God’s Plan
Posted by Karah
Pause
Ponder this quote from Charles Swindoll to begin your time with God: “We must cease striving and trust God to provide what He thinks is best and in whatever time He chooses to make it available.”
God’s preparation for salvation through Jesus didn’t begin there. It began before the foundations of the earth. Read Galatians 4:4-7 in your Bible. Pay attention to words or phrases that denote the eternal nature of God’s plan to redeem His children.
“When the time came to completion, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. . . . So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.”
—Galatians 4:4-5,7
“When the time came to completion” is sometimes translated as the fullness of time. From the beginning, God knew the exact moment Jesus would need to come to live among us.
What does this teach you about God’s intentionality and His desire to redeem us? About the importance of Jesus’ incarnation?
Ponder verse 5 and underline the two things Jesus came to do. What did Jesus do to redeem us? Explain in your own words.
Why is it important to recognize that we can only become God’s children through His gift of Jesus, not our own merit or effort?
What is the difference in a slave and a son? Explain.
Respond
From eternity, God’s plan was redemption through Jesus—His birth, life, death, and resurrection. Eternal salvation is available, but we must respond to His invitation.
In Jesus, God has acted to buy us back from our sin and made a way for us to become His children. It isn’t about how good we are or what we’ve done; it’s about what Jesus has already done.
God’s timing is perfect. He knew the exact moment Jesus needed to come into the world, and He can be trusted with your life. Pray right now over circumstances in your life where you feel like God is silent, too slow, or too fast. Ask Him to help you trust Him and His purposes.
For further study of God’s wisdom and trustworthiness, read Deuteronomy 32:4; Psalm 9:10; 62:8; 118:8; and Proverbs 9:10.
Behind the Story
The phrase “born of woman” in Galatians 4:4 implies the virgin birth, but also points to Jesus’ full participation in the human condition. He was born of a woman, just like all other people. His birth was normal, and He experienced a normal childhood. He was like us. He also faced the same expectations as everyone else, as “born under the law” attests. But there is one big difference between Jesus and the rest of humanity. Whereas humanity continually falls short of the law, which exposes our sinfulness, Jesus fulfilled the law entirely without sin.
The Point
God’s timely plan in Jesus was always clear: to redeem us from sin and call us into His family.
Posted in Boys, Devotions | Tagged Camp Ridgecrest Alumni and Friends, Camp Ridgecrest for Boys, Reprinted from ec magazine. © 2012 LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Used by permission., Weekly Devotions