Redeeming The Time, Part 4

Tonight, we want to draw to a conclusion this very small but very significant series on what it means to redeem the time, how to buy back every moment for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

If someone was to ask you which of the first eight points we have covered has made the greatest impact in your life, I wonder what you would say. If someone was to ask you what of the first eight points were the most difficult for you to apply to your life, what would you say?

Or if someone said to you of the first eight points we've given to you about maximizing each moment, which is the most difficult for you to apply, what would you say? Better yet, what has changed in your life over the last three weeks? Has anything at all changed because you have learned to buy back those moments for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Lord?

I would trust that many of you have changed some of the things that you have done to realize that as you go through each day, those moments that God gives you are very precious.

Time is a gift from the Lord. It truly is a gift. And I was thinking about the passing of time and the pace of time.

I thought about that. I realized that the pace and passing of time is uncontrollable and unmanageable. Solomon would tell us that in Ecclesiastes chapter 3, when he said these words, there is an appointed time for everything.

Everything. Everything is by divine appointment. And then he says, and there's a time for every event under heaven.

Those times are unmanageable and uncontrollable because God controls them and God manages them. And then he gives a list of different illustrations about time to be born, a time to die, time to laugh, a time to cry, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. And then he says, everything is beautiful in its time because God designs every moment of time and is providentially in control of every moment of time.

Then everything that happens in those moments are beautiful according to God himself. But when you think about the pace and the passing of time, we realize that truly it is uncontrollable and unmanageable. It also is inviolable and invaluable.

Listen to what Job says. Job 14 verse number 5, since his days are determined, man's days are determined, the number of his months is with you and his limits you have set so that he cannot pass. There's nothing that can be broken about the passing of time because God controls it.

But yet in those moments, there is so much value because God gave you those months, those weeks, those days. Also, when you think about the pace and passing of time, you realize that it is irretrievable as well as irreplaceable. In other words, you can't get it back.

Once it passes, you can't go back in time. I know some of us like to go back in time and relive our high school days. I wouldn't want to do that, but some people would.

Or their college days, or their 20s, or their 30s. I love it in the 60s. I'm 68.

I love the years I got. I can't wait to the 70s. But all that being said is that we realize that you can't get time back.

It's irretrievable. But at the same time, it's irreplaceable. So Moses would say this, as for the days of our life, they contain 70 years.

Or if due to strength, 80 years. So I got at least two years left, maybe 12 years left, according to Psalm 90, verse number 10. Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow.

It's not about the quantity, it's about the quality of the life. For soon it is gone and we fly away. So Moses would remind us that those days are irreplaceable.

But also know this about the face and passing of time, it is inescapable. And also, it is inevitable. In other words, the passing of time is inescapable.

You can't escape time. We live in this realm of time. And because we do, we realize that we can't just all of a sudden live outside the realm of time.

We can't do that. And so we need to understand that each and every moment that God gives us is important. There are no bad moments.

There's only good moments in the plan and mind of God. And we have to use them for His glory. So it's important that we live in the here and now.

It's important that you and I always, always be alert to our adversary, that we always be bent on behaving as we say we believe, that we always be captivated by the Christ, that we always, that we always be diligent in our discipline, that we always be enthusiastic in our evangelism, that we always be faithful to our family, that we always be godly in all of our goals, that we always be humble in our heart, that we always be incessant in our intercession, so that we can always be joyful in our journey of time.

Having said that, I want to conclude this series, as short as it is, to help you understand more and more how to buy back every moment for the sake of the Master. I'm not going to review for you the first eight points that are in your outline.

You had them in the notes. We've already gone over them, except to say this, that the last one we covered was about conducting your life in the fear of the Lord all day long, or always. I wonder if you understand the implications of that.

Listen to what the psalmist said in Psalm 128. He said, how blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways. The psalmist knew that when you fear the Lord, you walk in His ways, and you take each and every step that you take in the moment of time, following the ways of the Lord.

If that's the case, if you're blessed because you fear the Lord, would you not want to live in the fear of the Lord all day long? For he says this, when you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, you will be happy, and it will be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house, and your children like olive plants around your table. Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.

What a great, great understanding of the responsibility we have to live in the fear of the Lord all day long. It affects everything you do. It affects your fortune, your future, your family. It affects everything, and that's the blessed man.

So with that in mind, principle number nine is one that you are not going to like. So I'm going to tell it to you right up front, you're not going to like it.

In fact, you're probably going to get mad at me. So don't email me, don't text me, don't call me. Just going to warn you in advance, okay? But if you want to redeem the time, if you want to buy back every moment for the sake of eternity, know this, you must consider your life as absolutely nothing.

You must consider your life as absolutely nothing. And that's very hard for us. We live in an age where social media is controlling everything that we say and do.

And everybody is posting everything they can about themselves on social media because they consider their life as something. But as long as you consider your life as something, then you won't buy back the moments for the sake of eternity. But when you consider your life as nothing, then you can.

So let me give you some illustrations of that in Scripture. The first one is found in the book of Acts, Acts chapter 20, as Paul is addressing the Ephesian elders, getting ready to leave after being there for three years. And listen to what he says.

He says, And now, verse 22, behold, bound by the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me. But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself. And then he says this.

So that I may finish my course, the new King James says, that I may finish my course with joy and the ministry which I receive from the Lord Jesus to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God. Paul says, I'm on my way to Jerusalem. I really don't know what's going to happen there, but I do know this, that there are bonds and afflictions that await me.

So he knows that that's going to happen. He doesn't know the extent of that. He doesn't know the intensity of that.

He just knows that that's what's going to happen. But he says, that doesn't matter because my life doesn't matter. See, I don't consider my life that valuable because I'm doing something for the sake of the gospel.

So it's Christ's life that matters, not mine. So when Paul looks into the future, he's able to see that what happens, as bad as it might be, doesn't matter because my life doesn't matter. How can he say that? Well, he's already said it in Galatians 2, verse number 20, very familiar words.

He says, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God.

Notice he lives an extinguished life. He says, I am crucified with Christ. My life is extinguished.

It's gone. I've died to self. All my aspirations, all my ambitions, everything that I've anticipated, I've died to.

My life has been extinguished. I am crucified with Christ. Then he says this, because my life is extinguished, my life is relinquished.

He says, it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. It's no longer I who live. Why? Because my life has been extinguished, and now I've relinquished everything that I have to Christ's life.

And only the extinguished life and the relinquished life is the distinguished life. For he says, the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. You see, in our effort to be distinguished above everybody else, we have forgotten that the root to being distinguished is to be extinguished, so that you can relinquish all that you have to the Lord, and then you can live his life.

And only when you live Christ's life are you of any value to anyone else. And so here is Paul saying, my life doesn't matter because I've died to self. And the life which I now live, I live under the power of the Spirit of God.

I'm living for Christ. That's what made his life so unique. And so Paul would buy back the moments.

That's why he said in Ephesians 5, be not unwise, but wise. So you might learn how to buy back every moment, because the days are truly evil. But note this.

Turn in your Bible to the book of Philippians. Philippians chapter 2. And listen to this. This is of such value to us.

In an age where everything is about celebrating me, in an age where everybody wants to be celebrated, in an age where everybody wants to be noticed, in an age that's ruled by narcissism, it's infected the church. You know, it's unbelievable. But listen to Philippians 2, verse number 19.

Paul says, but I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. For I have no one else to of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.

Paul says, you know what? I've looked around, and there is nobody I can send to you guys. Because everybody that I would want to send is so consumed with themselves that I can't get them to be what they need to be. But there's one guy, his name is Timothy.

And Timothy genuinely cares for your welfare. Everybody else seeks their own interests, but not Timothy. He doesn't seek his own interests.

That's very, very important. See, Timothy didn't see himself as anybody. He just really was a servant of the Lord.

So he could live an extinguished life and consider his life as nothing. And when you do that, you genuinely care about other people, because you're not seeking your own interests. As long as you're seeking your own interests, you don't have time to care for somebody else's welfare.

Right? You're too busy concerned about your own welfare. That's not Timothy. But it gets better.

Read on. He says, but you know of his proven worth that he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel like a child serving his father. Therefore, I hope to send him immediately as soon as I see how things go with me.

And I trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly. But I thought it necessary to send you Epaphroditus, my brother, and fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need. Why? Because he was longing for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick.

He was upset that somehow you heard that he was sick. Now, for us, we want everybody to know I'm sick. We post it on social media.

We go in the hospital. We have surgery. We take pictures of ourselves in the hospital with IVs in our arms and in our neck and everything else.

And we want everybody to know that, hey, we're in the hospital. Why? Why do you want everybody to know that? Why? Epaphroditus was upset that you heard he was sick. But read on.

For indeed, he was sick to the point of death. The man was about to die. But he didn't want anybody to know he was about to die.

If we're about to die, what do we do? Everybody's got to know I'm dying. Call the pastor. Call the elders.

Tell them I'm dying. Right? But Epaphroditus was sick even to the point of death and was distressed because somehow you heard that he was sick. Read on.

It says, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only, but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore, I have sent him all the more eagerly, so that when you see him again, you may rejoice, and I may be less concerned about you. Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and hold men like him in high regard.

Know what Paul's saying? He's saying if you're so concerned that everybody knows you're sick, you can't be held in high regard. But if you are not concerned that everybody knows you're sick, that's the person you hold in high regard. You esteem the person who considers his life as nothing.

You do not esteem the person who thinks he is something. See, that's so foreign to us. We just can't not let people know all that's happening in my life, because I think I'm that important.

But listen, when you consider your life as nothing, you're freed up to genuinely now care for other people, like Timothy was, like Epaphroditus was. And therefore, they would be used by God. And Paul would say, these are the guys you got to hold in high esteem.

You got to lift these guys up. Why? He says this, because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was deficient in your service to me. Epaphroditus didn't want anybody to know what he was doing, let alone know that he was sick.

That's the kind of people God uses immensely. And I think that we need to rethink how we live each moment of each day, because as we go through our days, we think that everyone else in the world needs to know what's happening in my life. So I post it on social media, whether it's Instagram, or Twitter, or X, whatever it's called, or Facebook, or whatever it's called.

It just feeds our narcissistic attitude in such a way that we don't even know it, but it happens. And then we wonder why we feel so inadequate and insecure, because everybody's posting about the great things that are happening in their lives. But here is Epaphroditus, here is Timothy, here is Paul.

Use the Bible as your model. Don't use somebody else's Instagram, or somebody else's Twitter feed to be your model for living each day. Let Epaphroditus be your model.

Timothy, Paul, these men of Scripture, John the Baptist, he must increase, I must decrease. Think about that as you go through each moment of every day. Is what you're posting on your social media increasing Christ and decreasing you, or increasing you and decreasing Christ? And by the way, John the Baptist was the greatest man born of a woman, by the words of Jesus.

And so when you consider your life as nothing, you're going through the moments of each day able to genuinely care about the needs of others, so that you can then meet those needs by that moment back for the sake of eternity and glorify the name of Christ. I told you, you weren't going to like this point, but that's exactly how we need to live our lives. And so when you examine your life in light of the Scriptures, how do you measure up to the people in the Scriptures? It's the Bible that matters.

Which leads me to the next point, which is this. Communicate always with grace, seasoned with salt. Colossians 4, verses 5 and 6. Paul says, conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, those who are unbelievers, making the most of the opportunity, redeeming the time.

Conduct your life toward those who are outside the faith by buying back the moments you have with them, redeeming the time, maximizing the moment for the sake of your master. How? Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person. When you communicate with grace, remember we talked about on Sunday that when Christ came, He was full of grace and truth, right? And John would use those two attributes to describe the incarnate Christ because they were the attributes that deal with salvation, grace and truth.

You're saved by grace because the truth is presented to you. And so when you communicate with those who are outside, you're communicating the gospel with grace, with truth, right? And sometimes when you do it seasoned with salt, it's going to sting and open wounds. But you communicate with grace.

That's what Paul said in Ephesians 4:29, let no corrupt communication proceed from your mouth. But that which is wholesome, that which is useful to those who hear, that you might be able to minister grace to those who hear you. But you're not to let any unwholesome word come out of your mouth, the bitter words, the angry words, the abusive words.

But you're to use words that are truthful, that are honest, that are kind, that honor the Lord, that are not slanderous, but words that truly glorify the name of the Lord. So when you communicate with grace toward those who are outside, speech seasoned with salt, what you're doing is buying back those moments in your conversation that truly honor the Lord. And every one of us knows people that are outside the faith.

And so when we talk to them, what is our conversation like? Is it full of grace and truth? Is it the kind of speech that brings glory to the Lord? So that when we speak to them, we are challenging them to walk with the Lord, to know the Lord, to understand the Lord. When you do that, you buy back the moment for the sake of eternity, which leads me to point number 10. And that's this.

Comfort others with the Scripture. Comfort others with the Scripture. There are always people in need of comfort.

And the only way you can truly comfort them is with the truth of the word of the Lord. Paul would say these words in 2 Corinthians, chapter 1, verse 3, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our afflictions so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the comfort is abundant through Christ.

You know, we go through situations in our lives where God comforts us. We use that as an opportunity to comfort others who have a like experience that we are going through. Sometimes God just takes you through a situation so that you can learn to comfort other people by the comfort with which he has comforted you.

We know that the Spirit of God is a comforter, John chapter 14. We know that God the Father is a comforter based on 2 Corinthians chapter 1. We also know that the people of God are comforters, but the ultimate comfort is the word of God. The word of God is the ultimate comforter.

Look what it says in Psalm 119. Psalm 119 verse number 50. This is my comfort in my affliction.

Your word has revived me. This is my comfort in my affliction. Your word has revived me.

Notice what it says in verse number 76, or 71. It was good for me that I was afflicted that I might learn your statutes. Verse 76, oh may your loving kindness comfort me according to your word to your servant.

Verse 92, if your law had not been my delight then I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts for by them you have revived me. Verse 116, sustain me according to your word that I may live and do not let me be ashamed of my hope.

Verse 107, I am exceedingly afflicted, revive me oh Lord according to your word. We comfort others with the scriptures. When you talk to other people, when you visit other people, when you engage in conversation with people, it's the truth of the word of God that brings comfort to their souls.

Nothing else really does. That's how powerful the word of God is. We need to understand that the significance of the truth of God is powerful in the life of those who are hurting.

For instance, next time we learn how to take our terrible times and turn them into triumphant times. And the only way you can take your terrible time and turn it into a triumphal time is by turning to the truth of the word of God. That's it. There is no other way.

In times of turmoil, you go to Isaiah 40, verses 21 to 31. In times of terror, you go to Psalm 91, verses 1 to 10.

In times of trials, you go to Isaiah 41:10 to 14; 1 Peter 1:3 to 9; chapter 5, verse number 10. In times of trouble, you go to John 14. In times of tears, you go to Psalm 22:1 to 5. In times of temptation, go to Matthew 4:1 to 11, 1 Thessalonians 4:1 to 8. In times of turbulence, go to Mark 4:35 to 41; chapter 6, verses 47 to 51.

In times of tragedy, go to the book of Job. But whatever your need, whatever your time, it's the truth of God that comforts. And when we want to redeem the time, we take that truth and we share it with others that we might comfort them during their troubled times.

Just think of your life as one who is being used by God to really truly explain the truth of God to other people. Looking for those avenues, those ways in which you do that.

There are people all throughout the church that are going through times of difficulty. Heartache, pain, suffering, discomfort. And you never know what word you will use that will encourage them. But when you're using the Word of God, you will always bring them comfort. Because in their affliction, it's the Word of God that revives them.

We can't revive a soul. We can't do that.

But the Word of God can. So, the Lord uses the people of God to share the truth of God through the Spirit of God to bring them comfort from God. That's how it works.

And when we do that, you're buying back those moments. And you never, never regret them. And those moments go by so fast, so quick.

But you want to use those moments for the sake of the glory of God. Next, this would be number 12. Contemplate the coming of the King.

Contemplate the coming of the King. Jesus said, Matthew 24, the great Olivet Discourse there on the Mount of Olives, on the week, Passion Week before He dies. Therefore, be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.

Be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason, you also must be ready for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. Verse 13 of chapter 25, be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.

Christ says, be awake, be aware, be alert, always be ready for the return of the King. I would venture to say that you've gone through the day without thinking one time about Christ coming again. In fact, you've probably gone through the whole week without thinking about Christ coming again.

For very rarely do we ever, ever wake up in the morning and think that this is the day. And very rarely does anybody ever go to bed disappointed that it wasn't the day. We're so exhausted that we can't wait to get in bed and go to sleep, not even thinking about, boy, I wish today would have been the day.

But very few of us ever, ever think about the coming of the King unless we're in church on Sunday and the pastor's preaching about the return of the King. But when you are contemplating His coming again, you are really truly understanding that this moment could be your last. In the moment of your friend, your unbelieving family member, your unbelieving friend, this might be their last moment to hear the gospel.

And Paul would say, knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men, knowing that the judge is going to come. And with His coming, there's judgment that's going to take place. And so we want to make sure that they understand that Jesus Christ is coming again.

But think about it this way. Have you ever spent a day contemplating the coming of the King? Just thinking that at any moment, Christ says, be alert. He's going to come in an hour that you do not expect Him to come.

When the rapture of the church happens and Christ comes to take us home, we don't know when that day is going to be. We have no idea. We just know it's going to come.

So we need to live in the light of His coming. Paul would say in Philippians chapter 3 that we eagerly are awaiting the coming of the King. We are the bride, right? And the bride always lives in anticipation of uniting with the bridegroom.

That's what makes weddings so exciting. That's what makes marriage so invigorating. The bride is always waiting for the bridegroom and vice versa.

And so we're waiting for the bridegroom to come. But we don't see ourselves as the bride, so we don't anticipate the coming of the bridegroom. And yet that's the way we should live our lives.

The New Testament writers lived in the light of the imminent return of Christ. He could come at any moment. Why do you think the early church met together every day? Because they really believed that Jesus was coming back at any day.

They really believed that. And so they would meet together, and they would partake of communion every day. Why? Because they wanted to remember the sacrifice of Christ.

Because in remembering His sacrifice, you do proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. And so they did it every day thinking that He could come that day. And over the centuries, all that has faded away because it's been some 2,000 years.

And so we think, well, He's not going to come in my lifetime. He didn't come to Paul's or Peter's or John's, so He's probably not going to come in my lifetime either. But that's not how we live our lives.

We live our lives contemplating the coming of the King. I can't think of a better way to use your time than to think this could be the moment. What does the Bible say about the coming of the King and exploring the book of Revelation or the book of Daniel or the book of Ezekiel or the prophet Isaiah and looking in terms of the coming of the King and all the minor prophets and their emphasis on the day of the Lord is coming again.

When you contemplate the coming of the King, you are alert to His arrival. It changes the way you speak to other people. It changes your enthusiasm when it comes to evangelism.

It changes the way you think about your family who are unsaved and don't know the Lord because you want them to go with you to glory. And so you accentuate the coming of the King to help them understand He's coming again. And lastly, this is number 13.

And I could give you 13 more. I'm not going to do that. But this is number 13. I talked to you about it on Sunday.

You need to celebrate this moment as if it is your very last moment on the planet. Celebrate each moment as if it's your last moment.

Again, we don't think that way. We think we're going to live to our next birthday. We are planning our next anniversary getaway.

We're planning our next birthday party. We're planning our next vacation. We're planning our next… We live in anticipation of the future plans that we devise.

When the Bible says, take no thought for tomorrow. But our thoughts are consumed with tomorrow, see? And when we think about tomorrow, we can't live in today. And so you want to celebrate every moment as if it is your last.

You celebrate your moment in your car drive home as if it's your last car drive home. You celebrate the moment in church as if it's your last Sunday in church. You celebrate the conversation with your friend as if it's the last conversation with your friend. You celebrate that moment as if it's your last moment.

Listen to Psalm 113. I love this.

Praise the Lord. Praise, O servant of the Lord. Praise the name of the Lord.

Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forever. From this time right now, from this time forth and forever, blessed be the name of the Lord. Praise the Lord.

He says, from the rising of the sun to its setting. From the time I get up in the morning with the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised. That is celebrating every moment as if it's your last.

From the rising of the sun to its setting, from every moment that I'm awake, the name of the Lord is to be praised. From this time forth and forever, from this moment right now going forward, the name of the Lord is to be praised. I'm going to celebrate God in every moment because it might be my last moment.

Can you imagine what your family would be like if you used every moment with them as if it was your last moment? Praising the name of the Lord and looking for an opportunity to redeem the time. This is a very, very short series, but it is probably your most significant and my most significant series because it affects all 86,400 seconds of every day. You can't get it back.

You can't add to them. They're irreplaceable because they are invaluable. Do you value time? Do you value the moments of every day so that you can buy it back for the sake of God and his kingdom? Let's pray.

Father God, thank you for today and all that you do. Thank you for this time that we have had these last couple of weeks. Pray, Father, that you would continue to instruct us in the way that we should go, that we might truly be used by you for the glory of your kingdom.

We love you, Lord. We thank you that you saved us from our sin. May we live in the light of your return, praying that it would be tonight or at least tomorrow that we might go home to be with the king.

Until that day, may we be found faithful in our service of the Lord. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.