A Bible Study Web Site for Children, Teens and College Students

Bible Topic #9

It's about time

     One of the most fascinating subjects in the world is TIME. A certain amount of time for each one of us to be on earth was determined by God in eternity past. Yes... He decreed that time for us, and whether we are children in school or the president of the United States, rich or poor, young or old, we must learn how to use that time wisely.

     We all organize our days in some way to make time for carrying on routine activities of life, but while organizing our time is good" that alone won't offer the lasting happiness we all desire.

     In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon tells how he tried everything money could buy to make himself happy, but in his old age, he came to the conclusion that his problem was that he did not have fellowship with the Lord. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, and you have known sin in your life that you have not confessed to the Lord, you will think exactly as Solomon did about life when he was out of fellowship.

     Only the believer who puts God's Word, Bible Doctrine, first in his life, can have real happiness and find his very own personal sense of destiny. At the very moment you were born-again, a certain number of DAYS were assigned for you to live on this earth. In Psalm 90:12, David prayed, "So teach us to number our DAYS, so we may apply our minds to seek wisdom." Yes, God gives us days '" not months, weeks or years, but just one day at a time. If we failed yesterday, today is a brand new day, and we need to name our sin, forget about it, profit from our failure and move on. God forgives our sin and purifies us from all our unknown sins as well. (1 John 1 :9) When we name our sins to God, he forgets them, so we also should forget them. Neither should we remember the sins of others who may have done something against us, but we must learn to treat them in grace, just as the Lord has treated us in grace.    (Mark 11 :25,26)

     God's timing is perfect. He has given a particular amount of time to each one of us in order to bring glory to Himself. In carrying out our tedious or boring everyday tasks, our lives can bring glory to God if we learn and apply His viewpoint to every situation we encounter.

     Suppose a friend who loves you dearly would place 86,400 pennies in your bank account every day? GREAT? First you would want to calculate how much that amounts to in dollars, and the answer would be $864 a day, $6,048 a week, and $314,496.00 a year. You'd probably say 'Wow! I can buy all the things I've always wanted with that kind of money!" BUT... just a moment... there's a slight catch to it... you must spend the entire $864 every day. What you don't spend, you will lose. (to see how the Exodus generation misused God's provision of manna for them in the wilderness, read Exodus 16:14-21)

      Every new day is an opportunity for the believer to be in fellowship with the Lord, to make good use of his time, and to grow spiritually through a daily intake of Bible doctrine, which the apostle Paul tells us is the 'mind of Christ'. (1 Corinthians 2:16) If you live your days on earth only to please yourself, in the sight of God, that time is wasted. But, if you spend your days living for the Lord, there will be eternal rewards for you when you stand before Him at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

     In Ephesians 5:15,16, the apostle Paul says, "Stop being foolish! Redeem the time God has given you." And in Colossians 4:5, he says, "Redeem your time on earth. Walk in wisdom toward all men." (apply the doctrine you have learned)

     Finally, let's take Jeremiah's advice about using one day at a time wisely: "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. GREAT IS THY FAITHFULNESS." (Lamentations 3:21-23)