” mean? I’ll explain: Long before Jesus’ birth, God was preparing the way for the world truly worship Him. The two genealogies of Jesus recorded in the gospels make us travel back in time either to the beginning of the human race in Adam (Luke 3:23–37) or to the origins of Israel in Abraham and David (Matthew 1:1–17). God was preparing the way centuries before the birth of His Son in Bethlehem. How did God prepare the way? Since God rules over human history, He undoubtedly shaped the history of the nations, including the dominance of the Roman Empire that had an impact on Israel, on Jesus, and the spread of the Gospel by the early Christian church. Indeed, this was a part of God’s preparation, for God uses the history of the nations to achieve His purposes. However, in Scripture “the fullness of time” points in a different direction. Here the fullness of time is determined by the unfulfilled promises God had given to Old Testament Israel, promises filled with hope for future blessing and peace. According to Habakkuk 2:3, God had set a time for the fulfilment of these promises. He had not revealed that time to anyone, not even to the prophets (1 Peter 1:10–12). He is waiting for that fullness of time. It required centuries of patience because God works according to His calendar and measures time differently than we: “With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8). When the angels announced the birth of Christ with their tidings of peace (Luke 2:14), God declared that His promises to Israel were now being fulfilled. God never intended that anyone try to “work” their way to heaven. Abraham couldn’t, Moses couldn’t, and neither could Paul. None of us can. The law shows us our need for a Saviour, who rescues us by grace. The apostle Paul interprets this fullness of time as the time when God’s people could at last claim their promised inheritance. Before this time, they were like minor children but now, in Christ, as mature children, they had received the full rights to their promised inheritance (Galatians 4:1–7). Similarly, Jesus declared at the opening of His public ministry: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mark 1:15). The gospel of Matthew gives us a glimpse at God’s preparations centuries before the birth of Jesus in the fullness of time. Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus divides the history of Israel into three periods: from Abraham to King David, from King David to the exile, and from the exile to the birth of Jesus (Matthew 1:2–16). Because God had given promises to Abraham and David that had not yet been fulfilled, the birth of Jesus reveals that the fullness of time had come. Jesus is the son of Abraham and the son of David in whom God’s covenant promises are fulfilled. At the first advent of Jesus Christ, the fullness of time had come, and God sent forth His Son into this fallen world. As the prophets foretold, He was born of a virgin who was richly blessed of God. He was born under the law of God, not to abolish the Law but to fulfil it. As was necessary to redeem those under the Law, He met the righteous demands of the Law and took upon Himself the sins of His people, His sheep for whom He laid down His life. God adopts us into His heavenly family the moment we place our faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. Because He accepts us just as He takes His own Son, we are “joint-heirs with Christ”. As His people, we confess that Christ shall come again to judge the living and the dead. We believe He will return to this world not as a baby in a manger but as the King of all the earth, in power and glory to manifest His reign over the new heavens and the new earth. We confess His return because of what He taught us at His first advent and on account of the hope that is within us. For this reason, during the wonderful Advent season that comes each year, we should eagerly await the second advent of Christ as we celebrate the first advent of Christ. Nevertheless, let us always be mindful that although Christmas day comes only once a year, we are called to remember and celebrate the eternal work of Christ—past, present, and future—each day of our lives before the face of God. I started my sermon with a question: Who are we and why are we here? Friends, we are here today because we call ourselves “children of God!” But what enables us to see ourselves as the children of God? Paul made this clear in our Scripture reading by reminding the Galatians that their relationship with Christ means that they are “children of God.” Our membership in the family of God flows from being “in Christ,” just as our biological connection with our earthly family derives from having been literally “in” our father and mother. Our continually changing experience of having Christ “in us” varies as much as the fellowship that flows from day to day among the various members of an earthly household. The actual expression “in Christ” appears eight times in Galatians. Paul used the phrase in every one of his letters to churches. He found it just as easy to say, “Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). For some, the idea of being “in Christ” contradicts the idea of Christ being “in us.” But these terms describe a relationship like no other. They help us understand much without allowing us to claim that we know everything. The picture of being “in Christ” establishes the reason or basis of our relationship with God. Christ’s righteousness, sacrifice, and faithfulness are all regarded by the Father to stand in our place. From the perspective of grace, when God views us who are “in Christ,” he sees Christ. The picture of Christ being “in us” identifies the experience of relationship. To the Colossians, Paul spoke of Christ being “in you” as the essence of the mystery of God revealed in the gospel— “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). Yet in the next verse, he wrote of his goal to “present everyone perfect in Christ” (Colossians 1:28). Or perhaps to put it another way, “in Christ” and Christ “in us” convey two aspects of our family relationship. So often God’s children fail to live up to the identity they have been given in Christ. It happens when we live passive, defeated lives. It occurs when it appears that in almost every respect of life, we’re still living with the curse of the law hanging over our heads. We may be heirs in Christ, but we appear to have missed the reading of God’s will. But God’s Word inspires us to confidence—not in our ability to live the Christian life, but in God’s infinite ability to help us grow into Christ. If you believe in Christ, then you are in him and truly belong as a member of his family. By responding to Christ in faith, we have followed in the ancient way of Abraham, one of the early ones justified by faith. He trusted God, and so do we. But to us has been added the opportunity to appreciate what price Christ paid to ensure our share in the promise. Friends, if we had continued our Scripture reading all the way to Galatians 4:19 you’d see that Paul’s goals would always be the same: He was persevering in ministering on their behalf through prayer and petition, “until Christ is formed in you”. Paul wanted each of his children to reach spiritual maturity in the faith. They would do so by having the likeness of Christ portrayed in their lives. “Formed in you” refers to a mother carrying an embryo until it is developed enough to be born. God desires for Christ to live in and through each believer. As Paul wrote in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me”. Becoming conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 8:29) emphasises the personal changes necessary to become like Jesus. At the same time, Paul said that Christ takes form in us. As we become conformed and transformed (Romans 12:1; 2 Corinthians 3:18) concerning Christ, Christ’s attitudes and character are “formed” in us (Philippians 2:5–9; 3:10). We become like Christ even as His life and teaching become visible in us. Who are we and why are we here? Friends, we are the redeemed and we are here to give thanks to our Redeemer. This is what Paul reminds us of in Galatians 4:5. Jesus was Himself born “under the law” (Galatians 4:4) so that by His living and dying, he could accomplish two purposes: (1) to redeem those under the law and (2) to allow those “redeemed” people to receive the full rights of sons. To “redeem” means “to buy back” (Galatians 3:13). “Redemption” was the price paid to gain freedom for a slave (Leviticus 25:47–54). Through His life, Jesus demonstrated His unique eligibility to be our Redeemer. Through His death, Jesus paid the price to release us from slavery to sin. When Christ redeemed “those under the law,” He did not redeem the Jews alone. His death set people free from bondage to any law or religious system (Galatians 4:3)—offering, instead, salvation by faith alone. But because the law was God’s most apparent revelation of his justice, being born under the law and keeping it perfectly proved that Jesus was the perfect sacrifice. He took upon himself the curse the law required to set believers free of that curse. For centuries the Jews had been wondering when their Messiah would come—but God’s timing was perfect. We may sometimes wonder if God will ever respond to our prayers, but we must never doubt him or give up hope. At the right time, he will respond. Are you waiting for God’s timing? Trust His judgment and trust that he has your best interests in mind. No matter what his circumstances, the apostle Paul never settled for the past. We, too, must “press on” with the mindset that there is always something more to be found in Christ. Friends, the goal of Christian living is not to sin less, or to reform our manners, or to do better than we used to. The goal is total transformation to see Jesus formed in us. God wants us to resemble His Son increasingly. This is our challenge this advent – to resemble Jesus increasingly. Friends, we are, indeed, called to live with eager expectation of the second coming of Christ, but we should only do so in light of the first advent of Christ – when He was born in Bethlehem. In remembrance of Christ’s first advent, it is not enough simply to wish Jesus a happy birthday. In fact, to do so borders on blasphemy. Instead, we are called to remember and to celebrate the incarnation of the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, the eternal Logos. Being “in Christ” leads to our ongoing experience of clothing ourselves with Christ CONTINUALLY and PERPETUALLY. Who are we and why are we here? This advent you and I can answer: We are the children of God who are ready to take on the privileges and responsibilities of our membership of God’s family. Because we are in Christ and Christ in us, we are blessed with a new lifestyle and new aspirations. We are clothing ourselves with Christ Jesus. This is an action we know must daily take – putting on the attitudes, characteristics, and intentions of Jesus Christ. Yes, during this advent, we are giving careful attention to our actions and behaviour, making sure that they represent the One who saved us well. We know that if our response as God’s children does not differ from that of unbelievers, then we look just as “crooked and perverse” as anyone else, and instead of shining “as lights,” we leave the world as dark as we found it.