It is
generally accepted that Jesus was born around 4BC. One of the reasons
for this date is the reign of Herod the Great. History records him
ruling Judea from 37-3BC, and it was he who ordered all baby boys up to
2-years old in the vicinity of Bethlehem killed. Jesus was probably
around 2 years old when the wise men came, so he would have been born
around 4BC. Assuming He was 33-34-years-old when He was crucified, that
would have been around 29 or 30AD. The Bible records several times the
Pharisees wanted to kill Him, but He kept saying, "My time is not yet
come" (John 7:6-8). Obviously
The Father had Him on a schedule for when He would be crucified. One
obvious target they were shooting for was Passover, but which one? It
occurred every year. What was God waiting for? Why was Jesus crucified
when He was?
The Greek Empire. Alexander's rise to power, succeeding his
father Phillip as king of Macedonia, changed the known world. In only
13 years he defeated Syria, Egypt
and the Medo-Persian Empire, going as far east as India. Equally as
impressive as his military success was his advancement of Greek culture,
called Hellenism. In every city he conquered he instituted schools to
teach Greek philosophy and Koine Greek, which became the common language
of the known world. For the first time since the Tower of Babel, there
was a common language. You could communicate with someone wherever you
went.
The Roman Empire. Where the Greek Empire lasted only about 257
years, the Roman Empire lasted, depending on which parts you track, from
1101-2078 years, spreading over three continents. Best known for
having the most powerful army ever; able to defeat larger armies without
airplanes, tanks or battleships; they are also known for building many
of the great cities still standing today. Examples are London, England
(Londinium) and Cologne, Germany (Colonia Agrippina). Known as the
great builders, they built aqueducts, roads, baths, walls, theaters,
temples, arches, cities, palaces, etc. When the Romans came they not
only brought their army, but also their Latin Language. Today we use the Arabic numbers to do math,
but we still use the Roman alphabet (with a few letters added, i.e. W)
to verbally communicate. Most western languages are based on Roman
Latin.
Now back to the title of this article. The reason Jesus was born when He was is explained in Gal. 4:4, "But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a women, made under the law."
The word translated fullness means completion, what fills something, or
what is filled by something. As it is used in Gal. 4:4 it means, "the
end of an appointed period." Look at the known world before the Greek
Empire and after the Romans arrived. After Pentecost and the
persecution that followed, the Apostles and the disciples (especially
Paul) hit the Roman Roads with the Greek and Roman Languages and spread
the Gospel world-wide.
None of that would have been possible prior to Alexander the Great and
the subsequent Roman Empire. The fullness of the time was come. God was waiting for a common language and a modern transportation system to spread the Gospel.
