Jesus said, "If I had not come" (John 15:22); and Paul said, "When the fullness of the time had come" (Gal. 4:4a). Meaning, when time itself was pregnant and ready to deliver; when the stage was set, "God sent forth His Son" (Gal. 4:4b).
If we stand back and look at history, what do we discover about the world in the day when Christ was born? Four things are evident:
(1) It was a period of international peace. For only the second time in the history of the Roman Empire, the doors of the Temple of Janus (the god of war) in Rome were closed, meaning that the Empire was not at war anywhere. The great Pax Romana, the Roman Peace, was in force, which meant that the whole Mediterranean world was united under one government.
No doubt you have heard it said, "All roads lead to Rome." That statement was literally true. The Romans had built a road system that stretched from Rome in all directions. That enabled the gospel message to quickly spread to all parts of the known world. And Greek was the common language throughout the empire (because of Alexander the Great), which further united people and made it easier for the message of Jesus to come to the masses.
(2) It was a time of religious ferment. Across the empire, the various mystery religions were in decline. There were so many gods in ancient Greece that one writer called Greece, "one large altar." And Judaism was ripe for Messiah to come. During those 400 "silent years," the Jews had migrated to every corner of the ancient world. Judaism flourished as the Jews built synagogues wherever they went. And where did Christianity begin? It emerged from the womb of Judaism. Early church worship was modeled after synagogue worship. And where did Paul start when he went to a new city? Always in the local synagogue, preaching the gospel to his own people. By the time of Christ, there were Jews at every level of society in the Roman Empire, and many Gentiles knew of the God of Israel.
Looking back, we can see clearly that God had placed His chosen people, the Jews, in strategic positions to help advance the gospel. Still the Jews asked each other, "Why hasn’t the Messiah come?" Their experience in Old Testament times had left them yearning for something better. The Law, good as it was, could never save them. It was a schoolmaster meant to lead them to Christ.
Historians tell us that in the centuries preceding the coming of Christ, there was a feeling of unrest and an undefined expectation of something about to happen. That is why Paul, standing on Mars Hill in Athens in A.D. 50, could refer to the Altar to the Unknown God as a jumping-off spot for proclaiming the gospel.
(3) It was an era of moral decline. Athens was in the late afternoon of its glory. The gods of Greece and Rome no longer could command the blind allegiance of the masses. Education, philosophy, and great art created desires they could not fill. In the end, the verdict was clear. Athens produced Aristotle, Socrates, Euripides, and Aristophanes. Rome produced Seneca, Cicero, Juvenal, Tacitus, Suetonius, and Julius Caesar. But the best man could do, was not enough. Nothing could fill the "God-shaped vacuum" inside the human heart. Art, literature, poetry, music, architecture, and the greatest military machine the world had ever known, all of it taken together, could not provide meaning to life or point the way to lasting forgiveness. It could not offer any answer to three questions we all must answer: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
Again, it is a simple historical fact that the condition of the heathen world was deplorable. Even the Roman poets said as much. They saw the problem, but were powerless to do anything about it. They knew the truth, at least in part, but had no power to effect lasting change. The result was gross superstition, debased immorality, widespread corruption, evil run amok, and rank unbelief.
This is the world into which Christ came. It is the world Paul describes so graphically in the first chapter of Romans; a world that knew the truth but suppressed it, ignored the true God, and turned to idolatry. It was a world that was given over to paganism, sexual immorality, homosexuality, murder, perversion, dishonesty, and brutality. A world of broken promises, broken dreams, broken homes, and broken hearts. And into that darkness, God shined a light in a stable, in an obscure village called Bethlehem.
(4) It was an age of prophetic fulfillment. That which started in Genesis, continued throughout the Old Testament. God promised over and over that He would intervene in history. One day the Messiah would come. There was an ever-narrowing stream of prophecy, the promises becoming more and more specific. Until it happened! The angel came to Zechariah and Elizabeth. Then to Mary. Then to the shepherds and the Wise Men in the east, who saw the star and knew that the King of the Jews had been born. Herod, the evil king in Jerusalem, seemed to have been caught by surprise. But the scribes weren’t. They knew the baby would be born in Bethlehem.
Thus, the stage was set for the coming of Christ. It happened just as God said it would. Not too soon. Not too late. "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son" (Gal. 4:4ab).
This brings us back to where we started, to the words of Jesus, "If I had not come" (John 15:22). If Christ had not come, how would the world be different? Just for a moment, imagine that some powerful hand has wiped the influence of Christ out of our civilization, as a hand would clean a blackboard in a schoolroom. Go to a library, and you will find no trace left of the life or words of Jesus. All has vanished. In the encyclopedias, the entries on "Jesus Christ" have all been removed. In the museums, where "The Transfiguration," "The Last Supper" and "Christ on the Cross" had been, there are only empty spaces. The works of the great masters are gone. The great cathedrals have disappeared. The greatest poems of Dante and Milton, of Wordsworth and Tennyson—all gone, vanished without a trace.
If Christ had not come, the Christian hospitals and schools that have had such a magnificent influence both at home and abroad, would not have existed. If Christ had not come, all the churches and the good works they have done, would be erased from the earth. There would be no Christian relief agencies bringing hope and help to the hurting people of the world. There would not even be any Christian books or music. No great hymns of the faith. No Christmas carols. No Angel Tree. No Christmas Eve services, for there would be no Christmas to celebrate.
There would be no churches anywhere, if He did not come. We would not be here. There would be no building, no people, no choir, no sanctuary, no worship, no sermon, because we would have nothing to preach. There would be none of the things we take for granted. All would be gone, vanished into the mist, if Christ had not come.
But the news is much worse. If Christ had not come, the promises of God would be unfulfilled; the world would still be in darkness. If Christ had not come, there would be no gospel to believe; there would be no Christmas and no Easter. If Christ had not come, there would be no hope beyond the grave; we would still be lost, for there would be no Savior for sin.
Listen to the words the angel said to the shepherds, and think of what it means to us: "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). "When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son” (Gal. 4:4ab). Jesus was born when the stage was set. In perfect timing, Christ came to bring us hope and salvation. Amen.
If we stand back and look at history, what do we discover about the world in the day when Christ was born? Four things are evident:
(1) It was a period of international peace. For only the second time in the history of the Roman Empire, the doors of the Temple of Janus (the god of war) in Rome were closed, meaning that the Empire was not at war anywhere. The great Pax Romana, the Roman Peace, was in force, which meant that the whole Mediterranean world was united under one government.
No doubt you have heard it said, "All roads lead to Rome." That statement was literally true. The Romans had built a road system that stretched from Rome in all directions. That enabled the gospel message to quickly spread to all parts of the known world. And Greek was the common language throughout the empire (because of Alexander the Great), which further united people and made it easier for the message of Jesus to come to the masses.
(2) It was a time of religious ferment. Across the empire, the various mystery religions were in decline. There were so many gods in ancient Greece that one writer called Greece, "one large altar." And Judaism was ripe for Messiah to come. During those 400 "silent years," the Jews had migrated to every corner of the ancient world. Judaism flourished as the Jews built synagogues wherever they went. And where did Christianity begin? It emerged from the womb of Judaism. Early church worship was modeled after synagogue worship. And where did Paul start when he went to a new city? Always in the local synagogue, preaching the gospel to his own people. By the time of Christ, there were Jews at every level of society in the Roman Empire, and many Gentiles knew of the God of Israel.
Looking back, we can see clearly that God had placed His chosen people, the Jews, in strategic positions to help advance the gospel. Still the Jews asked each other, "Why hasn’t the Messiah come?" Their experience in Old Testament times had left them yearning for something better. The Law, good as it was, could never save them. It was a schoolmaster meant to lead them to Christ.
Historians tell us that in the centuries preceding the coming of Christ, there was a feeling of unrest and an undefined expectation of something about to happen. That is why Paul, standing on Mars Hill in Athens in A.D. 50, could refer to the Altar to the Unknown God as a jumping-off spot for proclaiming the gospel.
(3) It was an era of moral decline. Athens was in the late afternoon of its glory. The gods of Greece and Rome no longer could command the blind allegiance of the masses. Education, philosophy, and great art created desires they could not fill. In the end, the verdict was clear. Athens produced Aristotle, Socrates, Euripides, and Aristophanes. Rome produced Seneca, Cicero, Juvenal, Tacitus, Suetonius, and Julius Caesar. But the best man could do, was not enough. Nothing could fill the "God-shaped vacuum" inside the human heart. Art, literature, poetry, music, architecture, and the greatest military machine the world had ever known, all of it taken together, could not provide meaning to life or point the way to lasting forgiveness. It could not offer any answer to three questions we all must answer: Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going?
Again, it is a simple historical fact that the condition of the heathen world was deplorable. Even the Roman poets said as much. They saw the problem, but were powerless to do anything about it. They knew the truth, at least in part, but had no power to effect lasting change. The result was gross superstition, debased immorality, widespread corruption, evil run amok, and rank unbelief.
This is the world into which Christ came. It is the world Paul describes so graphically in the first chapter of Romans; a world that knew the truth but suppressed it, ignored the true God, and turned to idolatry. It was a world that was given over to paganism, sexual immorality, homosexuality, murder, perversion, dishonesty, and brutality. A world of broken promises, broken dreams, broken homes, and broken hearts. And into that darkness, God shined a light in a stable, in an obscure village called Bethlehem.
(4) It was an age of prophetic fulfillment. That which started in Genesis, continued throughout the Old Testament. God promised over and over that He would intervene in history. One day the Messiah would come. There was an ever-narrowing stream of prophecy, the promises becoming more and more specific. Until it happened! The angel came to Zechariah and Elizabeth. Then to Mary. Then to the shepherds and the Wise Men in the east, who saw the star and knew that the King of the Jews had been born. Herod, the evil king in Jerusalem, seemed to have been caught by surprise. But the scribes weren’t. They knew the baby would be born in Bethlehem.
Thus, the stage was set for the coming of Christ. It happened just as God said it would. Not too soon. Not too late. "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son" (Gal. 4:4ab).
This brings us back to where we started, to the words of Jesus, "If I had not come" (John 15:22). If Christ had not come, how would the world be different? Just for a moment, imagine that some powerful hand has wiped the influence of Christ out of our civilization, as a hand would clean a blackboard in a schoolroom. Go to a library, and you will find no trace left of the life or words of Jesus. All has vanished. In the encyclopedias, the entries on "Jesus Christ" have all been removed. In the museums, where "The Transfiguration," "The Last Supper" and "Christ on the Cross" had been, there are only empty spaces. The works of the great masters are gone. The great cathedrals have disappeared. The greatest poems of Dante and Milton, of Wordsworth and Tennyson—all gone, vanished without a trace.
If Christ had not come, the Christian hospitals and schools that have had such a magnificent influence both at home and abroad, would not have existed. If Christ had not come, all the churches and the good works they have done, would be erased from the earth. There would be no Christian relief agencies bringing hope and help to the hurting people of the world. There would not even be any Christian books or music. No great hymns of the faith. No Christmas carols. No Angel Tree. No Christmas Eve services, for there would be no Christmas to celebrate.
There would be no churches anywhere, if He did not come. We would not be here. There would be no building, no people, no choir, no sanctuary, no worship, no sermon, because we would have nothing to preach. There would be none of the things we take for granted. All would be gone, vanished into the mist, if Christ had not come.
But the news is much worse. If Christ had not come, the promises of God would be unfulfilled; the world would still be in darkness. If Christ had not come, there would be no gospel to believe; there would be no Christmas and no Easter. If Christ had not come, there would be no hope beyond the grave; we would still be lost, for there would be no Savior for sin.
Listen to the words the angel said to the shepherds, and think of what it means to us: "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). "When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son” (Gal. 4:4ab). Jesus was born when the stage was set. In perfect timing, Christ came to bring us hope and salvation. Amen.
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