Redeeming the Time

I was born into and grew up in an Adventist home, and the nearness of Jesus’ return is part of my spiritual DNA. Yet as the decades continue to pass and Jesus does not return, if you’re like me, little by little it is easy to lose that sense of imminence, that sense of urgency, and like the 10 virgins in Matthew 25, fall asleep while we feel the Bridegroom delays His coming. You may ask: “Why would you say that? Adventists are continually preaching and teaching about the soon return of Jesus.”

I answer that while our words speak of Jesus’ soon return, for many the way we live our lives does not. If we are honest with ourselves, our lifestyles barely differ from people who have little or no awareness of the Second Coming. Other than going to church on Saturday morning, our lives are very similar to everyone else’s. We come home from work to watch the same entertainment as does everyone else. We talk about the news, as everyone else does. We upgrade our homes and cars, as everyone else does. We get caught up in sports, as everyone else does. We worry about our retirement fund in the stock market, as everyone else does. I could continue, but I think you get it.

If we really believe in the nearness of Christ’s return, that means we have less and less time to accomplish the mission God gave us of preparing the world to meet Jesus, and time is very precious. As Ellen White in Christ’s Object Lessons observes: “The value of time is beyond computation. Christ regarded every moment as precious, and it is thus that we should regard it.”¹ If we have less and less time to reach our world for Jesus, how should that impact the way we live our daily lives?

Plenty of Time?

Recently a phrase Paul uses twice in his letters caught my attention. That phrase is “redeeming the time” (Eph. 5:16; Col. 4:5). Both references to “redeeming the time” are in Paul’s prison epistles; thus, not only does he write with the nearness of the end in terms of Christ’s return on his mind, but also with the nearness of his own end. Therefore, these are among his most important words to believers, and he pleads with us to “redeem the time.”

We know the limits of God’s timetable are set, and we can’t buy additional time, so what does Paul mean? The word “redeem” means to “buy back.” We are buying back something that was taken from us. The devil has a million ways to take time from us. His favorite way is to make us think we have lots of it—plenty of time to do what we want to do—plenty of time to get serious about winning souls; plenty of time to figure out the best way to proclaim the three angels’ messages; plenty of time to awaken from our Laodicean slumber and be about our Father’s business; plenty of time to prioritize spending our resources on reaching lost people instead of on making ourselves comfortable; plenty of time to serve two masters—to be a friend of God and a friend of the world at the same time; to dabble in the pleasures of the world while we’re working for the Lord, thinking we can enjoy the life and entertainment of the world without compromising our spiritual integrity and power.

Anything that consumes time to the point that we choose it over serving God keeps us spiritually asleep.

How we use time is perhaps one of the devil’s greatest ways to keep us spiritually asleep. Here’s an important principle to remember: “Our time belongs to God. Every moment is His, and we are under the most solemn obligation to improve it to His glory.”² Our time is a God-given gift we are to steward for His glory. Therefore, aside from the obviously sinful things we should not spend time doing, is it possible that even neutral or good things can become distractions the devil uses to keep us spiritually asleep? Could our careers, our social media use, our choice of entertainment, and our involvement in either playing or watching sports begin to absorb time that we should be using to advance God’s cause? Anything that consumes time to the point that we choose it over serving God keeps us spiritually asleep.

The Three P’s

So how do we “redeem”—buy back—for God’s kingdom the time the devil has taken from us and tied up in his kingdom? Ephesians 5:15, 16, says, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” First, we buy back time for God by recognizing the evil in our world and living carefully and wisely. That means we avoid becoming entangled in the evil around us. Because we are immersed in our culture, we have probably subconsciously adopted much evil without even realizing it is evil. Therefore, we need to ask God for special discernment to recognize where He wants us to separate from our cultures.

 Colossians 4:2-5 reads: “Continue earnestly in prayer, being vigilant in it with thanksgiving; meanwhile praying also for us, that God would open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I also am in chains, that I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.” Second, according to this passage, we buy back time for God’s kingdom by doing three things:  praying, preaching, and pursuing the lost.

Paul tells us we redeem time—repurpose it for God’s kingdom—when we pray three ways: earnestly, with passion, energy, and perseverance; vigilantly, meaning to be awake, alert, and on point in our prayers; and gratefully. Rather than focusing on the negative in prayer, we thank God for how He is already working.

We also redeem time when we preach, when we share the Word of God with others and witness to them about Jesus, the mighty Savior who died to forgive them and who is coming back to earth for them very soon. Just as 6,000 years ago the Word of God had power to create life and bring this world into exist, when we speak the Word of God today, it still has power to create spiritual life in people dead in trespasses and sins.

Last, we redeem time when we use it to pursue lost people for the kingdom of God. Paul says to “walk in wisdom toward those who are outside.” Christ’s Object Lessons advises, “The only way in which we can redeem our time is by making the most of that which remains, by being coworkers with God in His great plan of redemption. . . . Now is our time to labor for the salvation of our fellow men.”³ We redeem time back into God’s kingdom when we use it to bless, encourage, serve, and disciple others.

Millions of people will go to Christless graves unless things in their lives change between now and when Jesus comes.

Tithing Your Time

How can we do those things? Here’s a suggestion: Give a tithe of your workweek time to God, excluding the Sabbath hours, for ministry directly to people outside the Adventist Church. For example, if you work 50 hours per week, give God five hours of time Sunday through Thursday, not in church ministries, but in working for your neighbors, friends, and coworkers. One or two evenings a week, instead of sitting down in front of the screen when you get home from work, spend that time with your neighbors. Maybe instead of watching sports every Sunday, help a neighbor with a project in their yard. Maybe instead of spending so much time on social media following friends, do something fun with one of them in person. Visit a neighbor, intentionally listening to their story and what is causing them stress, and then sympathizing with them. Take a coworker out for dinner and get to know them better. And when you’re doing any of those, instead of doing them alone, take a teenager or a young adult along with you so they have the experience too.

Yes, the devil has a million ways to steal from us the time God gave us, and Paul appeals to us to redeem the time—purchase it back from the enemy. Take all that time he has sucked up in waste in his kingdom and repurpose it for the kingdom of God. As we do that, the Lord will give us success. Millions of people will go to Christless graves unless things in their lives change between now and when Jesus comes. We must do something about that. God raised up His church on earth to carry the gospel to the world. We exist for mission. But we can be selfish and disobedient and waste time primarily on ourselves, or we can be unselfish and obedient and redeem time by joining God in His mission to the lost. Let us bring joy to Jesus’ heart as we help more of His lost children find their way home.