Don Stewart :: Why Did Jesus Come at That Particular Time in History?

The question often comes up as to why Jesus came to earth at the specific time that He did. Why didn't He come at another time that perhaps could have been better suited to spread the message? Could Jesus have picked a better time to arrive in history? Was there any special reason He came when He did?

He Came In The Fullness Of Time

The Bible is clear that Jesus came at the prescribed time.

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

His Coming Had Been Predicted

His coming had been predicted in the Old Testament. Jesus upbraided the people for not knowing the time of His coming.

If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you when your enemies will . . . surround you and close you in on every side . . . and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation (Luke 19:42-44).

All the signs had been given, the prophecies fulfilled regarding His coming, yet the people still rejected Him.

There Is Nothing Explicitly Stated As To Why He Came At That Time

Though everything indicates that Jesus came according to God's schedule, nothing is said in Scripture about why He chose that time in history. God is silent on that matter except to say it was at the perfect time. To assume things would be different if instead He had chosen to come in the twenty first century is untrue. Twenty first century humanity has sufficient reason to believe in Jesus. The fact that He chose to come some two thousand years ago does not change the fact that He came and fulfilled that which the Bible had predicted.

Summary

The Bible says that Jesus came into our world "in the fulness of time" in God's program. Other than that the Bible is silent on the matter. For reasons known only to God, He picked that time in history to send His Son. Although the Bible does not give us any reason as to why Jesus came at that time in history there were a number of factors that made it easier to spread His message. When He came there was an international language that all the citizens of the empires spoke, Greek. There was peace in the empire and a great road system that made travel easy. Ultimately, however, the reason for that particular time in history for Jesus to come into the world is known to God alone.