In the Fullness of Time

Scripture says that Jesus was born in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4) He was born at the exact time when his message could spread most easily. Charles Stanley notes that, before Jesus’ birth, Alexander the Great had made Greek the common language throughout the known world. The Romans did the same with their system of roadways. *

But what about us? Where do we fit into this picture? Consider this.

In August 1979, I went to my first college class at what was then Cincinnati Bible College; it wasn’t supposed to happen. When my OVR (Office of Vocational Rehab) counselor heard I wanted to go to a Bible college in Cincinnati on top of a hill, they sent someone to check it out. Their finding: no one using a wheelchair would survive there.

They may have been right. But I talked them into letting me go as long as I could find five guys to help do my care and push my wheelchair. Essentially, to help me get out of bed each morning and in bed at night. Cindy, who was also a freshman, and from my home church recruited five guys for me. She left school after one semester.

With helpers recruited, my parents drove me from Northwest Ohio to Cincinnati to set up my room. The next day I went to my first class, Old Testament survey. It was in the largest classroom on campus. The room held over 150 students. The only entry was down steps. Each tier had desks going across the room.

It is my first day of class and the guys, who I don’t really know, are asking me where I want to sit. My first thought was home. Looking down at the classroom, I took note of my fellow students. There was a guy who looked to be a little older than most of the students. He appeared safe and was sitting at the end of the row. I told my helpers, “Park me next to him.” We introduced ourselves; his name was Bill, and the class started. I saw him occasionally around campus. Soon I was sitting with people who were my new friends.

Fast forward three years, I started going to the church in Cincinnati where a friend of mine served as youth minister. One Sunday morning, one of the deacons preached. His name was Bill. He told the story about his first day at Bible college. Bill was not your typical college student; he worked night shift at the post office and went to college during the day. One of his first classes was an Old Testament survey class. He was in a large classroom when he heard “thump, thump, thump.” Bill looked up and “there was a kid in a wheelchair being carried down the aisle I was sitting in and they parked him right next to me”. Bill had wondered if going to Bible college was something God really wanted him to do. He said to himself, “If this kid in the wheelchair can do it, I can too”.

The fullness of time is a funny phrase. Looking back, I think that Cindy, Bill, and I were at Cincinnati Bible College, in the fullness of time.

But what about you?

Where are you today?

All the starts and stops of life, the joys, the sorrows, the highlights, and the hurts brought you to this moment. I am confident whatever got you here came through the hands of God, for this moment. It might be to do something bold and adventurous, or it might be just a smile at the right time to the right person that helps them hang on a little while longer. Whatever it is, you are here at the fullness of time.

 * NASB Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible Notes on Galatians 4:4