“Seize the Moment”
Ephesians 5:15-16
REVIEW
I. Our Wealth and Worth In Christ 1-3
II. Our Worthy Walk in Christ 4-6
A. Live in Unity 4:1-16
B. Live in Newness of life 4:17-24
C. Live in Love 4:17-24
D. Live in Purity 5:3-14
INTRODUCTION
In these economic times, everyone is about getting the most out of everything. We keep things longer. We make things last. We get every bit of use out of our possession that we can.
We have many sophisticated instruments to measure and tell time. Unfortunately, they are useless for measuring how efficiently we use time. Most anyone can tell me what time it is at any given moment of the day. Few pay much attention to how well we spend our time.
There is something more important than knowing what time it is – What’s more important is knowing how you are spending your time. Many times during the day we all check to see what time it is. But very seldom to we actually check to see how we are spending our time.
Let’s pretend that I pull you aside this morning and say I have some very good news for you.
And I tell you that an anonymous donor who loves you very much has decided to deposit 86,400 pennies into your account each morning, starting Monday morning. For those of us who might be mathematically challenged, that’s $864 a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year.
There’s one stipulation... you must spend all that money that same day. No balance will be carried over to the next day. Each evening the bank must cancel whatever sum you failed to use.” With a big smile, you thank me and thank God for being so very good to you. You have time to plan your spending strategy the rest of the day. You grab a pencil and start figuring; $864 times 7 equals over $6,000 a week... times 52. That’s almost $315,000 a year that you have available to you if you work hard to spend it all each day. Remember, whatever you don’t spend is forfeited. You could probably spend it, but it would take some planning wouldn’t it? I mean who would want to throw away any money left over at the end of the day? There would be a great sense of loss if it wasn’t used properly. What will I spend it on?
Personal things. Things that have eternal value. People, family, friends, needy.
Every morning someone who loves you very much deposits into your bank of time 86,400 seconds of time---which represent 1,440 minutes---which, of course, equal 24 hours each day.
Now you’ve got to remember the same stipulation applies, because God gives you this amount of time for you to use each day. Nothing is ever carried over on credit to the next day. There is no such thing as a twenty-six hour day. (Though some of us wish there were).
“Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you want to, but you can spend it only once.”
Are we careful about the way you we spend our allotment? Do we “spend” our time on frivolous activity or on things that count for eternity? The difference between great achievement and little achievement often boils down to how we use the time we have been allotted; and everyone receives exactly the same amount of time. Time is not a renewable resource and we will be held accountable for how we used it. It does not multiply or gain interest. You can’t borrow it. You can’t save it up. We must be careful what we do with it.
Opportunities to affect eternity present themselves all through our life. We can choose to engage or evade. We can decide to invest or ignore. That particular opportunity will never come again. There may be others, but that one is gone forever. Eternal rewards hinge on how we use the time we have been given here. Many are willing to give financial resources. Not as many statically invest time for kingdom purposes. Let’s look more closely at what God has to say about the wise use of time.
E. Live in Wisdom 5:15-6:9
Paul moved to a new category. The broad category is introduced in verse 15 and fleshed out on into chapter 6.
15So, then, be careful how you live. Do not be unwise but wise, 16making the best use of (redeeming) the time because the days are evil.
The “so then” points us back to what Paul asserted just prior. He made a point of reminding them that they were once darkness and now they are light. This was just another reminder of the fact that they are to continually live different because they are different. He told them to look closely and carefully. Paul called them to “look”, see, perceive, be aware of, think about, watch out for. Not only to look with intensity but with clarity and care. He added the adverb. carefully, accurately, diligently, circumspectly (looking all around).
So Paul urged those living in the cultural sewer of the city to closely watch how they lived.
The thing they were to give close attention was whether or not they were living wisely.
Live not as unwise but as wise.
They were not longer to live as children of darkness but children of light. They are His workmanship created for good works that they should live in them. They were made alive in Jesus to not only live in the light but to shine the light. They were not to live in ignorance but wisdom. They were not to live foolishly but wisely. They were no longer to live in darkness but enlightenment. He had already touched on these truths. They grew up following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that energizes the sons of disobedience. They grew up living in the passions of their flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. (2:1-3)
Paul called them to rise above their past and live like children of light. He urged them to make sure they lived with wisdom. He the specified what a life lived in wisdom looks like shortly.
First, let’s look briefly at the meaning of wisdom.
How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. Proverbs 16:16
Wisdom is a multifaceted concept. At its core, wisdom described the skillful application of data, or knowledge to life. It may manifest in human relations or in creative skills. I can know all about a hammer and saw but possess no ability to apply them to building. I can know about the mechanics of driving but be a foolish driver. I can know truth but fail to effectively apply it to everyday life. Wisdom is the prudent application of knowledge to life.
The Bible identifies two realms of wisdom. It identifies the wisdom of man which applies knowledge apart from acknowledging God. It encourages God’s wisdom which is intricately tied to God Himself and His revelation. Proverbs reveals God’s wisdom concerning life and relationships. There is a running contrast between God’s wisdom (the wise) and man’s wisdom (the foolish).
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10
The ability to apply knowledge to everyday life comes from God and His word. It is one thing to know about a thing, it is another to understand its relationship to life.
O how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies, For they are ever mine. I have more insight than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the aged, Because I have observed Your precepts. Psalms 119:97-100
Proverbs encourages pursuit of wisdom.
Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will guard you; Love her, and she will watch over you. The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding. Prize her, and she will exalt you; she will honor you if you embrace her. She will place on your head a garland of grace; she will present you with a crown of beauty. Proverbs 4:5-9
For the Christian, Christ became to us wisdom.Wisdom comes from Jesus.
But by God’s doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, 1 Corinthians 1:30
The Bible calls the one who tries to understand life apart from God is a fool.
The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God," They are corrupt, and have committed abominable injustice; there is no one who does good. God has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there is anyone who understands, who seeks after God. Every one of them has turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. Psalms 53:1-3
We are to live wisely. We are to live according to God’s revelation concerning life. We are to live according to the enlightenment and energy of the Holy Spirit. Paul later encourages us to understand what the will of the Lord is. Wise living is inseparable from a live obedient to God’s will.
We will focus on knowing and doing the will of God next week. The rest of today we will focus on the first specific application of Paul’s admonishment to be careful how we live in wisdom and not foolishness.
1. Seize every opportune moment to shine His light 5:15-16
Be careful how you live, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of (redeeming) the time, because the days are evil.
A life of wisdom pays attention to how they are living. A life of wisdom pays attention to their use of time. Paul provides the “what” and the “why” in this verse. Wise living utilizes time effectively. A couple important terms need unpacking. The noun translated “time” and the participle (“ing” word) translated “redeeming” or (making the most of”.
There are two basic Greek words translated by our English word “time”. One is chronos from which we get our words chronology, chronograph, chronicle. It has to do with measuring actual minutes of the day. It can refer to a period of time. The other is “kairos” which has more to do with a season or period of time. It refers to a moment of time, as season, the times, opportune moments. Jesus told His disciples that it was not for them to know the “times” or the epochs. It was harvest time. Jesus said my “time” is near. Paul considered the sufferings of this present “time” not worthy to be compared to eternity. At just the right “kairos” Christ died for our sins.
If I asked you what “chronos” is it you would look at your watch and tell me 12:00.
If I asked you what “kairos” is it you might answer May, Spring, church time, morning.
It was used to indicate a season of time. It could also be understood to indicate a moment of opportunity. There was a Greek mythological character named character named “Kairos”.
In one of the ancient Greek cities this statue stood in the very center of the city. It was carved and chiseled by a man named Lysipus. It had wings on its feet and it had a great lock of hair in the front and it was bald in the back, from the middle back completely bald. And underneath the statue was a great base and carved in Greek on the base was this dialogue: Who made thee? Lysipus 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 forelock? That men may seize me when I come. Why art thou bald in back? When I am gone by none can lay hold of me.
Now the second important term here is “redeem”. This means to buy back, purchase back.
It is an important term related to our salvation as the sacrifice of Jesus “redeemed” us out of the slave market of sin by the payment of a price. Here, we are instructed to redeem every opportunity to shine as children of light in a dark world. Seize every moment from the enemy to shine His light in a dark world. Throughout our whole life, numerous opportunities arise to live wisely. We are to demonstrate wise behavior in every situation we face.
He is not saying to schedule every second of the day. He is reminding us to take advantage of every opportunity that arises. Live intentionally. Don’t let life dictate what you do. When an opportunity presents itself – take it. Seize every opportune moment to shine the light in a dark place.
The reason we are to live our lives with such intentionality is that we live in dark days. The days are evil and will swallow up those opportunities if we let it happen. Several passages bring even more specificity to this instruction.
Seize every opportune moment to deepen your relationship with God.
How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. Psalms 1:1-2
The followers of Jesus were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. Acts 2:42-43
Seize every opportune moment to share Jesus with the lost.
Devote yourselves to prayer; stay alert in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us that God may open a door to us for the message, to speak the mystery of the Messiah, for which I am in prison, so that I may reveal it as I am required to speak. Act wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. Your speech should always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person. Colossians 4:2-6
Seize every opportune moment to do good for others.
Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith. Galatians 6:9-10
Conclusion
We all have been gifted with the same amount of time. Even though we all have 24 hours each day to seize opportunities to serve Jesus, none of us knows just how many days we actually have. How differently we would probably live if we learned we had only 30 days to live. We would most likely make every opportunity count.
This is not a message on time management although we could use some help in that area. God instructs us to take a close look at how we are living. Are we seizing every opportune moment to invest in the eternal? We miss so many opportunities. We waste so much time on things that have no eternal value.
Jesus said,
We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. John 9:4
Take the time to contemplate your life. You are children of light. You are light.
Therefore, be careful how you live. Do not be unwise but wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil.
Carefully examine your life. Don’t live foolishly but wisely. Redeem every opportunity because we living in an evil world that will eat up every opportunity to know Jesus better, share with others and serve others.
I remember a little plague on the wall as I was growing up many of you have seen it too.
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.
That is actually just a part of a more extensive poem by C.T. Studd.
On January 13, 1877, Studd who had recently received $145,000 from an inheritance, put it all in the bank of heaven, and continued on with work in China as a poor missionary. Before it was all over, he had also brought Christ to India, challenged students across America to Christian service, and pioneered a great work in Africa where he died at age 70. That work became the World-wide Evangelization Crusade.
The following poem is reflective of his absolute commitment to the cause of Christ.
Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.
Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say,”Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say “twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last. ”
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be, If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.”
C.T Studd
