Galatians, chapter four. Luke, chapter number two. Let’s pray and then we’ll get right into it. Heavenly Father, we love you. And Lord, we thank you again for allowing us this opportunity. And the Lord, we have enjoyed the songs that have been sung this morning. And Lord, we pray that what has been said already is, has been pleasing to you. We pray for the next few moments where it’s most serious time and a heart searching time, Lord, that you prepare our hearts to receive your word and let you speak to our hearts. And Lord, thank you for this opportunity. Help me to say the things that I need to say. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Luke, chapter number two. We’ll start there. Okay? And verse number one. Just going to read a few verses and this thought has been touched on before, but let’s just get into it. Luke, chapter two, verse one. And it came to pass in those days that they went out of the cree from Caesar justice that all the world should be taxed. Okay, skipped down to verse number six. And so it was that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her first born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them. In the end, we know the story, right? We know the account. We’ve heard this over and over and over again. Look at verse number eleven. Part of the message that the angel gave to the shepherds was, for unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. There’s no doubt about who that savior is. The Lord Jesus Christ. He literally came, became flesh and bones so he could die on the cross for you and for me, the precious gift of God. If we were going to label something the message, that might be what we would call it. But look back at verse number one, chapter two, it says, and it came to pass in those days, verse number six, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. Verse eleven. Front of you is born this day in the sea of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. Keeping those things in mind, Galatians four, verse number four. We’ll go back and pick up a few more verses, but this is where the thought comes from. This morning says, but when the fullness of the time was come, god sent forth his Son made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons. When the fullness of the time was come, in eternity passed, god the Father knew that this day would have to come and he arranged it so that day would come. And it came in his perfect timing. When the fullness of the time was come, everything was arranged perfectly. We’re going to talk this morning briefly about the salvation of God brought by this God’s sovereignty and God’s setting, and we’ll explain that in a minute. Look at verse number, chapter three. Let’s back up chapter three, verse number 13. Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made. A curse for us, for it is written curse. It is everyone that hangth on a tree. No one could ever be saved by keeping the Law. What’s the law? Well, part of the law is the Ten Commandments. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not bear false witness. Honor thy father and mother, thou shalt not covet. James, chapter two, verse ten says, who service shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point he is guilty of all. So no one can keep the whole law. Nobody on this earth has ever lived except Jesus Christ that could keep the entire law without offending at one point. So it’s impossible to keep the whole law. Only God in the flesh could do that. And even if a person could keep the whole law, the Bible says that the Law does not produce righteousness. Matter of fact, it’s our schoolmaster. Chapter three, verse number 23. But before faith came, we were kept under the law shut up. Unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the Law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, we might be justified by faith. The Law showed us our need of a savior because it showed us where we fell short. We have growing up, when I was growing up, and we have done this with our boys and we have fallen behind and he get back doing it again, but there’s marks on our walls or on something to show us how far we’ve grown. And we always wanted to beat the mark the next year. And so at least we’re growing. It doesn’t look like we’re growing. And there were days I felt like I wasn’t growing, but I was excited when I looked back and I saw I’d grown a little bit. And now we try to keep marks, make sure we’re not shrinking right, but this time in life. But the Law is a mark that none of us could ever reach. It was to show us that we are sinners in need of a savior. And God sent his son we just read it. God’s precious gift to redeem us from under the Law. All right, so God’s gift brought salvation, the opportunity for salvation. But just because God came in the flesh does not mean that everybody saved you. And I know that. Just so we’re clear, though, god paid the sin price on the cross for all of mankind, right? He tasted death for every man. Amen. All mankind. But the person that receives that forgiveness is the person that receives the gift of salvation. They receive Jesus Christ as their savior, repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance is just a change of mind, turning away, turning away from my works, turning away from my effort and turning to God, putting my faith and trust in him. Only faith in Jesus Christ says look at verse number 24, chapter three. We’re going to get to chapter four in a minute. The law is our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ that we might be justified how? By faith. We are justified by faith. Verse number 26 for year all the children of God. How? By faith. Your Bible says that my Bible says that by faith in Christ Jesus there are so many religions, matter of fact, all the other religions in the world teach that you have to do something. Christianity, Jesus Christ, the truth says that he has done it all. It’s done, it’s paid for. You just put your faith and trust in him. For as many of you has been baptized into Christ, have been, have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there’s neither male nor female for you’re all one in Christ Jesus. And if you be Christ, then are you Abraham seed in heirs according to the promise. Okay, now we’re getting into the message, chapter four, verse one. Now, I say that the heir. Now, if you put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, the Bible has just instructed us, god has just told you and me that we’ve become children of God by faith in Christ Jesus, right? You’re a child of God if you put your faith and trust in the Lord. And we also verse 29 have become heirs according to the promise, not only we are child, but we are an heir. My children will not inherit anything except bills. They might have some bills they can pay for, but they’ve got a much richer inheritance in their Heavenly Father. You and I have a rich inheritance. You didn’t know you were so well off. But what God the Father’s done for us, he said. Now, verse number one I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, deferred nothing from a servant, though he be Lord of all, but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the Father. He’s given a picture here. Now imagine someone that is wealthy. And I think back in the days of lords and serfs and asked Brother Caleb, he’ll TTL you all about that. He considers himself one of those. But anyway, moving on, there are some that it would be wealthy, but the the father of that child would put them under tutors, under governors, guardians and instruct them, would teach them. Parents today send their children to school so they’d be educated, right? Or teach them at home as we do. I teach them from the word of God. We try to do that. Look at this illustration that he’s given. He said even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. It said even so, we comparison here now. Talk about the sovereignty of God. Talk about God’s salvation. God’s salvation is available to all mankind. The person just has to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and their sins are forgiven. They’ve got a home in heaven we just heard about in Sunday school. They’ve got the promise that their vile body will be changed into a glorious body fashioned like as his glorious body. That’s our blessed hope. We’re heading there one day as children of God. But he said right now we’re in this world. He gave the illustration of a child being under tutors and things and learning. Notice this, that God is in control of all the details. God is in control of a man’s education, how he’s brought into this world. Have you ever thought how blessed you and I are to being a born American? I don’t know how many of you have been able to travel outside of America, but the Bill and I were talking about on the bus, he was telling me, you go to another country and it’s a tourist island. And the tourist side of things is magnificent and clean, well kept. But where the people actually live is in shambles. We’ve been blessed in a way to be an American, to be born here in America. We’ve been blessed with the opportunity to hear the gospel freely without fear of the government coming in on us. And as of yet, we still enjoy in those liberties. Not everybody has that liberty. Think about China, russia. I think India is like that. There are many countries that don’t have that freedom, that liberty. You and I are blessed people. I think we’re spoiled people. We’ve been blessed so much we’ve forgotten God, but we are blessed people. But you know, God was in control of that. God allowed you to be born in this wonderful country. That’s the sovereign hand of God. And that’s count. That a blessing. God placed you in the family that you’re in for a reason. There’s no mistakes or accidents with God. He placed you in the family in the location in beautiful southern West Virginia, beautiful, balmy southern West Virginia for a reason. God’s placed here for reason. God is in control of the details of the circumstances, of the timing we just saw. In the fullness of the time, long before Adam and Eve were created. God knew when Jesus would come to this earth, be born of a virgin, knew the process, that he would die on the cross from and sins. God knew before Adam and Eve sinned, that Adam and Eve would sin. See, God knows the end from the beginning. It’s not an afterthought. It wasn’t okay. I made a mistake. Now we got to fix this. How are we going to do this. God knew already that’s the sovereign hand of God. It’s encouraging to me to know that God is in control of my circumstances. Now I make my own choices and I can resist the will of God. I have that free will that God has given me. God wants everybody to be saved, but not everybody is going to be saved because they have that free will to reject the precious gift of God. But he said God’s in control of the timing. The timing was designed by God. It was directed by God. When Mary gave birth to Jesus, it was at a time when the Roman Empire had covered much of the known world. Think about the circumstances surrounding that. There was common languages among different nationalities because of the Roman Empire. They trafficked in a certain language. They had roads that were built connecting towns and cities and allowed the Gospel to travel freely. Shortly after this, the Roman Empire began to splinter. For a while it grew, but then it began to splinter a few hundred years after that. But at this point in time, God was in control of the nations, moving that God’s always in control of the nations and he’s in control of his opposition. Amen. And he’s moving things around so that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem. The Jews have gathered back together in their homeland during this time and the temple had been rebuilt. The central location was Jerusalem. And just outside of Jerusalem was a little town called Bethlehem where the prophets foretold that Christ would be born. And so Jesus was born. As a matter of fact, Joseph and Mary were living in Nazareth. It’s way up here on the Bible map. And Bethlehem was way down here. And it’d take a long time to get from here to here walking. But Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem, so God made it that there would be a taxing. So they’d have to come down to the house of lineage of Bethlehem. See, God always keeps his word. There’s a verse, just touch on it. We’ll go on. Isaiah 50 511 so shall my word be that goethforth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing where to I sin. It what God says will come to pass, what God promises will be fulfilled. He prophesied where Jesus must be born, when he would be born, what would happen. And all of that came to pass perfectly in perfect fulfillment. God didn’t control the nations. Daniel, chapter two, verse 20 and 21. Daniel answered and said, blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are his, and he changeth the times and the seasons. He removeth kings and Setth up kings. He giveth wisdom unto the wise and knowledge to them. That no understanding. God allowed our current president to be elected. I believe the American people chose some of them that I think people in politics, we won’t go there. But God allowed things to happen the way they happen for a reason. God is allowing nations to align for reason. See, it wasn’t just back then that he did all that. He’s still in control now. God’s allowing the broken Roman Empire to kind of assimilate back together. And one of these days they’re going to assimilate back together and have a one world government that the Antichrist is going to rule in reign for seven years. And God’s allowing all this to happen. But he’s in control. He’s always in control. Don’t forget that. God’s always in control. When the fullness of the time was come, god sent forth his Son. They, they, god the Father was willing. God the son was willing. And when that day come, God the Father said, son, it’s time to go. And God the Son came willingly, stepped out of heaven, took upon Him literal flesh and bones and grew up as you and I grow up, wonder of wonders. It boggles the mind how God could step out of heaven, become man, and yet still be. God would humble himself so he would grow up like you and I grow up and be subject to things like you and I are subject to, yet without sin, yet without fault, without failure. And he did that. Why? So he could redeem us that have been made under the law because he loved us that much. There’s no greater gift, no greater love ever been given than God’s love. When he sent his son to this world. God’s in control of his plan, which has been eternally purposed and it’s ever perfect. God is still in control. I know a couple of weeks back there was a message that was brought that God’s timing was perfect. Tell you, God’s timing is still perfect. One day, there’s still a day marked on God’s calendar when he’s going to say, son, it’s time to go again. And this time he’s going to come and rapture his church, his bride to be with Him forever. And that day is just as real as that day, that day that happened over 2000 years ago, about 2000 years ago now. The sending of God, the sovereignty of God. He’s working, he’s working even behind the scenes in your life, the circumstances in your life, the details in your life, the tests, the procedures, the diseases. God’s still sovereign and on the throne. He’s so sovereign that he can use the sickness that we have and accomplish something for his glory and for our good through it all. Then look at God’s setting. God sent forth His Son made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive. The adoption of what sons. Do you see that verse five, the adoption of sons. Psalm 68, verse six says god Setth the solitary in families. He bringeth out those which are bound with chains. But the rebellious dwell in a dry land. God set me in his family as a son, as a child of God. I was his enemy. You were his enemy. But now I’m part of his family. And there’s some blessings, there’s some privileges that come along with it. When he came to earth as a man, he humbled himself. I don’t think you and I fully understand and I don’t think we could understand what condescension, what humility it took for God the Son, the Creator of the world, to step into his fallen creation and take upon him the sins of the world. What love behold, what manner of love the Father bestowed upon us. We should be called the sons of God. He was made of a woman. Genesis, chapter three, verse 15 was a promise that was given to Eve after Adam and Eve sin in the Garden of Eden. He said, I will put enmity between thee, talking to the serpent and the woman, and between thy seed talking to the serpent and her seed. The seed of a woman was promised way back in Genesis, chapter three, verse 15. Here it was fulfilled about 4000 years between the first promise and the fulfillment. And yet it was fulfilled perfectly to the very t listen, you and I can trust the word of God. It it won’t return. Void his death was my substitution. He hath made him to be sinned for saint. Corinthians 521. Who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. Bible says he was made of a woman, made under the law. He kept the whole law. Not even at one point did he offend or he transgressed. He was perfect sinless undefiled. And then he gave his life for you and for me. And his death was in my place. That should have been me. That should have been you. I think somebody hears sings a song about that and I can’t think of the name of it now. But it should have been me who was hanging on the cross instead of Jesus. His resurrection provides for my salvation and my adoption. It’s funny. Sometimes we might joke around the house and say you had no choice but to be born in this family. But God chose us in adoption to place us in his family. He didn’t have to, but he loved us from the worst of us to the best of us. It’s still not very good in God’s sight. He saved us when we called upon Him and he placed us in his family. Isn’t that a blessing? Thank God he placed us in his family. Doesn’t happen automatically. But john, chapter one, verse eleven. He Jesus came unto his own, and his own received him not but his minis received him. To them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name. What’s it take to become a child of God? How much money does it take? You can’t buy it, you can’t earn it, you can’t purchase it. Jesus paid it all. Amen. You got to come to Him by faith, trusting Him. There’s privileges of being in his family. Look at verse number six. And because you are sons, god hath sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts crying, abba Father, if you’re saved, you’ve got the spirit of God living inside of you. We talked about this morning in Sunday school. Jesus right now is seated in heaven at the Father’s right hand, the Father and the Son. But then the Spirit of God is living inside of every believer. In one of these days, the Father is going to send the Son to the to the other clouds. And we which are alive remain shall be caught up together with our loved ones who are coming back with the Lord. And we shall ever be with the Lord. But right now we have the Spirit of God leaving inside of us. We have a personal relationship with our Father, with God as our Father. You realize no other that wasn’t possible before Jesus came to this earth. That’s a new relationship because of what Jesus did. We have that relationship with God as our Father. I can go to him. I go to my dad and ask Him money. I ask Him for things and we laugh because he come to me and ask me for money and be the same. I open my wallet, he hand me his wallet and probably be the same. Nada is nada, no matter which way you look at it. But I go to my heavenly Father and he’s got riches untold and I’ve got access. By grace wherein we stand, romans, chapter number five. We have access to God because of Jesus Christ. We’ve got a great privilege in the family of God this world doesn’t have. Listen, you may know millionaires and billionaires and this fellow that owns Twitter and turning the world upside down because he’s actually doing things probably that should have been done a long time ago. Anyway, I don’t have his money and I don’t want his money because he’s not as wealthy if he doesn’t know the Lord, he’s not as wealthy as you are because you’ve got a home in heaven. You’ve got a relationship with God, your father? The Lord Jesus Christ. The spirit of God indwelling you. We’ve been promoted from servanthood, from serving the law, serving a cruel master, the devil under sonship. Now we’re serving Jesus because your sons god has sent forth the spirit of His Son, the spirit of His Son into your hearts crying, abba Father, wherefore thou art no more a servant, not a servant under the law, but a son. And if a son, than an heir of God through Christ. Listen, the half hasn’t been told of what waits for you and me. We have a rich inheritance. We’ve got a home in heaven. And boy, if we could just scale back the curtains of heaven and look in the glory, our minds couldn’t handle the beauty that we’d see. We wouldn’t want to live here any longer. We may not be of any more use. We might be like those disciples seeing Jesus go up into heaven. They’re gazing and the angel said, Why stand ye gazing? I can picture them with their mouths open. That would be us. That would be me and you, if God could show us that. But he said, I want you to look through faith. And while you’re looking through faith, be busy working for me, bringing others, appointing others to saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We are an heir of God through Christ. God’s given us exceeding and precious promises. It’s been said, 66 loved letters written to you and me. This is a book that’s written to me and you. I know a portion of it was written to the Jew and a portion of it is written to the Gentile. But all of it is profitable to the child of God. And the spirit that lives inside of you can make it real to you, can apply it to your life, to your situation. We’ve got a rich inheritance. We’ve got somebody we can go to any time, day or night, no matter the circumstances, no matter what’s going on. Because of that relationship, not only is their privilege, but their responsibility. With great privilege comes great responsibility. I think sometimes that’s how we failed in America. We failed to teach that our blessings have come at a cost. Think about the sacrifice that our military men and women have made over the years. The cost of freedom is the blood of soldiers that have given their life over the years. And it takes work to maintain that freedom. They don’t just expect a handout from the government. Amen. It takes work, takes effort. You got to do that. There is responsibility in maintaining that freedom. There’s responsibility of being in the family of God. I thank the Lord that I have the family that I have. But I don’t want to bring shame to that name. I don’t want to bring shame to the name of Jesus either. My behavior should have changed when I got saved. He’s given us new desires, new direction, a new destination. Said, old things are passed away, all things are become new. In chapter five, verse one, he said, stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free. We don’t have time to read it, but if you are to read it, chapter four talks about there’s going to be persecution that will come. Actually, chapter four, verse number 29, we will read that verse. But as then, he that was born after the flesh, persecuted to him that was born after the spirit, even so, it is now you have two kinds of people in the world. It’s not black and white, it’s not red and yellow, not Chinese and American or Russian or whatever. It’s saved and unsaved those that are born of the Spirit of God and those that are still dead in their trespasses and sins. You go to to your local supermarket and you’ll see that there are walking dead people all over our town. There are people that don’t know the Lord as their Savior. They’re dead in their sins. I hope and pray there’s not someone here this morning like that. But there is. You can be saved, be forgiven and made new all in one day, in one instant. But just simply by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ given us new behavior, a a new direction. In chapter five, it says we ought to walk in the spirit spirits living inside of us. We have the word of God that’s been inspired by the Spirit of God. There’s no reason why you and I shouldn’t act like, walk like, talk like a Christian, a new creature. Listen, we shouldn’t use the same language we used before we were saved. We’ve got a new master. We’re not serving the devil, we’re not serving ourselves. We’re serving our blessed Lord. Blessed Savior. When this passage, when it says, when the fullness of the time has come, I know God is sovereign, god’s in control of all our details in life. I make my own decisions. I can resist the will of God and it’ll bring me shame heartache. It’ll cause me hardships through life. Think about the opportunities you’ve been given. There may be some here this morning that have been brought to church all your life. And there’s been times where you’ve made a profession with your mouth, but you haven’t truly been saved, had a heart change. There’s a difference. There will be a lot of people in hell one day because they’ve made a profession with their mouth, but they didn’t believe in their heart. They didn’t repent for their sins. There was no change in their heart. They didn’t call out to God in faith. Make sure that you know Jesus is your Savior. See that the greatest gifts got to be received. This whole passage of scripture in Galatians talking about there’s not another gospel, there is no other gospel. There doesn’t need to be another gospel. Jesus paid it all. When he said, it is finished. It was complete, it was final, it was done. We’ve got a precious gift in the Lord Jesus Christ. No greater gift could be given, has been given. We’re set as sons of God when we put our faith and trust in him. We’re also sealed by the Spirit of God waiting to be delivered when Jesus returns. And we could talk about that, but we’re also set apart for the master’s use. God’s got a purpose for you. God’s got a purpose for me. It’s not just to. Take up space. It’s not just to nod and smile at your preacher, although that helps, David. That helps. And nodding in this way, not nodding off. Okay, nodding up and down. Up and down works. But God set us apart for his use. He’s got a plan for our life. Listen, I know I think of our loved ones here that are going through sicknesses, going through diseases in their body, and it seems like they just can’t get ahead. The body is wearing them down. God’s got a purpose. God’s got a reason for it all. He’s working it out. Brother Randall and sister Cathy. Miss Terry. Brother Billy. Miss Joe. He’s he’s working his purpose out this home, going with Miss Rachel this this past year, that was his design. He he allowed that to happen. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. It’s sorrowful for us, but it’s homegoing for her. And when Jesus saw her coming, it was precious in his sight. We look at it all backwards because we don’t look at it as the way Jesus looks at it. We’ve got great privileges being a child of God. I hope you’ll remember that. I hope you’ll know that there’s no greater gift you could receive this Christmas if you’ve never received Jesus to trust Him. Don’t listen. Stop playing and just put your faith and trust in Jesus. Amen. We’d rejoice with you. But those of us that are saved, don’t forget that what God did for us. When the fullness of the time was come, god sent forth His Son. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. There’s no greater gift that could be given. How much more should you and I in turn live for Him, right? Because he gave so much for us? Send forth his son Made up a woman made under the law to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons. Are you redeemed your name in heaven? Listen to Brother Brian Shannon. Give a testimony. One of the Indian ladies went to be home with the Lord recently, and I believe it was her daughter that she was telling this to somebody in her family. She said she said, It’s okay. I know my name is in the book. Amen. What a blessing. What a blessing. Do you know that you know that your name is in that book? It can be this morning if you know that. Listen, we’ve got so much to thank God for. Let’s remember that and rejoice that. God see you in the Son. Amen. Let’s stand hid by an ice. Closed. If you need to be saved this morning, I’ll ask you to come and we’ll take the Bible. We’ll show you how to be saved. It’s real simple. Jesus paid it all. Just got to trust him. Know that you’re a sinner. And everyone in here this morning should admit that know that Jesus died on the cross for your sins. Know that you can’t save yourself, say Jesus from the bottom of your heart. Forgive me of my sins. Save me by your blood. He has promised he would do that. If you call upon him whose service are called upon, the name of the Lord shall be saved. If that’s you this morning, won’t you come and pray? We’ll take somebody and we’ll pray with you. We want to make sure that you know that heaven is your home. We’re not guaranteed of tomorrow. How many you know? Your sage. You slip up your hand. What a precious gift God has given you. Let’s not forget it. Let’s not take it for granted. Listen, we’ll be exchanging gifts with our families, our friends. But you’ve already received the greatest gift you could ever have ever been given. Don’t neglect it. Don’t forget about it. Don’t dishonor the Lord. Be thankful to him, okay? Heavenly Father, thank you, Lord, for that unspeakable gift in Jesus Christ. Lord, none of us here this morning are worthy of your love. Lord, thank you for loving us. Lord, I’m not worthy this morning to bring this message. Lord, thank you for giving this treasure in an earthen vessel, a body of clay so that you’d get the glory in the honor and not me, not us. As a church will we pray that our lives would be lived as a thank you for this precious gift that’s been given. Or help us to realize. Remember that you’re always in control of the details of our life. I believe beyond a shine of a doubt that you had before time began that day set for the Lord to come and be born. Lord, I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that you have a day set for Jesus to return. Believe you have a day set for my life to end on this earth. Lord, thank you for the day that you brought salvation to me. Help me to live the rest of my life here on this earth for you be faithful to you. And Lord, help us to trust you in all things. In Jesus name we pray. Help the needs here this morning, whatever they may be. Lord, if there’s someone here that needs to be saved, please show them, help them to stop playing and just trust you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.