FBC Daily Devotional – December 21, 2020

Faith Baptist Church

Subscribe

Download

Share

00

00:02

Well, a good Monday to you. I hope you had a good weekend this enjoyed gathering with God's people the

00:10

Sunday before Christmas and We're able to get your heart tuned for a good Christ centered

00:16

Christmas. I trust If you weren't able to gather in person at least We're able to watch some live stream service.

00:24

I hope you get you saw our service yesterday and the blessing that it was is we focused on the climax of Christmas but Today, I I want to I want to talk about Christmas coming at the right time

00:42

Now several years ago We were living in Vermont at the time

00:48

I was talking with a Jewish businessman he owned the Ethan Allen furniture store and I was talking with him at Christmas time and he said this and I'm quoting he said, you know,

00:59

Brian He said I wish all you Christian clergymen could get together and with one voice

01:04

Tell the world how this whole Christmas celebration thing is all wrong It's been totally taken over by capitalistic ambitions.

01:12

He said I'll bet if Jesus were to be Reincarnated that's his word He'd have a fit over what people have done to a time that's supposed to honor him and quote well

01:25

Needless to say I was a little bit stunned Because this is coming from a man who in the first place doesn't accept

01:33

Jesus as the Messiah and Second he's a retail store owner and you know retail store owners are all about the

01:42

Christmas season and Christmas Purchases and all of their that's kind of that that kind of stuff, but he was he was pretty pretty spot -on wasn't he and I I realized that even if a

01:55

Even if a man like this knows that there's a lot about the modern Christmas sell holidays that that aren't right

02:04

Then it's you know, it's probably worse than I even thought well, truly

02:11

Unfortunately, a lot of people celebrate Christmas primarily as a means of fueling the economy and how tanked up the economy is and how active the shoppers are is all the

02:24

The talk in in the media through it kind of seems like that's all you hear about an awful lot of what you hear about During the

02:32

Christmas season, you know how the stores are doing how the merchants are doing and so on and so forth

02:37

And yet the birth of Jesus the Messiah has really nothing to do with it at all

02:45

There's a lot that isn't right about the modern Christmas Well in contrast to that though Galatians chapter 4 tells us that that's not the way it was with the first Christmas You familiar with this passage in Galatians chapter 4 and verses 4 through 7 the

03:05

Apostle Paul Makes it clear that nothing was wrong in that Christmas.

03:11

Listen to what he says He says but when the fullness of the time was come When the fullness of time had come

03:20

God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law So to redeem those who are under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons

03:31

Because you are sons God sent forth the spirit of his son into our hearts crying Abba father

03:37

So you are no longer a slave but a son and if a son then an heir through God So the next couple of days

03:44

I want to Zero in on this That is right about that first Christmas.

03:50

And first of all notice that Christ was born at the right time He was born at the right time

03:57

So again, the first part of verse 4 says when the full the fullness of the time had come the fullness of the time had come

04:08

Now there are some pretty clear implications in that Phrase the fullness of the time aren't there?

04:17

It doesn't it first of all imply a plan That there's a plan for a time for something to occur

04:24

You know, like if you're if you're planning a vacation well you've got to have that set you have got to have the time set aside when you're gonna start it when you're gonna get back and So on and so forth.

04:33

So so the fact that there is a time set Implies that there's a plan and in fact, it's a plan that was prophesied

04:44

In the Old Testament, we've looked at that last week in Genesis 3 15 God had a plan already laid out for the redemption of fallen man that that this seed of the woman was going to crush the head of the serpent in Isaiah 7 14 a

05:02

Virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and his name will be called Immanuel there was a plan for a method of birth that was revealed in Matthew chapter 25

05:16

Matthew 25 verse 34. We read that the kingdom that Christ would establish is a kingdom

05:23

That's already prepared Matthew 25 verse 34 says this the King will say to those on his right hand speaking of Jesus Come you who are blessed of my father inherit the kingdom

05:35

Prepared for you from the foundation of the world There's a kingdom of Christ.

05:42

That's already prepared and first Peter chapter 1 verses 18 through 21

05:49

Make it clear that the redemption plan was all set This plan of redemption for the redeeming of lost souls was all set

06:00

Well before the birth of Christ Listen to what first Peter 1 18 and following says says knowing that you were ransomed from the feudal ways

06:09

Inherited from your father's not with parable perishable things such as silver and gold But with the precious blood of Christ like as of a lamb without blemish or spot

06:20

He was foreknown before the foundation of the world But was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you

06:30

Who through him are believers in God who raised him from the dead and gave him glory?

06:36

So that your faith and hope are in God Jesus was and his work as the

06:42

Messiah and his work on the cross was foreknown before the foundation of the world

06:49

This is the kingdom was prepared at the foundation of the world Jesus as the

06:55

Savior Was foreknown before the foundation of the world

07:01

So that there is the fullness of the time implies a plan

07:07

It also implies perfection. Does it not the fullness of the time?

07:13

That what happened in Bethlehem on that night Occurred at just the right time

07:24

There was not a better time. There was not a better place. There was not a better way

07:29

It occurred at just the right time It also implies omniscience

07:35

That God in his in his infinite knowledge

07:42

Knowing all the time of human history from the from the beginning of the fall to the end of time

07:51

God knew What time was the best time and of all that God knew in his omniscience?

07:59

He selected this time for this child to be born

08:04

And then I would suggest that Christ being born at the right time implies omnipotence

08:11

Not only God's omniscience that he knows everything but God's Omnipotence that he could in his power and authority orchestrate all events

08:22

You see if God just kind of knew everything but didn't have the power to do anything Then you know something could be messed up But no, nothing was messed up.

08:34

God orchestrated events so that The Roman Empire was in place and was kind of in its heyday and that brought general peace to that part of the world the

08:47

Pax Romana they call it the peace of Rome and The Romans had developed this tremendous transportation network where communication could happen very rapidly

08:58

In you know relatively speaking for that time and place Greece had been in power before Rome and Greece brought a universal language to the world and As much like English is the language of commerce and business today around the world

09:18

Greek was the language that was The universal language of its day and it was

09:25

Greek in which the New Testament was written Israel had proclaimed a monotheism throughout the

09:34

Empire and God in his omnipotence orchestrated the the events so that Jewish people would be scattered throughout the

09:43

Roman Empire and in their Scattering they carried with them this truth of a monotheistic religion a one -god religion and overall

09:57

God so orchestrated events that morality was at an all -time low and spiritual hunger was at a fever pitch people wanted longed for looked for a spiritual

10:13

Messiah and Jesus came at the fullness of the time

10:19

Now the impact of that fullness of the time because Christ was born then the prophecy about him was fulfilled and the propagation of Him of who he was who he is what he did was easier than ever before in in human history so Christ was born at the right time

10:46

Well tomorrow, we'll return and look at another way in which the first Christmas was just right until then

10:54

I trust God will bless you with a good rest of your Monday and He will meet your needs provide for you give you encouragement and strength our

11:05

Father in our God Thank you for sending Christ at just the right time as we celebrate his birth

11:13

Later this week. May we rejoice and give glory to you for the power the omniscience

11:19

The perfection of your work in sending him to fulfill your plan at just the right time

11:27

This we pray in Jesus name and for his sake. Amen All right.