Fullness Of Time

And so, starting with this lesson and throughout the coming year, if the Lord wills, we will be examining that precious life Christ led here on earth.

However, before we dive into his life, I think it appropriate to examine what marvels God did to bring about that moment in time or as the apostle Paul called it that “fullness of time.”

Galatians 4:4 ESV

4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,

To be reminded of some of those magnificent events and situations God providentially developed.

So, with that in mind, what can we examine throughout the Old Testament that leads us to God’s development of the fullness of time?

There are three specific things we can point to in this.

God’s People.

God’s Promises & Prophecies.

God’s Providence.

The fullness of time could not have happened if it weren’t for…

God’s People

The Israelites.

The reality is God needed a “people” that he could establish his son’s lineage through and prove his righteousness within.

This is where the meticulous genealogies come into play and why the Israelites kept such great records of their family lineages.

The genealogies prove God keeps his word.

In Luke 3:23-38 and Matthew 1:1-17 we find Jesus’ genealogy which establishes God’s credibility concerning Jesus’ lineage.

God promised Jesus would come from Abraham and he did.

Genesis 12:1–3 ESV

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

God promised Jesus would come from David and he did.

2 Samuel 7:16 ESV

16 And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.’ ”

Psalm 132:11 ESV

11 The Lord swore to David a sure oath from which he will not turn back: “One of the sons of your body I will set on your throne.

We also see that when it comes to the fullness of time God’s used the Israelites to produce the…

The Mosaic Law.

This is significant in the fullness of time because it was the guide which was to lead the people to the Law of Christ and prepare the people for the Messiah.

Galatians 3:24 ESV

24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith.

The idea here is that God created the Law of Moses to guide the people and thus prepare the people for Christ and His new covenant or new Law.

The Mosaic law was more than just information about sin to the Israelites, it was a guide and guardian until Christ came.

Summary

The fullness of time and thus the birth of Jesus, could not have happened if God’s chosen people hadn’t been made to “flourish like a plant of the field” (Ezekiel 16:7).

Thankfully for your and I we have a God who knows what he is doing and prepared for the fullness of time.

We also see during this preparation phase for the fullness of time…

God’s Prophecies

God’s Promises.

From the very beginning God started prophesying about the “coming Messiah” and continued to encourage humanity that he would come.

Genesis 3:15 NKJV

15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

Isaiah 7:14 ESV

14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Micah 5:2 ESV

2 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.

Zechariah 9:9 ESV

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Summary

The Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecies lists 1,239 Old Testament prophecies.

The few we looked at today and the thousands found throughout God’s word prove God’s continued desire to prepare the earth and its people for the perfect time for Christ to come to this earth.

Lastly, let us look at…

God’s Providence

God’s Hand In World Powers.

Michael Crichton once wrote…

“If you don’t know history, then you don’t know anything. You are a leaf that doesn’t know it is part of a tree.” 1

When it comes to world powers and their direct impact on the fullness of time it is impossible to study this without examining the great history of God’s providence in the world powers.

Though we don’t have time in this particular lesson I encourage a study of Daniel 7-8.

Medo-Persian Empire.

The Medo-Persian empire overthrew the Babylonian empire wherein Daniel and the Israelites had been captured by some 70 years prier.

The Medo-Persians played a significant role in bringing about the fullness of time in its actions towards those it conquered.

Before this empire the previous empires would come, destroy, and then disperse the conquered people throughout their empire with the hope that this would discourage revolting.

King Cyrus the Great or Cyrus the Elder was different because he gave the people his armies came to a choice.

Keep everything the way it was and simply put up with tributes and someone watching over them or be utterly destroyed.

Now this wasn’t just because he was smart but because God was with him, and he knew it.

2 Chronicles 36:22–23 ESV

22 Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: 23 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the Lord his God be with him. Let him go up.’ ”

So, the Medo-Persians impact on the fullness of time was a different way to handle the conquered.

They allowed them to stay home and keep their religion and customs.

Next God providentially used the…

Greek Empire.

By far the greatest impact of the Greek Empire was their insistence that everyone speak Greek.

Of this the Roman Cicero wrote…

“Greek is read in almost all nations; Latin is confined by its own narrow boundaries.” 2

The Greek language was so dominant that the Jews asked the elders to have a Greek Old Testament written so they could study it in their “native tongue.”

In fact, of the 300 plus Old Testament quotes in the New Testament 85 percent are from the LXX and not the original Hebrew or Aramaic.

God used the Greek Empire to create a universal, worldwide, language for the fullness of time.

Lastly, providentially God used the…

Roman Empire.

There are two specific things that God used Rome to do that would help enable the fullness of time.

First is the security or “Pax Romana.”

Because Rome was so dominant and powerful it wasn’t long, in the grand scheme of things, until there was peace throughout the world.

This allowed Jesus to travel safely from place to place and eventually the church missionaries.

Secondly, is the great roads.

To keep everyone under control and to be able to travel quickly from one place to the next if some uprising occurred, the Roman Empire built elaborate and well constructed roads.

This allowed Jesus to travel quickly from place-to-place preaching and teaching.

Summary

God providentially used each of these empires to bring about the fullness of time.

Conclusion

In fact, the reason it is called the “fullness of time” instead of maybe the “perfect time” is because God had fully or completely created a moment in time that would present Jesus and the gospel all the necessities needed, to not only complete their missions but thrive at it.

Thanks be to our God that he had the knowledge, ability, and patience to create that “fullness of time” for when Christ would come to this old sinful world and live not just among us but as us.

Invitation

Isaiah 59:1–2 ESV

1 Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; 2 but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.

Philippians 2:6–7 ESV

6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

Romans 10:17 ESV

17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

Hebrews 11:6 ESV

6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Acts 17:30 ESV

30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,

Matthew 10:32 NKJV

32 “Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.

2 Thessalonians 1:8 ESV

8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

1 Corinthians 15:1–4 ESV

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

Romans 6:3–5 ESV

3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

1 John 1:7 ESV

7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Endnotes

Quotes From Michael Crichton (https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/188569-if-you-don-t-know-history-then-you-don-t-know-anything)

History of the Christian Church (https://ccel.org/ccel/schaff/hcc1/hcc1.i.I_1.12.html)

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