Siblings,
I’m so glad that I decided to obey God’s leading 9 years ago, to strengthen my personal devotion time by sharing my own reflections with others. Since then, my faith and prayer life has been fortified as I work on hearing what God has to say to us all.
When I had the idea of reflecting on Christ’s presence in Scriptures that aren’t explicitly referring to Him, I didn’t imagine making the connection between Genesis 3:15 and Today’s Holy Nougat. Yet, having seen the connection now, I can’t unsee it. Join me in our reflections?
Genesis 3:15 AFV
[15] And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He will bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
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Galatians 4:4-5 AFV
[4] But when the time for the fulfillment came, God sent forth His own Son, born of a woman, born under law, [5] In order that He might redeem those who are under law, so that we might receive the gift of sonship from God.
In the Fullness of Time
I don’t know about you all, but God’s still working on me in regard to patience. Usually, after I’ve prayed earnestly for something, I’m like a child who’s eagerly awaiting the destination. The issue is, if we keep focusing on the destination, we will miss all the journey had in store for us.
Just think, at the time of eating the fruit of knowing Good and Evil, our footprint on earth was minimal. If taken scientifically (and somewhat literally for many of us), the earth had only just ‘evolved’ to include homosapiens. It was the beginning of reason. But when knowledge came via curious disobedience, God determined that it wasn’t the fullness of time for Y’shua’s incarnation. Perhaps the world had not yet ‘matured’ to the point of being able to accept a non-partisan God who was fully human, and willing to die for all who believe.
Whatever God’s reason (and we all know that God doesn’t always reveal such to us), centuries passed – millenia even – before the earth would benefit from the fulfilment of God’s promised righteous seed. Many good and righteous people were born in that time; but they were not the Messiah.
If Abram, aka Abraham, was one of our choices; let us recall that although he qualifies as ‘Father of the Nations’, despite being a true exemplar of faith, he had a bad rap with his treatment of women.
Righteous Noah did get drunk at least once, and our darling David was a murderer and rapist.
They all had knowledge.
They all could differentiate between good and evil.
But
They did not always make the right choices for themselves or all God’s people. Can you imagine the havoc that would have been created if one of those persons had tried to save the world from the subtle one? They all failed the obedience and ethics test. None of them qualified to complete the assignment.
The timing was off.
Centuries of rebellion and regret resulting from poor management of the knowledge wrested from the Garden passed.
It all seemed hopeless.
Chaos, criminality and confusion reigned. It was as though God had forgotten God’s chosen.
Until
That fateful moment during the Roman occupation of Israel-Judah, God ‘_sent forth His own Son, born of a woman, born under law, in order that [God] might redeem those who are under law, so that we might receive the gift of sonship from God_.’
All the necessary parts were in place. In the background for this unfolding divine drama were:
A virgin who believed
A fiancé with the right family connections, with a conscientious heart
An elderly cousin who was also awaiting the fullness of God’s time for a child
A group of stargazing Gentile believers willing to make a potentially treacherous journey
Shepherds on duty near enough to the City of David
A despotic king who harboured dreams of reclaiming Israel as an independent nation
A system of governance that practiced public executions of enemies of the state
12 ragtag men and countless women ready to follow this radical Saviour.
… and countless others that were in place prior to these coming to pass.
When all those were in place, God’s plan reached the fullness of time.
Self-Check
Do we stop to think of all that needs to be aligned for God’s will to be perfected in our lives?
Deeper Dive
When we consider our own ‘_Are we there yet_?’ prayers, it is worth recognizing that God’s timing is perfect. Our interruptions (meddling) might postpone that which was already in train. Instead, we could ask God if we’re positioned spiritually for what God has in store. Then we might seek to discern what other pieces and persons are required to realize God’s plans for our lives.
Furthermore, we may also try to figure out the places and situations where God wants us to be in fulfilling someone else’s prayer. By no means are we God, but our actions may provide someone with a point of reference for how God becomes incarnate in their world today.
Point to Ponder
Let’s challenge ourselves to identify the various ‘coincidences’ that had to align in and around our lives so God’s plan would come to pass.
When we do, let’s raise a fresh hallelujah
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May all we seek be found in Christ
