For a Time Like This
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Ephesians 5:15–16
Beloved, for many of us, our schedules have been dramatically, or perhaps even traumatically changed! Some of you may have more time on your hands than normal. Time is a gift, a stewardship from the Lord. This present trial (evil?) that has come our way is a wonderful opportunity for all of us to respond in faith with the use of our time.
Before we consider the benefits of this extra time, we should consider how this extra time may provide you with opportunities to sin. John Piper wrote an article once entitled, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer.” In like fashion we should recognize that if we are not careful, we might waste the corona virus that has in His providence invaded the world and the time in which he has placed us.
So we just might waste the corona virus crisis if …
1. …we don’t see this as a part of God’s perfect and loving design to sanctify you.
James assures us that trials are specifically designed to mature you:
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Beloved, this trial is impacting all of us in varying degrees. Wouldn’t you agree that it would be a terrible waste of time to miss the maturing effect of the Spirit through this trial because we frittered away our time seeking comfort in trivial pursuits or complaining about the inconvenience and the way the government is handling this situation or letting fear grip us keeping us from seeing God at work in this trial? Instead, count it all joy! Count it all joy that the Lord has brought the corona virus pandemic into your life! Sounds shocking doesn’t it!? But it is as true as God – who never lies. Why? Because when a trial is received in faith it produces something in you that would not be produced otherwise.
2. … we live in fear instead of faith.
James continues…
… If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, James 1:2–6
And the writer of Hebrews (probably Apollos but I digress!) reminds us that without faith it is impossible to please Him. Hebrews 11:6
When the world speaks of faith it is nebulous and sentimental. Biblical faith on the other hand is gritty, and tangible, dangerous even. It says I trust in the character of God and that I will with abandon risk everything for God and his glory. If you don’t face this time in world history with this gritty faith you will miss an opportunity to point to the object of such faith – Jesus Christ – the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross.. Hebrews 12:2b
3. … we have greater hope in a cure for the corona virus than in Christ.
I am so glad for modern health care. In fact I wouldn’t be here today without it (and that is probably true for many of you reading this). Yet, scriptures are clear, … it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, Hebrews 9:27. Surely there is something more hopeful than physical life! And there is – Christ and the hope of seeing him. While we may know this, we will waste this health related crisis if we spend our time searching the internet for answers and take comfort in statistics. There is one statistic that is true for all of us, 100% of us – we will see Christ – either as a righteous judge or a glorious Savior. Spend your time in worship of Him!
4. … we spend our time in listless pursuits.
The temptation before many of us will be to spend our newly found free time endlessly scrolling through face book (or twitter, Instagram, or pintrest!), playing one more game of solitaire, or binging on a favorite tv series. Paul in our passage warns against this – “look carefully… walk not as unwise, make the best use of your time.” We should assume then,that wasting time is a problem for all of us. What if you had to keep a log of your time and hand it to someone? What would that reveal to that person? If you fritter it away in listless pursuits – well, it’s just gone and opportunities for the Kingdom will be lost.
5. … we spend our time in pursuits that are in and of themselves sinful.
It would be foolish to ignore the context of our passage and lose sight of the sexual immorality Paul warns about just previously. Someone (maybe Chaucer in the 12th c) once said, “an idle mind is the devil’s workshop.” There’s much lacking regarding our motivation for doing right in this salty wisdom. However, it is a truism that when we waste our time on mindless pursuits we find ourselves more tempted. AND TEMPTATION ABOUNDS (yes, I’m keyboard shouting!). Folks, you are merely one click away from horrible sin. Recognize this and plan to use your time in such a way that you are so enthralled with your work for the glory of Christ this isn’t an issue! Otherwise the health issues that come from the corona virus and the inconvenience of this pandemic will be the least of your troubles – and you will have wasted precious time getting into that trouble.
There is Hope!
Amidst these helpful warnings is great cause for hope! Paul’s words in fact are brimming with hope. “Look carefully…“ points back to not only Christ shining in you in the previous verses but the totality of the Gospel proclaimed and displayed in the covenant family of God in the rest of Ephesians (why not read it together with your family this week?). “Look carefully,” “walk, … as wise,” “making the best use of your time” take on a call to Resurrection empowered action in these evil days. And He who calls you to do it is faithful!
1. How can we look carefully?
Think deeply about how you will use your time. What book have you been hoping to read? How about catching up on your yearly bible reading plan you’ve started and stopped year after year? Who do you wish you had more time to call? Call them! What are some ways you’ve wished you could minister to your family (a chore, a project, a word from Scripture) that just hasn’t gotten accomplished? Now you have time – rejoice! Who needs your comfort in this time? Listen long and encourage with the true things from Scripture. All of these things require you to stop and look with eyes full of care – care to love God with our entire being and our neighbors (Matt. 22:37 – 39).
2. What does walking wisely look like?
In times like these we need wisdom. Thankfully we have a God who lavishes us with grace (Eph. 1), fills our cup to overflowing (Ps. 23), and provides abundant wisdom when we ask in faith (Js. 1). Our call here is to prayer. As you go to Him go with all the confidence that He is pleased to answer your prayer regarding how to walk wisely.
It is also a call to be biblical. Most wise living is not a mystery but a matter of obedience to the clarity of Scripture. Search Scriptures as you pray. The Psalmist tells us to “delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Ps. 37:4) Delighting in the Lord requires delighting in his word!
3. What is the best use of our time?
God is not subject to time… but we are. However, this is not a burden, but a gift given to us at creation (Gen. 1:14-19). Yet the fall also affected this good gift. Our use of time has a profound way of demonstrating what is important to us. Consider the stories of those who have been told they have a short amount of time to live – they often cast aside certain things to focus on what they deem as the most important things. When we don’t consider the brevity (Js. 4:14) of our lives we are quickly tempted to misuse the gift or stewardship of time given to us by the Lord for his glory. Do you ever consider this? Now is the time (pun intended)! This pandemic has provided you with a wonderful opportunity to consider carefully what will be the best use of your time. Start by considering the role(s) that God has given to you – husband, wife, father, mother, child, employer, employee, grandparent, member of the body of Christ (heavenly citizenship), citizen in an earthly community. As you consider these roles let the Scriptures inform you as to what they should look like. Ephesians, Colossians, and Philippians are a good place to start.
So what are you going to do with your time? Whatever it is make sure that you look carefully and walk wisely – making the best use of your time.