Time, Time, Time

‘Time in the Word’ By Clayton Adams

The apostle Paul wrote, “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son , born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).

I have often wondered why God chose the time, place and events to send His Son to be born on earth. For His own purposes, plan and time God chose the exact place, circumstances and time for His Son to be born.

I do not begin to understand His timing, no person can.

Time is perhaps, the most valuable of all commodities. Everything and everyone have a beginning and an ending time. Time never stops.

We measure time by the clock and by sunrise and sunset. Time seems to speed up as one grows old but as a youth it ticks by ever so slowly.

God has a different perspective about time.

We read, “Do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:8-9).

God is patient and God is timely. He tells us that everything and everyone have been scheduled according to His time, “There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven. He has made everything appropriate in its time.

He has also set eternity in their heart…” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 11). All our lives and events happen within the time frame God has designed.

There is one person in the Bible who asked God to extend his life longer than was originally designed. After Hezekiah prayed to God asking for more time in life, God answered and granted another 15 years to Hezekiah’s life – but as we read (Isaiah 36-38) not all things went well during these years.

In another example of God altering time, Joshua, the leader of the Israelites (Joshua 10) prayed, “Then Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the sons of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, “O sun, stand still at Gibeon, And O moon, in the valley of Aijalon.”

So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies. Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. There was no day like that before it or after it, when the Lord listened to the voice of a man; for the Lord fought for Israel” (Joshua 10:1213).

Joshua, in the thick of a battle, asked God to stop time so that Israel would completely defeat their enemy. God answered this prayer by stopping the sun and moon in time.

Amazing and miraculous!

Hezekiah and Joshua serve as examples for the fact that time belongs to God. God created the concept of time and put His creation of time into practice with the scattering of the sun, moon, stars, seasons, seconds, minutes and years. God is perfect in His timing. He is never early or late. God is not surprised by anything and has all things scheduled in perfect timing, according to His good plans.

Wasted time, I have wasted time. We each waste time. I know a man I greatly respect and he once told me that he regrets coming to Jesus for salvation so late in his life. He said that he wasted so many years pursuing what he wanted instead of pursuing what God wanted. Since this man has put his faith and trust in Jesus, this man has worked tirelessly to build God’s kingdom and not his. With all he is, this man would, if he could, go back in time and give his life to Christ much sooner than he did. He is an old man now but God has helped him redeem the time wasted.

We read, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be unwise but understanding what the will of the Lord is (Ephesians 5:15-16).

Perhaps you find yourself with more years behind you than in front of you, or perhaps you realize you have wasted time running after that elusive happiness, finally grabbing hold of what you chased only to find it has brought you no happiness. God can and does redeem the time you have wasted. This Christmas, I encourage you to examine your life. What have you been spending your time hunting for? Happiness, success, riches, recognition? What will last the test of eternity? When your family stands over your grave, what will they remember you for?

That you pursued what you wanted or what God had planned for you?

Time is running out for all of us for we each have a certain amount of time to live and then we die.

What or who are you living for? What are you doing with your gift of time?

Clayton Adams has a message of faith he would like to share with the community. He would also like to hear from you.

E-mail him at claytonpadamslll@ gmail.com.