This week, we are looking at a section of a letter in the Bible called the book of Galatians. Yesterday, we saw a man named Paul reveal to the members of the churches of Galatia, and to humanity throughout history, that humanities attempts to do things for God in order to be right with God through religious performance only enslaved and restricted humanity from the relationship with God that they were created for. Humanities embrace of religion resulted in continued alienation from God. And this reality was not a surprise to God. God was not in Heaven saying “Oh no, we didn’t see that one coming! What are we going to do now?”
God was not surprised because God already had a plan in mind. God had already set a date in advance when He would intervene in human history in a most unexpected and powerful way in order to provide humanity the opportunity to experience the forgiveness and freedom that comes from living in the relationship with God that we were created for. Today, we will see Paul reveal that date and that plan to the members of the churches of Galatia in Galatians 4:4. Let’s look at it together:
But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,
But when the fullness of time came; in other words, at just the right time. At just the right point in history, not too early, not too late, at just the right time, the time that God had previously set in advance, God sent forth His Son, Jesus Christ. And what is so amazing is how God sent forth His Son. God sent forth His Son to enter into humanity as a baby born of a teenage girl in a feeding trough for animals. But not only does Paul tell us that Jesus entered humanity as a baby; Paul also states that Jesus was born under the Law. But what does that mean? And is that a big deal?
When Paul refers to the Law here, he is referring to the first five books that are recorded for us in our Bibles today, which the Jewish people referred to as the Law or the Torah. These five books contained the list of commandments that revealed to the Jewish people God’s nature, God’s character, and the type of nature and character that humanity would need to possess and display in order to live in a right relationship with God.
However, as we discovered earlier in this series, God’s standard has been clear from the beginning and has not changed. To be in a right relationship with a perfect God requires perfection. And because nobody is perfect, humanities attempt to live religious centered lives based on their performance for God only revealed that they have a huge problem with God because every human being on the planet ends up breaking a rule on their religion’s list.
And the Jewish people were no exception. Instead of living in relationship with God, the Jewish people selfishly rebelled against God. Over time the Jewish people increasingly were involved in actions and attitudes of omission and commission that flowed from selfishness and rebellion and that hurt God and others.
But notice that Paul states that Jesus was born under the Law. Jesus did not enter into humanity in a position that was above the Law; instead Jesus entered into humanity under the Law. This phrase literally means to be in subjection to the Law. Paul’s point here is that Jesus entered into humanity and faced life here on earth under the same conditions that all of humanity faced, under the same rules, expectations and temptations that we face, so that He could totally and completely identify with us.
You see, God sent His Son on specific mission to solve a specific problem. A problem that we caused; a problem that separated us from God; a problem that religious based performance could not solve, because religion only further alienates us from God; a problem that only Jesus Christ, as God in a bod, could solve.
Friday, we will see Paul reveal Jesus’ mission….
No comments:
Post a Comment