4/26 – Eccs 3Time: Chronos or Kairos
Hello I'm pastor Greg of Calvary
Reformed Church and Chaplain Greg of the
110th wing in Battle Creek Michigan.
We're outdoors today for worship + I will get to the “Why” shortly, but I want to ask you all a
Question. Could you imagine if somebody came up to you and said they wanted to give you a penny for every second. A penny for every second, we know within a minute that would be 60 pennies within a day that would be 68 thousand four hundred pennies that's 864 dollars or six thousand dollars a week, or three hundred and fourteen thousand dollars four hundred ninety six cents per year for a penny a second.
Think about that that if somebody wanted to
give you that money, but you did not take it-- we would lose it. I want us to think today about the seasons of time and time so why are we outdoors here behind our house in the woods.
We found with the grandkids recently --Oh a wonderful old vehicle. Now some of you might be able to look at the vehicle and say what year it
was made or what what model it is. I don't know, but imagine at one point in time the people that bought this they--bought it with hopes and dreams for the future. It was brand-new maybe it was a
family--- maybe it was a single person we don't know ---but they had dreams they had hopes and it was brand new---- but with the seasons of time that roll on what is brand-new changes and it rusts
The seasons of time you know we tend to with in American life we tend to look at life in one way with time and that's the Greek word Chronos. Chronos we tend to see time as we look at the calendar and we say ---okay we have January through December and we have every month has
certain days and we have so many hours and minutes in each day.
We look at the quarantine now as it's been extended till May 15 for the stay-at-home order and we think about as a time period—Cronos.
Runners races they will win a race with what what is like one one-hundredth or one one thousandth of a second. We can get so close to that time--- but there's another way to look at time and that's through the through the Biblical word Kairos.
Kairos, simply means an appointed time an opportunity a season a time. The best place we see the whole idea of Kairos time comes from
Ecclesiastes chapter 3.
I love the fact of Kairos of the Ecclesiastes
chapter 3 back in the 60s ----there was a group called the Birds + they did the song called turn turn turn--- to every season there is a time turn.
I'm gonna read from Ecclesiastes chapter
3 for there is a time for everything a season for every activity under heaven ---a time to be born at a time to die…. if
all we keep going--- I got to point out right here in this first verse in 2nd verse there is a time for everything that that first part of that verse there
is time the word Chronos meaning that that there is a limited amount of time---there is a schedule there is a measured time ---about a time within our lives---- measured amount of time for this car but then the rest of the chapter with the word time
is using the word Kairos season opportunity
There is a time- measured - time
for everything and a season for every
activity under heaven’
- there is a season or a time or an opportunity I love that
- opportunity to be born and a time to die
- there is a time to plant and a time to uproot a time to kill and a time to heal
- there is a time to tear down and a time to build back up
- there is a time to weep and a time to laugh
- there is a time to mourn and a time to dance
- there is a time to scatter stones and a time to gather the stones in
- there's a time to embrace and we're in the time right now to refrain from embracing
- there's a time to search and a time to give up
- there's a time to keep and a time to throw away
- there's a time to tear and a time to mend
- a time to be silent and a time to speak
- a time to love and a time to hate
- a time of war any time of peace
I love the idea of the word Kairos- opportunity
the opportunity that specific time that we have within our lives for carrying out crucial aspects or crucial
jobs that God's given to us, within our
lives.
There's an individual that once
said redeem the time --God only knows
how soon our little life may close with
all of its pleasures in its worries. Redeem the time redeemed the time Kairos ---the idea of an eternal purpose for our time--- friends I think the greatest Kairos time in the world in the universe
took place a little over 2,000 years ago when Yahweh God had His Son become incarnate. Become one with us through Jesus Christ
We know that in Galatians chapter 5 the Apostle Paul says in the fullness of time when the fullness of time had come God sent forth his son to be born a woman when the fullness of time had come---- I find that amazing for the reality is when you look back within history when Jesus Christ was born, the Roman Empire was at its height. The roads were running freely throughout Europe, and the gospel the good news was able to be spread freely.
What's going on today---- today we have the churches that are shut down and yet what we have today is a fullness of time and opportunity through the internet.
I never would have dreamt that all pastors would become televangelists but we all have in the
fullness of time what's going on now but the Covid 19 we still have the opportunity for the good news of Jesus Christ to go out to more people than ever…..
think with me back back in the Old Testament for some of you know the story ---this very well the story of Esther in the book Esther in the Old Testament Esther was a young lady ---she had been raised by her uncle. And the country
that she lived in in the Persian country that she lived in the king became unhappy with his wife and he set out for what we would say do you want to marry a king TV show he had do you want to marry a king. Esther's uncle put her in the contest, Esther ends up winning that and she becomes the new queen for the King.
A few years passed and one of the leaders of
the Persian Empire hates the Jewish people and he convinces the King to allow a time for a genocide to take place against the Jewish people.
Esther is beside herself --she's Queen but
what she does she do---- she's she's also Jewish she goes to her uncle and her uncle says to her---- you do not know Esther but for such a time Kairos as this God has appointed you to be in this place
If you know the story ---she goes into the
king the King accepts her to come in and the Jewish people the Hebrew people--- at
that point are able to protect themselves
For such a time as this---Kairos another word that we can use for---Kairos is opportunity I love the word opportunity -----years ago when so much of not just American culture but European
culture flowed with the tide of the ocean what they call it was the word was OB puto P o T u OB P o
when time and the tide were at their fullest/ high tide. That word became opportunity -- the
season of time when the water was highest with the tide and there was the Op Puto for the boats to come in and out of Harbor.
The season of time we know that ---Christ came in the fullness of time ---we know that Esther was there for such a time as this
--friends God has a reason for us right now God has a reason for you--- you may feel like this time is just really crazy and insane. You may question all that's going on around us and yet
friends if your heart is right with God if you are desiring to walk in relationship with Jesus Christ-- we're called to seize every moment of time that were given to us.
I want to read the last couple of verses of Eccs chapter 3 what sort of right in the middle it says what does the worker gain from his toil--- I've seen the burden God's laid on men and women but he has made everything beautiful nature everything beautiful in his time he has set eternity in our hearts of men and women, yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end I know that there is nothing better than for men and women to be happy to be happy to do good while you're alive and that everyone can eat and drink and find satisfaction in his toil her toil this is a gift of God I know that everything God does will
endure forever.
Kairos time---everything God does will endure forever -- at the opportune time friends
---you know we tend to say that time needs
to be spent I don't think so I think time needs to be invested.
Those opportune times those seasons of time
we're called to invest them--- Jesus says to us in Matthew 6 do not store up for yourself treasures on earth where moth and rust right here don't store for yourself treasures--- at one time this car brand-new for that day cost whoever bought it probably a lot of their income. Don't store up for yourself
treasures were moth and rust corrupt but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not corrupt ----or where thieves will not break in and steal for where your treasure is
there too is your heart.
Friends there's a phrase that we say at
times ----carpe diem---carpe diem it means seize the day -- for such a time as this Esther's uncle says to her she was there in the fullness of
time--- Yahweh God sends his son Jesus
Christ ---
Seize the day, walk in relationship with Jesus Christ and use the opportunities that God has
given to you right now to present your
love of Jesus Christ to others ---and walk
in a faith that God has the best in store for us within our lives.
In the name of the Father Son the Holy Spirit may the Lord bless you and keep you--- may He lift up His grace upon you and may He grant
you grace until we're able to worship
and person together again amen.
