This is a subject that I often think about come the start of a brand new year. With each January 1st, I am moved to think back over the previous year, and years, to see how I have improved, or wasted, this precious commodity called ‘time’. I am compelled to ask questions such as ‘how have I spent my time’, ‘have I made the most of my time’, and ‘how much time have I wasted on meaningless things’. Questions that all of us Christians would do well to ask ourselves.
In Ephesians 5:16, the apostle Paul exhorts his Ephesian readers to ‘make the most of their time’, again suggesting that time is a precious commodity. But, why so? Why is time so precious? Let me offer some reasons.
Put off slothfulness, put off procrastination. Live every moment to its fullest.
First, time is precious because it is brief.
The apostle James tells us in James 4:14 that our lives are ‘just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away’. Again, in Psalm 39:5, King David writes this: ‘Behold, you have made my days as handsbreaths, and my lifetime as nothing in your sight; surely every man at his best is a mere breath’. In other words, our time in this world is short; our time is brief. And just as the scarcity of a commodity makes that commodity all the more valuable, so also, the brevity of time should make time all the more valuable.
Secondly, time is precious because once it is gone, it is gone forever.
Time cannot be retrieved. In this sense, time is quite unique when compared to the other commodities of life. Whatever other things we may possess in life, if we should use them, or sell them, we can to some degree always replace them again. But, not so with ‘time’. Time, once it is used up, is gone forever.
Thirdly, time is precious because what we do with it will determine our future happiness in this world.
If we spend our time on sin, we will reap the consequences of sin. If we spend our time being lazy, we will reap the consequences of laziness. Then again, if we should spend our time pursuing righteousness, if we spend our time pursuing God’s will, well then, life will go well with us. And we will enjoy peace, and joy, and the favor of God in this world. In other words, how we spend our time now, will determine the quality of our lives in the future. For this reason, time should be seen as precious.
Finally, time is precious because what we do with it has eternal significance.
Let us not forget that God has given us a predetermined amount of time in this world, and in that span of time, He has given us certain things to do; things that will determine our eternal future. He has given us time in which to serve Him, and what we do with that time will determine our rewards in heaven. In Matthew 6:19-20 Jesus said ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroy, and where thieves do not break in or steal’. In these words, Jesus reminds us all that we have a choice, a choice between spending our time pursuing ‘earthly treasures’ or spending our time pursuing ‘heavenly treasures’. And the decision we make has eternal consequences. Again, once our time runs out, our opportunity to store up ‘heavenly treasures’ also runs out. And so, what we do with our time certainly affects our own eternity. But not only that, but what we do with our time may also affect the eternity of somebody else. Our use of time in spreading the gospel and ministering to those around us may be the means that God uses to bring someone else to Himself. And we must not squander this time. We must not say ‘I will speak to him tomorrow’; ‘I will tell that person about Christ tomorrow’. Again, tomorrow may never come.
Practically Speaking
But now, if time is so precious, what can we practically do to ‘redeem it’? Here are a couple of thoughts:
Be Resolved
First, for those who like to make New Years resolutions, consider making the resolution that Jonathan Edwards made for himself, when he said this; ‘Resolved: Never to lose one moment of time, but improve it the most profitable way I possibly can’. In other words, endeavor to make the most of your time. Put off slothfulness, put off procrastination. Live every moment to its fullest.
Be Accountable
Secondly, consider doing what the great Reformer Philip Melancthlon was said to have done. It is said that he would keep a list of all the ways in which he wasted time during the day, and then at the end of the day, he would confess it to the Lord. In other words, keep yourself accountable for wasted time.
And so, as we now embark on the year 2010, may we see this year for what it is. A brief, but precious time, in which we have the opportunity to serve the Lord for His glory. Let us walk as wise men, and make the most of this time.