Message summary: In sending forth His Son, God has fulfilled the biggest promise. Let us wait with faith and assurance that “in His time” He will also take care of the scores of other matters we all deal with, for He is faithful!

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“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law” (Galatians 4:4,5a).

Did you sing Silent Night yesterday or in the last week? Surely you heard it over the radio, played it on spotify or perhaps heard it as you were shopping. Yesterday I heard it three times, early in the morning when Amish children came caroling, in the afternoon a group of children sang it when I drove them home and last night in our church's Christmas Eve service as we lit our candles. Today, on Christmas day, let's give focus to just one line, " With the dawn of redeeming grace".

God’s purpose in sending forth His Son was “to redeem those who were under the law”. It would seem that this is one of the Scripture verses that guided Joseph Mohr’s thoughts as he penned these words, “With the dawn of redeeming grace”.

In sending forth His Son God kept His greatest promise and He continues to keep all His promises. He always will. On Christmas we have the faith-building perspective of looking back and seeing the fulfillment of the greatest of God’s promises. This occurred after a long wait and in "the fullness of the time".

I come to a clearer understanding of this verse when I recognize that it’s in the fullness of God’s time, not ours. Many of us are waiting for God’s promises to be fulfilled in our lives. The wait can be very trying.

Many are living with an ongoing burden for spiritually wayward family members. Some have a long-standing physical ailment in their lives or in someone they love. Others are having a very hard time financially or are trusting God for reconciliation with a loved one. And there are those who have an ongoing struggle with laying down a besetting sin. Also on my heart this morning are so many of our dear brothers and sisters living in very oppressive conditions.

We consider the long wait for the Promised One who would come to earth and redeem His people. It finally happened, and since it was long before our birth it's been with us all the time, unlike those who lived and died before the dawn of God's redeeming grace appeared in human form! And now we all wait for that next great cosmic event when Jesus again keeps His last word to us as He declared, "Yes, I am coming soon". (That of course would be God's reckoning of "soon".)

God has fulfilled the biggest promise. Let us wait with faith and assurance that “in His time” He will also take care of the scores of other matters we all deal with, for He is faithful!

B e encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13