"Redeeming the time." - Ephesians 5:16
Christians should not only try to make the most of the opportunities they have for their own benefit, like someone making a good deal, but also work to guide others away from their wrong paths. This way, God might hold back His anger, and time could be saved from the terrible destruction that would end the period of divine patience. This might be why the reason "because the days are evil" is added. It's as if the apostle is saying that the corruption of the times speeds up the coming judgments, but your holy and careful life will help save time from the grip of those disasters. At the very least, the words certainly tell us that we should highly value time and be extremely careful not to waste it. We are encouraged to use wisdom and caution to make the most of it. This shows that time is extremely precious.
Why Time is Precious
Time is precious for the following reasons:
First, because a happy or miserable eternity depends on how well or poorly we use our time. Things are valuable based on how important they are or how much they affect our well-being. People usually value most what they know their interests mainly rely on. This makes time extremely valuable because our eternal well-being depends on how we use it. Indeed, our well-being in this world also depends on using time wisely. If we don't use it well, we risk falling into poverty and disgrace; but by using it well, we can gain things that are useful and comfortable. However, it is most valuable because our eternal state depends on it. The importance of using time well for other reasons is secondary to this.
Gold and silver are considered valuable by people, but they are only useful if they help someone avoid or remove some harm, or gain something good. The more significant the harm someone can avoid, or the good they can gain with what they have, the more valuable that thing is to them. For example, if someone can save their life with something they own, which they would lose without it, they will see that thing as very valuable because it helps them avoid the great harm of death. This is why time is extremely valuable, because it gives us the chance to escape eternal misery and achieve eternal happiness and glory. Our ability to avoid infinite harm and gain infinite good depends on it.
Second, time is very short, which makes it very valuable. When something is scarce, people tend to value it more, especially if it's necessary and they can't do without it. For example, when Samaria was besieged by the Syrians and food was extremely scarce, "an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver" (2 Kings 6:25). In the same way, time should be valued by people because an entire eternity depends on it, yet we have only a little time. "When a few years are come, then I shall go the way whence I shall not return" (Job 16:22). "My days are swifter than a post. They are passed away as the swift ships; as the eagle that hasteth to the prey" (Job 9:25-26). "Our life; what is it? It is but a vapour which appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" (James 4:14). It is just a moment compared to eternity. Time is so short, and the work we have to do in it is so great, that we have none to waste. The work we need to do to prepare for eternity must be done in time, or it can never be done; and it is a task of great difficulty and effort, making time even more necessary.
Religious Affections
Want to explore other works by Jonathan Edwards? Check out Religious Affections.
Third, we should consider time very valuable because we don't know how long it will last. We know it's very short, but we don't know exactly how short. We don't know how much time we have left—whether it's a year, several years, a month, a week, or just a day. Every day, we're unsure if it will be our last day or if we'll even have the whole day. Experience shows this to be true. If someone had only a little food for a journey or voyage and knew that if it ran out, they would perish, they would be more careful with it. How much more would people value their time if they knew they had only a few months or days left to live! A wise person will value their time more because they don't know if this is the case for them. This is true for many people in the world right now who are healthy and see no signs of approaching death. Many of them will die next month, many next week, some probably tomorrow, and some even tonight. Yet, these people know nothing about it and perhaps don't even think about it, and neither they nor their neighbors can say they are more likely to die soon than others. This teaches us how we should value our time and be careful not to waste any of it.
Fourth, time is very precious because once it's gone, you can't get it back. There are many things people own that, if they lose them, they can get them again. If someone gives up something without knowing its value or how much they'll need it, they can often get it back, at least with effort and cost. If someone makes a bad deal and regrets selling or trading something, they can often undo it and recover what they lost. But that's not the case with time. Once time is gone, it's gone forever; no amount of effort or money can bring it back. Even if we regret letting it pass without using it well, it's useless. Every moment is offered to us to decide if we will make it our own or not. But there's no delay. Time won't wait for us to decide. If we refuse, it's immediately gone and never offered again. The time that has passed, no matter how we failed to use it, is out of our hands and beyond our reach.
If we have lived for fifty, sixty, or seventy years and haven't used our time wisely, we can't change that now. It's gone forever. All we can do is make the most of the little time we have left. Even if someone has wasted almost their entire life except for a few moments, all the wasted time is lost, and only those few remaining moments can be used wisely. If all of a person's time is gone and lost, it's gone for good. Eternity depends on how we use our time. Once our life is over and death comes, we have no more time; there's no way to get it back or have another chance to prepare for eternity. If someone loses all their money and becomes bankrupt, they might recover and gain another fortune. But when our lifetime is over, we can't get another chance. The opportunity for eternal well-being is completely and permanently lost.
Reflections on time past
You have now heard about how valuable time is, and you are the ones responsible for it, as God has given you this precious gift. You have eternity ahead of you. When God created you and gave you rational souls, He made you for an endless existence. He gave you time here to prepare for eternity, and your future eternity depends on how you use your time. So, think about what you have done with your past time. You are not just starting your time now; a lot of it has already passed and is gone. All the intelligence, power, and wealth in the universe cannot bring it back. Many of you can probably conclude that more than half of your time is gone. Even if you live to the average age, more than half of your time has passed, and there may be only a few moments left. Your life is past its peak, and it might be close to ending or going into an everlasting darkness. So, consider what account you can give of how you have used your past time. How have you let the precious golden moments of your life slip away?
Every day you've had has been valuable; yes, even your moments have been valuable. But haven't you wasted your valuable moments, your valuable days, and even your valuable years? If you counted up how many days you've lived, what a large number that would be! And how valuable each of those days has been! So, think about it—what have you done with them? What has happened to them all? What can you show for any progress made, good done, or benefit gained that matches all this time you've lived? When you look back and examine, don't you find that much of your past time is empty, not filled with any good use? And if God, who gave you your time, were to ask you to account for it now, what could you say to Him?
How much can be accomplished in a year? How much good can be done in that amount of time! How much can people serve God and help their own souls if they make the most of it! How much can be done in a single day! But what have you done with all the days and years you've lived? What have you done with your entire youth, for those of you who are no longer young? What happened to that precious time of your life? Has it all been wasted? Would it have been just as well or even better for you if you had spent all that time asleep or not existing at all?
You've had a lot of free time and freedom from worldly business. Think about how you've spent it. You've not only had regular time, but you've also had a lot of holy time. What have you done with all the Sabbath days you've had? Consider these things seriously, and let your own conscience answer.
Who most deserves criticism based on the topic of the value of time
Most people don't really think about how valuable time is, and many don't seem to understand its importance. Many spend their time without much purpose. Time is incredibly valuable, yet people waste it more than anything else. For many, time is like silver was in Solomon's days—like stones on the street, not valued at all. They act as if time is as abundant as silver was back then, as if they have more than they need and don't know what to do with it. If people wasted their money like they waste their time, if they threw away money as easily as they throw away time, we would think they were out of their minds. Yet, time is a thousand times more precious than money; once it's gone, you can't buy it back with money, silver, or gold. There are several types of people who are corrected by this idea, and I will specifically mention them.
First, there are those who spend a lot of their time doing nothing useful, either for their own spiritual or physical well-being or for the benefit of others, whether it's their family or the community they belong to. Some people seem to find time burdensome. Instead of trying to make the most of it and ensuring it benefits them, they seem more focused on figuring out how to waste it, as if time were a burden rather than valuable. They refuse to work, and rather than making an effort, they let their families suffer and even suffer themselves. "An idle soul shall suffer hunger" (Proverbs 19:15). "Drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags" (Proverbs 23:21).
Some people spend a lot of their time at the bar, drinking, and going from house to house, wasting their hours in idle and useless talk that won't lead to anything good. Proverbs 14:23 says, "In all labor there is profit; but the talk of the lips tends only to poverty." The apostle's advice in Eph. 4:28 is that we should "labor, working with our hands the thing that is good, that we may have to give to him that needs." But lazy people, instead of earning anything to give to those in need, just waste what they already have. Proverbs 18:9 says, "He that is slothful in his work, is brother to him that is a great waster."
Second, this teaching criticizes those who spend their time doing evil. They not only waste their time by doing nothing good, but they also use it for bad purposes. Such people not only lose their time, but they make things worse by harming themselves and others. Time is precious because eternity depends on it. By using time wisely, we have the chance to avoid eternal misery and gain eternal happiness. But those who spend their time doing wicked things not only fail to use their time to achieve eternal happiness or avoid damnation, but they also use it for the opposite purpose: to increase their eternal misery or make their damnation even more severe and unbearable.
Some people spend a lot of time partying, engaging in inappropriate talk and actions, hanging out with bad company, corrupting and trapping the minds of others, setting bad examples, and leading others into sin, harming not only their own souls but also the souls of others. Some spend much of their valuable time gossiping and speaking badly about others, causing arguments, not only fighting themselves but also stirring up conflict and disputes. It would have been better for some people, and for their neighbors, if they had never done anything at all. Then they would have neither helped nor harmed anyone. But now they have done much more harm than they have done or ever will do good. There are some people for whom it would have been better for the towns where they live to pay to keep them doing nothing if that would have kept them inactive.
Those who have spent much of their time in wickedness, if they ever change and start living differently, will find that not only have they wasted the past, but they have also created more work for their remaining time to undo what they've done. Many people, when their time is up and they look back on their past lives, will wish they had no time at all! The time they spend on earth will be worse for them than if they had spent that time in hell. This is because an eternity of even more dreadful misery in hell will be the result of how they used their time on earth.
Third, this teaching criticizes those who spend all their time on worldly pursuits and neglect their souls. Such people waste their time, no matter how hard they work on their worldly business. Even if they are careful to make sure everything they do somehow benefits them materially, they are still losing time. This is because time wasn't given just for itself, but for the everlasting life that comes after it. So, those who spend their time only on worrying and working for worldly things—like what they will eat, drink, or wear; how to save up treasures on earth; how to become rich or important; or how to live comfortably and pleasantly while here—are wasting their precious time. Their minds and efforts are focused only on these things, and their affections are directed towards them, causing them to lose valuable time.
So, those of you who have been guilty of spending your time this way, think about it. You've spent a big part of your time and energy getting a little bit of the world; and now that you have it, how little good does it actually do you! What happiness or satisfaction can you get from it? Will it give you peace of conscience or any real comfort? How is your poor, needy, perishing soul any better for it? And what better future does it offer you as you approach eternity? What good will all that you've gained do you when time is no more?
An Encouragement to Make the Most of Your Time
Think about what has been said about the value of time, how much depends on it, how short and uncertain it is, and how it cannot be recovered once it's gone. If you truly understand these things, you will value your time more than the finest gold. Every hour and moment will seem precious to you. But in addition to the points already mentioned, also consider the following:
First, you are responsible to God for your time. Time is a gift given to us by God; He has set our day, and it is not for nothing. Our day was appointed for some work; therefore, at the end of the day, He will ask us to give an account. We must explain to Him how we have used all our time. We are God's servants; just as a servant is accountable to his master for how he spends his time when sent to work, we are accountable to God. If people truly considered this and kept it in mind, wouldn't they use their time differently than they do? Wouldn't you act differently if you thought every morning that you must give an account to God for how you spend that day? And if you thought every evening that you must give an account to God for how you spent that evening? Christ has told us that "for every idle word which men speak they shall give account in the day of judgment" (Matt. 12:36). How much more, then, should we conclude that we must give an account for all our idle, wasted time!
Second, think about how much time you've already lost. Because you've lost so much, you need to work even harder to make the most of the time you have left. You should feel sorry and regretful about the time you've wasted. But that's not all; you must work even harder to make the most of the time you have left so you can make up for lost time. If you're getting older and have spent your time on trivial things and worldly concerns, neglecting your soul's well-being, you might feel scared and shocked when you realize how much time you've wasted. Because you've lost so much time, you need to be more diligent for three reasons.
- Since your opportunity is even shorter. — Your time, in general, is short. But if you consider all the time you've already wasted, it's even shorter! The time you've already lost can't be counted as part of your opportunity because it's gone forever. It's actually worse for you than if you never had it at all.
- You still have the same work to do as before, but now it's even harder. So far, you haven't done any of your work; everything still needs to be done, and now there are much greater difficulties and opposition than there would have been if you had started earlier. This means that not only is there less time to do your work, but the work itself has increased. You don't just have the same work to do; you have more work. By wasting time, you've not only shortened it, but you've also created more work for yourselves. Let this thought motivate you to take serious care not to let things continue like this any longer, and push you to start your work immediately with all your strength!
- The best part of your time is the part you've already lost. The early years of a person's life, once they can reason and start doing their work, are the best. If you've lived in sin past your youth, you've lost the best part. So, consider this: your entire life is short, and you can't waste any of it. A large portion is already gone, making it even shorter. The part that's gone was the best, yet all your work still needs to be done, and now it's even harder than before. The less time you have, the more work you need to do.
What will make you realize the need to use your remaining time wisely if these things won't? Sometimes thoughts like these have a different effect, which is to discourage people and make them think that since they've wasted so much time, it's not worth trying to do anything now. The devil tricks them; when they are young, he tells them there's plenty of time later, no need to rush, and it will be better to seek salvation later. And they believe him. Then, when their youth is gone, he tells them they've wasted so much time, and the best part of it, that it's not worth trying now; and they believe him again. So for them, no time is good. Youth is not a good time because it's meant for fun and laughter, and there will be enough time later. And what comes later is not a good time because the best part is gone. This is how people are fooled and ruined.
But how foolish it is for people to get discouraged and neglect their work just because their time is short! Instead, they should wake up, fully motivate themselves, and be serious about trying to obtain eternal life if possible! Maybe God will still grant them repentance so they can acknowledge the truth and be saved. Even though it's late in the day, God is calling you to wake up and get to work. Will you not listen to His advice in this important matter, rather than the advice of your mortal enemy?
Third, think about how people sometimes realize the value of time when they are close to the end of their lives. How aware of its preciousness are poor sinners sometimes when they are on their deathbeds! Some have cried out, "O, a thousand worlds for an inch of time!" Then time truly seems precious to them. An inch of time couldn't do them more good than before, when they were healthy, assuming they had the same willingness to use it well, and actually, it could do even less. This is because a person's time on a deathbed comes with much greater difficulty for making improvements that benefit the soul than when they are healthy. But the nearness of death makes people realize the priceless value of time. Perhaps when they were healthy, they were as unaware of its value as you are and were just as careless with it. But how their thoughts have changed now! It is not because they are mistaken that they think time is so valuable, but because their eyes are opened. And it is because you are mistaken and blind that you do not think as they do.
Fourth, think about how much those who have reached the end of their time value it. What do you think people who have lost all their chances for eternal life and are now in hell think about the importance of time? Even though they wasted their time while they were alive and didn't think it was valuable, their opinions have changed now! How much would they value the opportunity you have if they could have it given back to them? What wouldn't they give for just one of your days with the chance to receive grace! You will eventually realize this too. But if you only realize it the way they did, it will be too late.
There are two ways to make people understand how valuable time is. One way is by explaining why time is precious, by telling them how much depends on it, how short it is, how uncertain it is, and so on. The other way is through experience, where people realize how important it is to use time wisely. The second way is the most effective because it always convinces people if nothing else does. However, if people are not convinced by the first way, the second way won't help them. If the first way doesn't work, the second way, even though it's certain, is always too late. Experience never fails to open people's eyes, even if they were never opened before. But if their eyes are opened by experience first, it doesn't benefit them. So, let everyone be encouraged to make the most of their time.
Advice on how to make the most of your time
I will finish by giving advice on three specific things.
First, make the most of the present time without any delay. If you postpone and put off improving it, you will lose even more time, and it will show that you don't understand how valuable it is. Don't talk about more convenient times in the future; instead, make the most of your time while you have it, following the example of the psalmist. "I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments" (Psa. 119:60).
Second, be especially careful to make the most of the times that are most valuable. While all time is valuable, some moments are more valuable than others. Holy time is more valuable than regular time because it greatly benefits our eternal well-being. So, above all, make the most of your Sabbaths, especially during public worship, which is the most valuable part. Don't waste it by sleeping, being careless, not paying attention, or letting your mind wander. How foolish are those who waste not only their regular time but also their holy time, especially during the holy services of God! The time of youth is valuable for many reasons. So, if you are in your youth, be careful to make the most of it. Don't let the valuable days and years of youth pass by without improvement. A time when God's Spirit is working is more valuable than other times. During these times, God is near, and we are instructed in (Isa. 55:6) to "seek the Lord while he may be found, and to call upon him while he is near." Such times are especially accepted times and days of salvation, as stated in (2 Cor. 6:2): "I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in a day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."
Third, make good use of your free time away from worldly business. Many people have a lot of this time, and everyone has some. If people are willing, this time can be used to great advantage. When we are free from concerns about the body and external matters, it's a great opportunity for the soul. So, don't spend these opportunities unprofitably or in ways that you can't give a good account of to God. Don't waste them entirely on unproductive visits or useless diversions or amusements. Diversion should only support business. Use only as much as helps prepare the mind and body for the work of our general and specific callings.
You need to make the most of every talent, advantage, and opportunity while you still have time, because soon it will be said about you, according to the angel's oath in Revelation 10:5-6, "And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer" (Rev. 10:5-6).
