Entire Mediterranean Basin under Roman Rule and Control

The Jews were not the only ones whom God was preparing for that correct, that exact, moment in time. He was also making preparation among the non-Jewish world. The entire Mediterranean Basis, as it’s referred to geographically, had come under the control of the Roman Empire at this time.

Rome was a difficult taskmaster. They were a powerful force, but among the things that they brought to the region was a very strict and high degree of law and order. Even though they were resented, particularly by the Jews, they still ruled with sort of an “iron fist,” and what that meant was that there was, generally speaking, a peaceful existence in that region. Well, why was that important? It was important because there was not the political chaos, there was not the social unrest and uneasiness, that had previously existed in this area and that did exist in other areas that fell outside of the purview [scope or extent, as of control, activity, etc.] of the Roman Empire—the tribal warfare, the fighting, not unlike some of what we see go on in that region of world today, where there are little warlords and dictators, and the tribal strife with their continued fighting, and so on. Well, none of that was allowed to go on under the purview of the Roman Empire. There were high standards. There was law and order, and so on. The Romans brought order and control to a divergent people and brought a system of justice.

The Romans had also built a very significant network of highways and roads, and this resulted in excellent trade and travel routes reaching far-flung regions. That spawned a great deal of commerce. It made the economic situation better there, because people in that region could trade with other areas, could bring in goods from other areas, and so on. This sophisticated transportation system spawned travel—people could more easily travel from one region, from one city, to another. This contributed to the spread of Christianity.

Greek had become the Universal Language of Business and Literature. A Second Language to Many in that Day – The New Testament was Written in Greek

The Greeks also made a contribution. During the time of Alexander, the Greek language had become increasingly more and more the second language of a number of people. And so, during the time of the 1^st Century, prior to it a few years, and beyond some years, the Greek language had, in effect, the same status as the English language does today, where English is used, almost, worldwide. It is a very common language, as was the Greek language in the 1^st Century. That is, it was the language of commerce. It was the language of literature. It was really the second language of any number of different peoples who were part of the Roman Empire.

Well, it’s no accident, then, that the New Testament and most of the writings of early Christian scholars were written in what language? Greek, because it was a universal language. And these writings were sent about, this language that most, if not people, could understand.

Bankruptcy of Pagan Religions and Philosophies

There was another area that was being prepared as part of this “preparation of the soil” by God. This preparation was among the non-Jewish people of the day. There had become, if you will, a “bankruptcy” of pagan religions and philosophies. In other words, no, not everyone in the Roman Empire had given up idol worship; no, not everyone in the Roman Empire had turned from their pagan gods, not at all. But, many people had turned away or were disenchanted with these pagan religions and with the philosophies of the day. As a matter of fact, many people had turned from these pagan-type religions to such philosophies as Stoicism and Gnosticism, and some of these other practices.

Well, what does that have to do with God’s “preparation of the soil” to make the time just right? Simply this—that, as we’ve already mentioned, there were a number of non-Jews who had become proselytes to the Jewish religion; therefore, they were exposed, along with the Jews in these communities, to the Gospel, and they were accepting of the Gospel. They, in effect, had already turned their backs on their former religions, and so, they were looking for something.

Speaking of those who had not become proselytes, but had still become disenchanted with their previous pagan practices and philosophies and the like, this made them more receptive to the Gospel when they heard it. And thus, we see that, of course, in the early days of the church, most of those who were converted to the church were Jews. Then eventually, there were some proselytes converted. And then later we know that Gentiles were converted. But as time went on, there became an imbalance between the Jews and the Gentiles such that, by the latter part of the 1^st Century there were many, many more Gentile converts to Christianity, to the church, than there were Jews. And part of that, it is believed, was due to this, if you will, sort of “softening up” that had been taking place in previous generations.

Thus, both in the Jewish world as well as in the pagan world, God had providentially brought to pass the preparation. He had“prepared the soil” in these and, no doubt, many, many other ways, so that when “the fullness of time” came, as Paul characterizes it, it was just the right time. It couldn’t have been a better time. There couldn’t have been more suitable, more acceptable, circumstances for the Son of God to come into the world to conduct His ministry, or for the church, then, to be established, or for Christianity to be spread throughout the world. We can see, indeed, God’s hand in all of this.