fullness of time

so, i went to church this morning with an expectant heart. not expecting anything in particular, just needy for God. for SOMETHING.

and what i got was extraordinary! an ANSWER to the plea i made here on friday! i knew the Lord was up to something when pastor pulled out the title of his sermon called "fullness of time."

the passage he referenced was Galatians 4, which describes the birth of Jesus in this way:

4But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. 6Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba Father." 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.

pastor talked mostly about how the birth of Jesus made us full sons and daughters of God, right now. that we are not a slave to this world anymore. needing more, i googled the phrase when i got home, and found some stuff to make it even clearer to me.

Herman Ridderbos says that the statement means something is being summed up, completed, united, concluded in Christ.

What is meant by this "fulness of the time" is not only the maturation of a specific matter in the great framework of redemptive history, but the fulfillment of the time in an absolute sense.The time of the world has come to a conclusion with Christ's advent.

i'm kind of slow, but i think it get this. when i say to God "please, make all of these time constraints go away!" He says to me ever so gently: "I already did, when My Son was born."

ahhhhhhhh. so that is why i can be at peace. i may not know how i'm going to get my shopping done, or if the economy is going to kill my business, or when/if the people in my life i wish would change, will, but i know that TIME HAS ALREADY TOLD that things will be okay :)

happy sunday, all.