Sermon Text: Galatians 4:4-7
Date: December 24, 2025
Event: The Nativity of our Lord (Christmas Eve)

Galatians 4:4-7 (EHV)

When the set time had fully come, God sent his Son to be born of a woman, so that he would be born under the law, 5in order to redeem those under the law, so that we would be adopted as sons. 6And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts to shout, “Abba, Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son. And if you are a son, then you are also an heir of God through Christ.

God Sent His Son!

This evening, we have been privileged to trace the history of God carrying out the beginning of his plan of salvation. Angel announcements of unexpected and miraculous births lay the foundations for the Savior and his way-preparer to arrive. And tonight we celebrate, chief of all, the birth of Jesus, the one Gabriel assured Mary would be the eternal King promised to David and his descendants.

But if this were simply a wild story about angels and babies, with heart-warming celebrations in humble circumstances, there wouldn’t be much to separate this account from a story like Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol.” If this were just a traditional fiction, we would have very little reason to gather together other than to bring some light and warmth to these darkest and longest nights of the year.

But the apostle Paul, in our brief reading from Galatians 4, helps explain everything we’ve heard and seen tonight. This is not just a story about an adorable baby in a make-shift crib. This is not a story about a young family defying the odds to make it in a cruel world that was set against them. This is a story about God’s Son and his love for you.

Paul speaks about Jesus’ redeeming work. We don’t use the word “redeem” much today outside of the topic of coupons when we go shopping, but the picture remains. When a store redeems a coupon, it is buying that coupon back from you. Usually, it’s been to incentivize a purchase, so they’re giving you some money back or perhaps a free item. But they take that thing in your possession in exchange for something valuable.

You and I needed to be redeemed because we were owned, not by a thrifty shopper, but by sin and death. God’s perfect justice doesn’t allow him to turn a blind eye toward sin and pretend it doesn’t matter. It does. And to be true to what is right and wrong, sin must be punished. Thus, we are in captivity, owned by these horrendous masters, with the result that we would be in hell forever, never experiencing God’s blessings again.

That was not something that God could stomach, so from the very first sin in the Garden of Eden, God promised a Savior. He assured Satan that a champion for mankind was coming who would crush his head. And then through the centuries, through bits and pieces here and there, God revealed parts of his plan. Bits and pieces until the set time had fully come and God blew the roof off of everything by sending Gabriel with those messages to Zechariah and Mary. The time was now.

In order for us to be redeemed, some sort of payment had to be made. The concepts of redemption and ransom are very close to each other. Something had to be paid to get us out of this terrible state that we were in, and that payment would need to be the life of the eternal Son of God.

Paul describes Jesus’ work as being born under the law, in order to redeem those under the law. God is not subject to his own law that he’s put us under, just like the parent of young children is not necessarily subject to the rule of “no cookies before dinner.” It may not be the wisest move from a parenting perspective, but Mom or Dad is technically free to munch on some gingersnaps at 5pm because the rule applies to the kids, not the parents, to those under the law, not the law-makers.

To accomplish anything, Jesus had to submit to God’s laws. This wouldn’t be God playacting, pretending to be a human being. No, this is God taking on our human nature, becoming an actual, full-fledged human being, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. In this way, he put himself under the law that he made. His life of perfection wasn’t a farce; it was real. Jesus, having never sinned at any moment of his earthly life, finally became the first human being ever to live up to God’s standards of perfection.

So part of Jesus’ redeeming work was giving his perfect life to you and to me. We have met God’s expectations of perfection because Jesus has given his perfdection to us. Because of Jesus took our place under the law, now when God looks at you or me, he doesn’t see the sinful failures that we are; he just sees Jesus’ perfection.

The other part of Jesus’ redeeming work would be paying for our sins. It does, perhaps, feel a bit out of the season to think about death on a night like tonight, but there can be and should be no denying that Jesus was born to die. His entire life will be focused on the cross where he will make the payment for your sins and mine, where he will endure the hell that we deserved so that you and I never have to face it.

As we said on Sunday, that God would do this is shocking. But what is the result of Jesus’ life, work, and death in our place? You are no longer a slave, but a son. And if you are a son, then you are also an heir of God through Christ. We are as far removed from the just punishment of hell as could possibly be. Jesus didn’t just free us from sin and send us on our way. He didn’t just free us from sin and leave us as beggars at his door or servants in his house. No, he saved us and gave us the highest position he could grant in the family. We will inherit eternal life, not because we lived our lives so well or did all the right things, but because Jesus saved us. We are forgiven and have been credited with his perfection. The one who was born under the law has indeed redeemed us who are under the law. We are free because of our God’s love and his free forgiveness.

That means our relationship with God is as precious and valuable as it could possibly be. We can address God not as the stern judge or the king who wield power over us, but rather like a little child would address her dear, loving father, “Abba, Father!” This is the complete reversal that Jesus has accomplished for us.

So tonight, enjoy your time at the manger, enjoy this gift of God’s eternal love for you. God sent his Son not because he had to, but because he wanted to. Jesus came not because it was necessary but because he loved you and loved me. Here we have full redemption because today in the town of David, a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11). God sent his Son—for you!

Thanks be to God! Merry Christmas! Amen.

Soli Deo Gloria