At Just the Right Time
By Vernette Kureck
“But when the time had fully come,
God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under law to redeem those under law,
that we might receive the full rights of sons.”
Galatians
4:4 (NIV)
What
does that mean…the time had fully come? Another way of saying it is “when the
fullness of time had come.” Okay, that really clarifies it! How about: “at just
the right time,” God sent His Son. According to the dictionary, the fullness of
time means completion of the time during which something has been accomplished
or completed. With the birth of Jesus, all the prophesies of the Old Testament
regarding the Messiah’s birth were fulfilled. So something was definitely being
completed at the right time.
But
was it the right time for Mary to be pregnant? For Joseph? The law would say
“no,” because she was a virgin and betrothed to Joseph. Joseph could have had
her stoned to death. Instead, Mary answers the angel Gabriel, “I am the Lord’s
servant...may it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). And after Joseph
considers quietly divorcing her, an angel appears in a dream telling him
not to be afraid, that the child was conceived by the Holy Spirit and he is to
name him Jesus because he will save people from their sins (Matthew 1:20-21).
From a human perspective, this was a very difficult situation…a situation that
would require both of them to be strong in their faith.
Every
Christmas season, I rejoice in the birth of our Redeemer-Lord and ponder all
that God has accomplished in His sovereignty. At times in my life, I do
question, “What is He doing now? This isn’t the right time for this to be
happening!”
That
is when I think again of Mary and Joseph’s faith. And I return the words of
Joseph’s ancestor King Solomon, who said, “He has made everything beautiful in
its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom
what God has done from beginning to end” (Ecclesiastes 3:11).
Mary
and Joseph didn’t have the full Bible, nor the indwelling of the Holy Spirit to
guide them as we do. So in faith, I must believe that I am here at just the
right time and, in just the right time, God is accomplishing His
work; He will complete it. May I answer His call with “I am the Lord’s
servant.”
GOING
DEEPER:
1. In
what way and in what time is the Lord calling you to serve?
2. How
are you answering?
FURTHER
READING:
Vernette and her husband Ken have
been married 46 years. Their two married sons have blessed them with eight
grandchildren.
