Right On Time

Right on Time

When the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law.

Galatians 4:4

Before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time.

Matthew 11:13

“The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!”

Mark 1:15

Have you ever tried to talk to somebody who wouldn’t talk back to you? Most of us give up pretty quickly on a conversation when the other person is silent.

The Jewish people had been waiting a long time to hear from God when Jesus was born. It had been more than four hundred years since they had last heard God speak to them through one of his prophets. It seemed like God had gone silent, and some people had grown weary of keeping up their hopes that God would come through for them. While they were waiting, the Romans occupied their country and ruled over them. This made them long even more for a great deliverer who would save them from their misery and rule with justice and peace.

But God knew when the time was just right to send Jesus, the Messiah, into the world. He knew when the exact religious, cultural, and political conditions demanded by his perfect plan were in place. You see, God is not making up plans as he goes. All the grand events of God’s plan for our redemption have been scheduled in advance, from Creation to the final judgment. In fact, “he has set a day for judging the world” (Acts 17:31). The course of history is not a mystery to God. Time is in his hands. And he will bring about his plans and purposes in our world and in our lives right on time.

DISCUSSION STARTERS

How does it make you feel when you talk to someone who doesn’t talk back?

Why do you think God decided Jesus would be born in the place and the time he was? What does this show us about God’s careful timing?

What do you need to trust God’s perfect timing for in your own life?