GOD AND TIME
God and Time-An Introduction
In this newsletter, I will be discussing God and time. This is Part 1 of 2. Discussion of this topic is challenging because God cannot be captured or bound by a definition. I believe that one of the reasons that Jesus came to us and was incarnated was that even though we have limited understanding, we can understand the nature of God and his love for us through experiencing Jesus who is “Immanuel” meaning “God is with us”.
Likewise, we do not fully understand time. Time only has meaning to the extent that it is related to something material. It must be measured against a standard and by an instrument of measurement. For instance, we might measure time as a day or as a year by celestial measurement. Other measurements could involve measuring the rate that an organic element loses its radioactivity or the time in which the earth makes one revolution of the sun or the passing of 12 new moons and the like. Unless there is something material and an instrument of measure, time appears to be incapable of being measured or of existing as we know it.
In my office, I keep an hour glass and through it sands run marking the passage of time. Life seems to be like the sands in my hour glass. The sands of life quickly run out. Another analogy might be that life is like a candle steadily and inexorably burning down.
An ancient Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, said that time is like a river. “No man ever steps into the same river twice, for it is not the same river and he’s not the same man.” How true that is. In Part 2 of this piece, I will discuss some examples of how I have seen the passage of time.
As a general rule, the sands in our hourglass are limited. Genesis 6:3 says :”My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh; his days shall be 120 years.” Psalm 90:10 says, “The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty, yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.”
According to my reading of Scripture about years of life, my supply of sand is quickly running out. Locusts do not have long life spans. In the context of history our mortal lifetimes appear to be almost tragically short.
Age brings perspective as does suffering to how we see and experience time. It is for this reason I want to discuss God and Time and the value of serving a God who both loves me (and you) and who is above and beyond time.
God is above Time
Scripture makes it clear that God is outside and above time. One of the primary names of God makes it clear that God is not bound by time the way we are. When Moses asks God about what to call him, God responded in Exodus 3:4 that Moses was to say that God’s name was “I AM WHO I AM.” This has been translated as YHWH or Jehovah and is also known as the Tetragrammaton ( in Hebrew, yodh, he, waw and he or YHWH). This name appears about six thousand times in the Scriptures. Because of Hebrew Grammar and the fact that the name is in the Hebrew imperfect form it can mean “I am or I was or I will be.” There is a sense that actions relating to God have not been completed yet. As one writer described the translation of the name: “He IS in the past; He IS in the present; He IS in the future. He has always BEEN in the past. He is BEING in the present. He will BE in the future.” Jesus identified with this name when he said in John 8:58: “Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” The Jews knew exactly who Jesus was saying he was and immediately picked up stones to try and stone Jesus for blasphemy for claiming that He was equivalent to God (John 8:58-59). Jesus was identifying himself with the eternal God who stands outside of history.
The names and titles of Jesus indicate the fact that he was outside of our normal concepts of time in that he is the Alpha and Omega. He is the A and Z, the first and the last (See Rev. 1:8; Rev. 1:17-18; Rev. 21:6-7). Likewise, Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Is. 48:12-13 says,” …I am he; I am the first, I also am the last. Yes, my hand has laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand has spread out the heavens….” God was present before creation and time began and God is not dependent upon time. He will also be there after time ceases.
There are numerous verses indicating that both the Father and the Son existed apart from time. We deal with a few of those Scriptures below.
Is. 57:15-“For thus says the High and Lofty One, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy….”
Psm. 90:1-2-“O Lord, you have been our protector through all generations! Even before the mountains came into existence, or you brought the world into being, you were the eternal God.”
2 Tim. 1:9-“Lord…who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our own works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before the world began.”
1 Pet. 1:20-“He (Jesus) indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world….”
Eph. 1:4-“Just as He (God) chose us in Him (Jesus) before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love….”
As you can see from the above verses, God is eternal and outside of time. Further God’s plan for Christ to save us and for us to be included as part of the family of God was conceived before the world was created. It was a plan in the heart of God before time existed that you would have the opportunity to be a part of God’s family and to have fellowship with the people of God.
Death and time can not affect God’s plan (Rev. 20:40). Death will come to its own end. The resurrection of Christ and our own resurrection mean that we will no longer be in bondage to death and time. Further, God does not see time as we see it. 2 Peter 3:8 says, “But beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” To us it may seem that Christ died 2000 years ago but to God that may be like two days ago. Time in the context of eternity may be like the blink of an eye. Time passes at different speeds even to us. Time when I am in a dentist’s chair moves more slowly than when I am sitting at the beach where time passes all too quickly.
God’s Timing is Perfect Timing
God has a perfect sense of timing. His timing is always the correct timing. During the first part of my life I did not have good timing. In the investment area, I would sometimes buy stocks when they were high and sell when they were low. In the second part of my life, I asked God to help me with my timing. I wanted, for instance, to buy when stocks were low and sell when they were high. The difference between riches and poverty often revolves around timing. God does everything with impeccable timing. Seasons come at their appointed time. Sunlight comes during the day and stars at night. Plants bloom in their due season.
Women who are pregnant understand the passage of time and the birth of children. They also watch carefully as their child grows and matures. Sometimes, it seems like they will never grow up. At other times, it seems that they are unable to stop the passage of time as their child grows, becomes independent and leaves home. Prophecies also like children have a time and develop. Prophecies come to pass at an “appointed time” (Habakkuk 2:3).
It is important for us to know the times and seasons of our life. Solomon said there is a time or season for everything at Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:
To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.
We need to have the wisdom to take advantage of the seasons in our life. We should not dance at funerals or mourn at weddings.
A Time for Battle
All students of military history know that there is a time to fight and a time not to fight. Timing is everything. One of the greatest of the Roman Generals was known as Fabius the Cunctator, meaning Fabius the Delayer. Fabius saved Rome from falling to Hannibal by delaying and withdrawing, forcing Hannibal to chase him instead of attacking the City of Rome. He won the war by his tactics of delay and guerilla warfare. In Texas history, Sam Houston spent much of his time avoiding Santa Anna until Houston’s troops were ready and prepared and then by committing them at the right time he won a decisive victory ensuring the independence of Texas.
The same is true of a number of battles in the Bible. We all know the story of the Fall of Jericho where on the final day of marching around it seven times, the horns were blown and the walls fell down. Joshua was giving commands based upon God’s plan and God’s timing. Had Joshua decided to disobey God and commit his troops prior to carrying out the instructions of God he would have not won the victory at Jericho.
In 2 Samuel 5:22-26, King David was given precise instructions regarding timing to attack the Philistines. He was told to attack from the rear instead of head on and to “wait for the sound of marching in the tops of the Balsam trees.” He waited and attacked according to God’s plan and God’s timing with the result that he won a great victory.
In our efforts to achieve victories in the spirit and in life, we need to learn to move according to God’s plan and according to God’s timing. Timing is everything in battle and in life.
God and Time and History
There are numerous verses regarding the timing of God in history. Jesus came at a specific time of God’s choosing in history. Galatians 4:4 says, “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth his Son.” The timing was not accidental. It was not haphazard. Some theologians and historians have noted that at the time Jesus came to earth it was a time of peace facilitating the spread of the Gospel. This time of peace was known as the Pax Romana or the Roman Peace. It was a time in which transportation was effective with Roman roads having been built throughout the Empire. In addition, sea lanes were relatively safe from piracy. Also, the Greek language had spread all over the Empire. The Greek language was very descriptive and much of the New Testament was written in it. The Greek words give more shades of meaning than most languages. In short it was not an accident of time when Jesus came to earth. Even the birth of Jesus was coordinated with the star which showed the wisemen the way. It is no accident that Jesus died at the time that he died which was at the time of the Passover for He indeed was the Lamb of God. There was even a sense of appropriate timing in the miracles of Jesus such as when Jesus instructed Peter to pay the Roman tax for Peter and himself by getting a coin out of the mouth of a fish. (Matt. 17:24-27) A study of Scripture evidences that the timing of the birth of Jesus, his ministry and death were all at the proper time.
Getting in Step with God’s Timing
We need a sense of timing in our lives. Our steps need to be according to God’s time. Often we move on our own and get out of step and out of line. We get anxious and move before God tells us to. Abraham did this and ended up with an Ishmael instead of waiting for God to move through the birth of Isaac. However, his age was increasing. He felt like he was getting old and could not wait. The inability to wait was also a problem that Saul had. He was unable to wait for Samuel and ended up making his own sacrifices to God instead of waiting for Samuel. Saul saw his troops beginning to leave and so took matters into his own hand. Moses at one point was unable to wait and killed an Egyptian and ended up spending 40 years herding sheep in Midian before God was ready to use him. Some of us have been eager to move on God’s behalf in our witnessing or in taking our own steps to carry out God’s purposes on this earth. We fear that we will miss an opportunity and it will be too late for us if we do not move instead of waiting for God even if those things may look impossible.
There is a Time to Find God
God has appointed a time or season for people to be saved. The writer of Hebrews in the third and fourth chapters makes a plea that his readers would enter into the seventh day rest of God. He encourages us not to be like the Hebrews who left Egypt and wandered for 40 years in the wilderness and who hardened their hearts making God angry. We are encouraged to rest from our works and enter into God’s rest while there is time to do so. None of us know exactly how much time we have to turn to God. Some assume it may be a lifetime and are surprised to find that their life is short. At Hebrews 4:7 it says:
…again He designates a certain day, saying in David (Psm. 95:7), …
“Today, if you will hear his voice
Do not harden your heart.
There are some things which need to be done today instead of waiting. We need to find God today. We need to have faith today. We need to forgive today. That “today” may be a long period for some and it may be a very short period for others. You do not need to wait to draw near to God, to repent and to obey His commands.
That thing which God tells you in your heart needs to be done today, please do it today and do not wait for a tomorrow which may or may not come.
Next week, our study of time continues. However, now it is time for this grasshopper to rest.
