Paul tells the Ephesians in verse 15 that they need to be wise concerning their ways, and then in verse 16 he tells them that they need to be wise concerning their days.
At the beginning of a New Year, I think it would be good for us to consider the importance of time since it is what days are made of.
How important is time?
Time is so important the Bible commands us to “redeem the time.” Twice we are told to redeem the time: “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Eph. 5:16). “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (Col. 4:5).
Some of us have, in all probability, very little more ‘time’ to ‘redeem.’ Some of us have, in all probability, the prospect of many years yet to live. For both classes my text presents the best motto for another year.
What is time?
When Augustine was asked, “What is time?” he replied, “If no one asks me, I know; if I want to explain it to someone who does ask me, I do not know.”
Another has said with tongue-in-cheek, “Time is that which keeps everything from happening at once.”
What is time? Let me define time in two ways.
A. It is A Divine Gift
Someone has said, “Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why it is called the present!” Time is among many things a gift. Each day that we live is a gift. Since we began and close each day with no promise of another, each day we are given is a gift.
Every day of life is a gift. Understanding that God is the giver of life, and that the length of our days are in His hands, we realize that time is a gift from God.
Time is something that is given to us by God. We work hard to expand and extend our time, but ultimately the number of our days is determined by God. Therefore, each day and every day is a gift from God.
B. It is A Daily Grant
With the gift of time comes responsibility. Each day has been given to us by God as a grant or trust. Time is something we are entrusted with. As the receivers of time, we are stewards of God’s gift.
James 4.14 “Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”
Proverbs 27:1 “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.”
A. Time Will SWIFTY Pass
O, the swiftness with which it passes. If there is one thing that is characteristic of time it is its speed. The seconds fly by so fast. The minutes continue without interruption. Life is like a fleeting shadow.
The Bible is constantly speaking to us of the swiftness of time’s passing.
Psalms 39:4,5 “LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.”
B. Time Will SURELY End
Hebrews 9:27 “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”
Time is a precious matter. Time is a passing matter.
The moment a man is born, he begins to die. Death could come at any moment by disease, disaster, or decay. Man is not here to stay, but he is here to die
This world is not my home. I am just a passing through. We should stand in awe of the time we are journeying through.
Only on life will soon be past.
In this period we call time that we are traveling through,
A. There Is PROGRESS We Should Make
Philippians 3:14 “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
The apostle Paul was a firm believer in forward progress. In the book of Philippians, Paul vividly explained that he left the past in the past, and pressed. Like Paul, we must not focus on the failures of the past; nor can we afford to focus on the fears of the future. We must simply keep pressing forward for Christ.
Forward progress in this life requires two things of us: FOCUS and FAITH.
Concerning the matter of focus, Paul said, "...this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before," (Phil.3: 13b). Paul’s focus was always forward.
It doesn’t matter how long you have been saved and how spiritual mature a person may be, there is always room for further growth and development. Spiritual growth is not for a time in your Christian life. It is for the total of your Christian life. It is not for a while, but for the whole.
Peter said, "But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." It doesn’t matter how much you know about the Lord, there is always far more to learn. The truth is, there is more than you can learn in a lifetime. Spiritual growth means you are always learning and always growing.
Not only should we be a people of focus, but we must also be a people of faith.
B. There Is People Whom We Shall Meet
We should be touching lives everyday with the gospel. However, we can cannot make a difference unless we establish relationships with people.
1. There must be genuine interest in
2. There must be gracious involvement with
This will involve time and money. It will involve personal inconveniences. We have to get involved with people if we are going to touch their lives with the gospel.
When the Bible tells us to redeem the time it is calling for a proper management of our time. The word “redeem” means “to buy up.” We would say, “To make the most of our time.” We are to taking advantage of every opportunity.
To redeem the time that is divinely and daily given to us is to manage time so that it is personally and eternally profitable.
Benjamin Franklin said, “Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of.” Rather than squandering time, we are to manage or redeem our time.
Men can mark time, waste time, and kill time. Only a Christian who walks in wisdom can redeem time. In order to redeem the time, let me suggest two steps to take.
A. Priorities Must Be Settled
All time management speakers and authors emphasize the importance of priorities.
When the Bible calls for us to redeem the time, it is calling for us to get our priorities right.
B. Opportunities Must Be Seized
Lost, yesterday, somewhere between sunrise and sunset,
two golden hours, each set with sixty diamond minutes.
No reward offered, for they are gone for ever.
Believers are to take advantage of every spiritual opportunity because we know that the night is coming when no one can work. There is an open window in time for the gospel. We must seize the moment!
The word “redeem” that is used in our text is a word from the market place. You go down to your supermarket and look for bargains because you know they will not last long; they are passing away. Therefore, you make the most of them and buy them up. This is exactly the word he employs here. Buy up the opportunities which are created constantly by the evil days.
An ancient Greek statue depicted a man with wings on his feet, a large lock of hair on the front of his head, and no hair at all on the back. Beneath was the inscription:
“Who made thee? Lysippus [lahy-sip-uh s] made me. What is thy name? My name is Opportunity. Why hast thou wings on thy feet? That I may fly away swiftly. Why hast thou a great forelock? That men may seize me when I come. Why art thou bald in back? That when I am gone by, none can lay hold of me.”
Spend your time in nothing which you know must be repented of; in nothing on which you might not pray for the blessing of God upon ; in nothing which you would regret on your dying bed.
ETERNITY will be appreciated only in the measure that we have rightly handled TIME!
Redeeming the time means that we buy up and seize the opportunities that are presented us.
A farm boy accidentally overturned his wagonload of corn in the road. The farmer who lived nearby came to investigate. “Hey, Willis,” he called out, “Forget your troubles for a spell and come on in and have dinner with us. Then I’ll help you get the wagon up.”
“That’s mighty nice of you,” Willis answered, “But I don’t think Pa would like me to.”
“Aw, come on, son!” the farmer insisted.
“Well, okay,” the boy finally agreed. “But Pa won’t like it.” After a hearty dinner, Willis thanked his host. “I feel a lot better now, but I just know Pa is going to be real upset.”
“Don’t be foolish!” exclaimed the neighbor. “By the way, where is your Pa?”
“He’s under the wagon.”
There are some things best not put off until a later time. Take the matter of salvation. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 6:2, “…behold, now is the a accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
There is also the matter of service. If you are saved you should live for God and serve Him now. If you are too busy to serve God, then you are too busy.
The Bible commands us to redeem the time. To redeem the time priorities must be settled and opportunities must be seized.
Conclusion
An anonymous writer has said, “One thing you can’t recycle is wasted time.”
U.S. News and World Report did a survey of 6,000 people in 1988 and found that the average American will spend during their lifetime:
• Six months sitting at stoplights
• Eight months opening junk mail
• One year looking for misplaced objects
• Two years unsuccessfully returning phone calls
• Four years doing housework
• Five years waiting in line
• Six years eating
When I read that, I thought to myself, so much of our time is wasted. So much time of our is misused.
Let us determine now to redeem the time that God has given us.
