Biblical Time Management: “Give me time...” (Selected Scriptures)
How should we think Biblically about the use of time?
Biblical Time Management: “Give me time...” (Selected Scriptures)
When is the first instance time is mentioned in the Bible?
“In the beginning...” (Genesis 1:1)
Genesis 1:1—“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
The Biblical-Christian cosmology is one in which the transcendent Creator-God created a universe of time and space.
God is the Lord of time, and we exist in the context of time and space as His creatures.
Psalm 102:25-27—“Of old You founded the earth,
And the heavens are the work of Your hands.
26Even they will perish, but You endure;
And all of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.
27But You are the same,
And Your years will not come to an end.” (cf. Hebrews 1:10-12)
Genesis 1:14—“Then God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years;”
Genesis 2:1-3—“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. 2By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. 3Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
God created man on the sixth day (Genesis 1:26-31) and rested from His completed work on the seventh day (Genesis 2:1-3). Man was to rest with God and enjoy God on the seventh day from the beginning. God crafted the universe with time and prioritized a day of rest and worship for humanity to demonstrate His lordship over time.
Exodus 12:1-2—“Now the Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2‘This month shall be the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year to you.”
God’s salvation plan in redemptive history operated according to God’s timing.
Galatians 4:4—“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,”
Romans 5:6—“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.”
God has established the times and epochs by His own authority (Acts 1:7), Jesus focused on His “last hour” (John 13:1), the day and hour of Christ’s coming are known and fixed by the Father (Mark 13:32). Additionally, God always calls people to be saved now—now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:2).
In economics, the first principle is scarcity—how to allocate scarce resources that have alternative uses. Closely following this is opportunity cost—the foregone alternatives of a given action. Time is a scarce resource with alternative uses and whenever we choose to use our time on one thing, we forego using that time on something else. This causes us to have to make choices or decisions and act. We act with a goal in mind and do so with time-preference—accounting for the time element in each action. Many failed economists make the critical mistake in overlooking the all-important element of time.
“Re-reading my technological and historical excerpts has led me to the conclusion that, aside from the invention of gunpowder, the compass and printing — those necessary prerequisites of bourgeois progress — the two material bases upon which the preparatory work for mechanised industry in the sphere of manufacturing was done between the sixteenth and the mid-eighteenth century, i.e. the period during which manufacturing evolved from a handicraft to big industry proper, were the clock and the mill... The clock was the first automatic device to be used for practical purposes, and from it the whole theory of the production of regular motion evolved.” (Karl Marx, “Marx to Engels in Manchester” (28 January 1863), in Marx-Engels Correspondence (MECW), Volume 41, p. 448, Online version)
Time is money. Time is devotion. Time involves sacrifice. Lost money can sometimes be recovered, but lost time is lost forever.
Take ownership of our time (Psalm 90:12)
Psalm 90:12—“So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.”
God has given time to us. We are to take ownership of our limited time under the direction of God that we may learn wisdom.
Recognize that God can frustrate our work and use of time (Psalm 127:1-2)
Psalm 127:1-2—“Unless the Lord builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the Lord guards the city,
The watchman keeps awake in vain.
2It is vain for you to rise up early,
To retire late [Lit delay sitting],
To eat the bread of painful labors [Lit toils];
For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.”
Results require work, work usually brings certain expected results, yet work does not guarantee certain results (cf. Genesis 3:17-19).
Pray and trust God for His providence in our use of time (Psalm 31:14-15)
Psalm 31:14-15—“But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord,
I say, ‘You are my God.”
15My times are in Your hand;…”
Prioritize God’s priorities first (Matthew 6:33)
Matthew 6:33—“But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
God does not usually stop the rotation of the earth as in the case with Joshua (Joshua 10:12-14) in the Old Testament, but He does seem to providentially multiple our time when we make His priorities our priorities. We cannot add one hour to our life by worrying (Matthew 6:27), but God can make our life count.
Redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16)
Ephesians 5:15-17—“Therefore be careful [Lit look carefully] how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16making the most of your time [Lit redeeming the time], because the days are evil. 17So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
Determine to use the rest of your remaining time for the will of God instead of sin (1 Peter 4:2-3)
1 Peter 4:1-3—“Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. 3For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries.”
Remember the increasing nearness of our final salvation (Romans 13:11)
Romans 13:11—“Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed.”
Because of the guarantee of resurrection from the dead, our actions in this world matters eternally (1 Corinthians 15:32, 58; cf. Ecclesiastes 3:11).
Practical Wisdom
Trust the LORD with time/pray for God’s wisdom in time usage (Psalm 31:14-15; 127:1-2; James 4:13-15)
Time audit (Psalm 90:12): 168 hours per week
Get started (Proverbs 6:6-11)
Prioritize God’s priorities/eternity (Matthew 6:33; 1 Corinthians 15:32, 58)—urgent, non-urgent, important, unimportant
Plan rest (and do it)
Let your “Yes” be yes and your “No” be no (Matthew 5:37)
One day at a time (Proverbs 27:1; Matthew 6:34; James 4:13-15)
Seasons (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 11)
Be persistent and patient (2 Peter 3:8-9)
Sowing and reaping: greater, later (Galatians 6:9)
Learn from examples of excellent time management (fellow Believers, Church history: e.g. Paul, Jonathan Edwards, Martin Luther, John Calvin, George Whitefield, Charles Spurgeon, etc.)
Footnotes/Further Resources:
[1] See Charles Spurgeon, “Now,” A Sermon (No. 603), Delivered on Sunday morning, December 4, 1864 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, 2 Corinthians 6:2, Online version
[2] See the Jonathan Edwards Resolutions, especially regarding time: “5. Resolved, Never to lose one moment of time, but to improve it in the most profitable way I possibly can.”; also read or listen to the sermon “The Preciousness of Time and the Importance of Redeeming It” (YouTube)
[3] See an example of Spurgeon’s ministry schedule and his prioritization of family worship even amidst constant business in Don Whitney, “Why you’re not too busy to lead family worship,” Southern Equip, March 2, 2015: 1) pastored a large church of more than 6,000; 2) preached almost every day; 3) edited his sermons for weekly publication; 4) produced the largest collection of works by any single English author (64 volume Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit); 5) wrote an additional 120 books; 6) presided over 66 different ministries (such as the pastor’s college he founded); 7) edited a monthly magazine (“The Sword and the Trowel”); 8) read about five books per week and reviewed them for his magazine; 9) wrote 500 letters per week. Given all this, Spurgeon stopped everything at 6:00 p.m. every evening for family worship. (C. H. Spurgeon, C. H. Spurgeon’s Autobiography. Susannah Spurgeon and J. W. Harrald (comps.). (London: Passmore and Alabaster, 1899; reprint, Pasadena, TX: Pilgrim Publications, 1992), p. 64).
Biblical Time Management (Selected Scriptures) (YouTube)