"THE FULLNESS OF TIME" First Sunday after Christmas December 29, 2019 Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church Glenshaw, Pennsylvania TEXT: When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the Law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Galatians 4:4, 5 (ESV)
Nearly a half-century ago the big musical craze among young people was a rather irreverent "rock opera" entitled "Jesus Christ Superstar." In the theme song from that production the character of Judas Iscariot questions Jesus' sense of timing as he sings: "Every time I look at You I don't understand Why You let the things You did get so out of hand. You'd have managed better if You'd had it planned; Why'd You choose such a backward time and such a strange land? If You'd come today You would have reached a whole nation; Israel in 4 B. C. had no mass communication." People have always made those kinds of speculations--wondering why God does what He does when He does it. There are those who question God's timing in regard to the Christmas Event. Why would God, the Creator of all things, choose to enter human history in such a commonplace and unnoticeable way? If His purpose was to reach as many people as possible with the Gospel of His grace, why did He appear at a time when there were no newspapers, radio microphones, or television cameras to record His every move? In contradiction to all of this speculation our text for this morning asserts that "God sent forth His Son" "when the fullness of time had come." If we regard this Scripture to be the Word of God I don't see how we can conclude anything else but that the Son of God appeared in human form at precisely the right time--the time that God had appointed to bring to fruition the promises and predictions that He had made through His prophets in the centuries before. No matter how insignificant the time may seem to us or to anyone else, it was God's time: His time to act on behalf of fallen humanity by invading our world of sin and doing for us what we could never even begin to do for ourselves. As we examine this morning "the fullness of time" in which "God sent forth His Son," let's pay particular attention to the fact that this Son of God was "born of woman" and that He was "born under the Law." The Son of God had to be "born of woman" for God to genuinely take on human flesh. No matter what inequities--real or imagined--may exist in our world between the sexes, no one can deny that everyone--male and female alike--was "born of woman." If God was really to become incarnate--if His Messiah was to be true Man in every sense of the word--He would have to be "born of woman." The God who loved humanity enough to become a Part of it embraced our human flesh and blood completely--even to the point of being born in the world just as every one of us was born. "Born of woman," fine. But why this particular woman? What was so special about Mary that qualified her to be, as even the Lutheran Confessions assert, "the mother of God"? Much has been said and written about the virtues of the virgin God chose to bear His Son. There is a double danger here. On one extreme we have the Roman Catholic tradition, which transfers some of Jesus' divine attributes to His mother. This extreme produces attitudes and practices that are contrary to the clear teachings of the Scriptures. Mary was not sinless. She says so herself in the Magnificat when she sings: "My spirit rejoices in God my Savior" (Luke 1:46). The Baby she bore was her Savior from sin just as much as He is ours. Neither is there any Scriptural evidence to suggest that Mary remained a virgin after the birth of Jesus. (In fact, the first chapter of Matthew's Gospel implies that she did not.) But even if she did, it is irrelevant to the Christmas story. The story is about Jesus, not Mary. As long as Jesus was born of a virgin, the prophecy was fulfilled. On the other extreme, most Protestants overreact to the glorification of Mary by virtually ignoring her in their theology. That's not right either. The one who God chose to be the bearer of His eternal Son ought to be recognized and honored in the Church of Jesus Christ. Why did God choose Mary? Who knows? Why did He choose you and me to proclaim the Gospel in this community? The reason for God's decisions is not nearly as important as the fact that He always makes the right decisions--in "the fullness of time." Our text goes on to say that the Son of God was "born under the Law." In order to fulfill the Law for us He had to be under it just as we are. He subjected Himself not only to the standard of perfection that the Law of God requires, but also to the nitpicking of the Pharisees, who were so preoccupied with their expertise in the Law that they came up with over six hundred additional regulations for obeying it. But in keeping the Law perfectly Jesus fulfilled it for us so that His perfect righteousness is credited to us in Baptism--the perfect righteousness with which we will stand before the throne of judgment on the last day. This is the only way that the Savior could "fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:15) for us--by literally taking our place under the Law of God. The fact that this Son of God was "born under the Law" becomes most evident in His death. This is the purpose for which He came into the world: to pay the penalty for our sin. The meeting of the Law's demands is seen more clearly in the cross of Jesus Christ than anywhere else. The Law and the prophets had said and demonstrated time and again that human sin could be paid for only by the shedding of innocent blood. The Savior who God sent "in the fullness of time" was the only One capable of meeting this demand. He alone is innocent and so He alone is "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). No matter what we may think from time to time, God knows what He's doing. He sent His Son into the world at precisely the right time and under the right circumstances for Him to accomplish His purpose: the redemption of the lost from their sins and their restoration as God's beloved children. The "peace on earth" that we hear so much about during the Christmas season has nothing to do with conditions in our world. It refers to the peace that God has established in Christ between Himself and us. Likewise the "goodwill toward men" is not some manufactured emotion within us that makes us treat each other so nice around Christmastime. It is the goodwill that God has shown toward us in sending His Son to be our Savior. That incarnate Son of God, who "God sent forth" in "the fullness of time" gives you and me every blessing that we will ever need, now and always. Amen. May the true Light which enlightens everyone, which has come into the world shining brightly in the darkness, be your very life. And may the world become flesh, Jesus Christ Himself, continue to make known to you His redeeming grace and truth now and always. He who calls you is faithful, and He will do it. Amen. ~