Over the last two weekends, I had the privilege of teaching at Discovery Church in Orlando (and yes, the weather was fabulous). I was asked to do a 2-part series in answering one significant question. That question: “What was the world like when Jesus entered into it – why was it the fullness of time?” (Okay, so it’s more like two questions, but they’re intricately linked!) Paul wrote in Galatians 4:4, “In the fullness of time, God sent forth his son.” It’s an incredible statement. God was ordering world events as fertile ground for Jesus’ entry.
Jesus was birthed into a specific context. The biblical writers understood that context and wrote believing their audience did as well. The problem is that the majority of Christians today don’t have a clue what the true Christmas context was. This series sought to rectify that.
Part 1 takes a macro view of the world at that time, looking specifically at the Roman Empire (who was ruling the world at that time), and understanding Caesar Augustus, mentioned in Luke 2 (since Luke is pitting Caesar vs. Jesus), who was not only the most powerful man in the world at the birth of Jesus, but the most powerful ruler the world had yet seen.
Part 2 takes a micro view, looking specifically at what was happening in the Jewish world at the time of Christ’s birth, and understanding Herod the Great, mentioned in Matthew 2 (since Matthew is pitting Herod vs. Jesus), who was the most powerful man the Jewish world had ever witnessed in the land of Israel.
I pray that as you watch these teachings, your understanding of the true Christmas story will be dramatically deepened!
You can find the teachings HERE.
