This is the last devotional in this series. Today we will be focusing on Christ as our perfect example of redeeming the time. Through the course of this series, we have seen just how broad sin can be, and just how narrow righteousness is. For instance, while we seek to pray, read and study the Bible, and be faithful in family worship, it can be easy for us to allow ourselves to be distracted and treat God’s time lightly. We can have invasive thoughts that we entertain, or our will and desire may not be engaged to seek what God does for those times. We may be tempted to lessen or diminish our commitment, or to skip it at times. There is so much potential for sin to enter in and taint the time. Likewise, everything that we say, do, and think have bearing on good (or bad) works. So, we are never really off the clock, so to speak. Every area needs to be continually submitted to God and dedicated to Him. This also includes things like our reputations, relationships, conversations, conflicts, and even our entertainments. While honouring God with our hearts can seem overwhelming when we think of just how broad and precise its scope is, yet we have Christ Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our Faith. We need to recognize just how vast and deep and wide this standard was that Christ so lovingly completed for us, so that we no longer are saved by doing these things perfectly. Rather, we saved through Christ’s own perfect obedience from the heart in all of these things to the Father. Now, rather than seeking salvation as Christ has—which is an impossible task—we seek to increasingly obey Christ out of love for Him. And, not only that, but Christ Himself has made a way for us to have special help for growing in our redeeming of the time. If we are genuinely saved, then (1) we were given the Holy Spirit, who quickens and strengthens us towards loving obedience to God’s commands. We have (2) a new heart which naturally points towards God, rather than to the sin of the world—although it still sins many times in this life. And (3) we have God’s Word, which (4) the Holy Spirit uses to conform us to what God desires, and which (5) can be used to train our consciences. We also have (6) many great and enduring promises that God has given for us who are in Christ Jesus. God is faithful, and He will bring every work that He has begun to completion (Phil. 1:6).
We need to remember that everything that the Bible calls us to do, Christ has done perfectly before us. The Bible teaches that He was tempted like we are, and yet is perfectly without sin. This qualifies Him as One who understands perfectly the weakness of the human condition. He knows the difficulties of genuine obedience, and the allure of the world. It is vital that we look to Christ as our standard and model, and not treat His obedience as if it is somehow beyond human. No, Christ is fully man (and fully divine). He has true humanity, and He sets the bar. So, as we pursue redeeming the time, we ought to always look to Christ as our example and as our standard. I can guarantee you that looking to anyone else would plummet the bar so far as to normalize every sort of evil, and to justify it as something normal. As soon as we do this, then we have lost sight of the righteousness and example of Christ. He alone is the One who we look to for every good thing. So, as you go through your life on earth, and you are tempted in many different ways, remember that Christ went through the same sort of temptations and prevailed. We can also draw from His strength and battle against sin. As soon as we stop doing this, we will fall flat on our faces over and over again—treating obedience as something that can be done apart from Christ.
We should look at the great broadness that applies to sin and righteousness and be humbled, recognizing our tremendous need for the Saviour. The wonderful thing is that, even when we do sin (which we will do many times), we have Christ as our advocate. We can ask God for forgiveness, draw on Christ’s strength, get up, and continue the fight. He alone can help us to endure to the end. Run the marathon by His strength. Strive with Christ, and with the quickening of His Spirit, unto the end.
We are by no means alone in this fight either. Rather, God has provided fellow-believers in our lives who can help support and encourage us, and we can do the same for them. When we fall, others can help to pick us up. When others fall, we can likewise help them. So, we ought to be unified in Christ, together making use of His strength to pursue victory in Him.
Through this series, I hope that you can better see just how much narrower the way to salvation is, and just how prone to blindness we are of our own sinfulness. Having increased knowledge of our own sinfulness means that we can better work with God’s Spirit to combat it. Shine the light on the darkness and it is exposed. Again, we may be initially overwhelmed when we see just how much we sin and how broadly righteousness is to apply to our lives. However, this should also quickly give way to renewed strength and energy to combat sin, as we look to Christ as our example and our strength. This is because we can now better see the enemy of our old man within us, and so fight against him with much more precision and wisdom. By our knowledge of sin, with our knowledge of God’s grace in Christ, we can become far more faithful to God. This should encourage us! For whenever we discover a new sin in us that we were blind to before, we can more effectively progress towards greater and greater faithfulness. Of course, this encouragement and faithfulness only comes as we actually strive with Christ against our sin. We actually need to walk in the newness of life, meaning leaving behind the exposed dark ways of the old man of sin. As we do this, we are given a new vitality and encouragement to continue. Looking back, we will never regret leaving behind things that lead us into sin, or regret changes to our lives that lead us to become more like Christ. We will be glad as we increasingly redeem the time.
So, as we close this devotional series, I want to leave you again with Paul’s teaching from Ephesians 5:6-21:
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
We have all that we need to redeem the time in Christ. May this be our desire and aim in life, so that we may forever honour and glorify the Name of Christ! Amen.