New Salem Baptist Church

Making the Best Use of Your Time

January 21, 2024

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.^[1]

In my previous career as a revenue officer for a federal agency I was acutely aware of a problem that I had. I was not being a good steward of the time I spent in the office. I was a field agent. But this only meant that I would spend about two days in the field and three days, on average, in the office because a great deal of research and documentation was required. During my office days I worked well in the mornings, getting good quality work accomplished. But in the afternoons, I barely did anything. I had no excuse for my lack of work except laziness. And I knew this was a sin. I had prayed about it often but there was simply no change in my work habits despite my resolve to work in the afternoons. It wasn’t until I fasted and prayed for three days that I noticed an answer to my prayer. I finally began to work in the afternoons rather than just talking to my co-workers or reading a book (there was no internet back then, otherwise I would have been looking at that!). That experience, among others, taught me that fasting is an essential part of a disciple’s life. Our Lord fasted, as did the apostles, and so ought we to do so. But my message today is about stewardship.

We are called to be good stewards. We must be wise stewards with our money but we must also be good stewards with our time. How do we spend the time that the Lord has given to us? I am not talking about misuse of our time – doing things that are sinful in themselves. I am talking about making the best use of our time. This is what the apostle commands to the Ephesians and to us.

In verse 16 Paul tells us to make the best use of our time.

I would like us to consider this passage by starting with verse 17. Paul charges us not to be foolish. Why does Paul tell us not to be foolish? Because we have a tendency to be foolish! If we were never foolish or seldom foolish then there would be no need for Paul to command us otherwise.[2]

We are foolish when we do not know what the will of the Lord is. We are foolish if we waste our time. I have an idea! Let’s stop being foolish! Let us know what the will of God is and let us make the best use of our time!

In verse 15 the apostle says that we ought to look carefully how we walk. The word walk means live. We ought to be careful how we live our lives. Again, he is not referring to sinful things. Of course, we ought not to sin. That is too obvious and simple. In context he means living wisely and making the best use of our time.

There are responsibilities that we all have that consume much of our time. Unless we are retired or in school then we must work. This takes up a third of our day or more. Likewise, if we are still in school then class time and study time take up a large portion of our day.

 If we have children then we are to teach them the laws of God:

    4      “Hear, O Israel! Yahweh is our God, Yahweh is one!

    5      “You shall love Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

    6      “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart.

    7      “You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.^[3]

It is not the church’s responsibility to teach your children. It is the parent’s. The church comes alongside to help. But one hour per week is completely inadequate to teach children. Deuteronomy 6:7 makes it clear that we are to teach our children daily, even more than once per day!

Besides our jobs, the training of our children, and spending quality time with our children, we also have the responsibility to care for our belongings – our dwelling place, our transportation, even our own bodies through exercise. This all takes time.

Yet, after all these things are done we have still have much time left over. Unless we are working extra hours, the average person will have anywhere from two to six hours each day wherein we must choose what we will do.

Does God’s word direct us on what we ought to do? It does! Consider this verse about what the Christians did when the church just began:

⁴² And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.^[4]

The first Christians devoted themselves! Of course, we ought to follow their example and devote ourselves too! In other words, we should not live haphazardly, just according to our whims or inclinations for comfort. We should devote ourselves.

To what did they devote themselves? Verse 42 shows us four things:

• the apostles’ teaching
• fellowship
• the breaking of bread
• prayers

We can devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching by reading and studying the New Testament, for it consists of their writings. Even the gospels, revealing the teachings of our Lord, were written by the apostles.[5]

We need to read and study the Bible not just for ourselves but also so that we may be equipped to teach our children. If our children are out of the house then we ought to teach our grandchildren. Why? Because it is a sad reality that many Christian parents are not teaching their children the laws of God. Your own children, if they have their own families already are likely not teaching their children God’s laws daily. When you are watching your grandchildren, don’t just put a movie on. Talk to them about the laws of God. Teach them!

This is what we are commanded to do in Deuteronomy chapter six:

    1      “Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the judgments which Yahweh your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do it in the land where you are going over to possess it,

    2      so that you and your son and your grandson might fear Yahweh your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged.^[6]

See that we are to teach our grandchildren to fear the Lord.

The second thing that the first disciples did was to have fellowship. This just means meeting with the other disciples. They did this daily (Acts 5:42).

The third use of their time was in the breaking of bread. This could be a reference to the Lord’s Table but, more likely, it just means that they shared their meals together. Eating together is a time of closeness where we can talk about the things of the Lord.

When I was in college, the Lord blessed me with membership in a small but dynamic church. I was very often – several times each week – invited to meals at members’ homes. They were wonderful and very much appreciated for a young, single man trying to make ends meet while in school. What I was impressed with and have never forgotten is that we would always talk about what the hosts happened to be enjoying in the word of God that day. I was fed physically and spiritually so often!

The fourth thing that the early church devoted themselves to were to prayers. When Paul writes to the church at Colossae he encourages them in this:

² Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. ³ At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— ⁴ that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.

⁵ Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. ⁶ Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. ^[7]

What is familiar about this passage? Take note of verse 5. Just as he directed the Ephesians, he commands them to make the best use of their time! We are on the right track, are we not? Twice Paul commands the disciples of his day to make the best use of their time! If we apply ourselves to this we are on the right path!

With this passage in Colossians we may add to our list of a wise use of our time, a use of our time that pleases the Lord. The apostle writes that we ought to pray with thanksgiving.

These past two years I have faced some difficulties that have tended to diminish my cheerfulness. What I have discovered is that when I thank the Lord for the blessings that I do have, even if they be small in my estimation, that my spirit is lifted up. Thankfulness lightens our load. Gratitude is the most powerful elixir to whatever ails you!

In Colossians 4:5 we are told to “know how we are to answer each person.” The attitude that we are to have in this endeavor is graciousness. Practically speaking, how will we know how to answer people? Obviously, we must study. You cannot give answers without knowledge. The apostle Peter affirms this:

 in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,^[8]

Peter writes that we ought to always be prepared to make a defense for the hope that we have in Christ. We do this with gentleness and respect. Yet, we must be prepared!

So, now we have two more items for our list of best use of our time:

• the apostles’ teaching
• fellowship
• the breaking of bread
• prayers
• being thankful
• prepare ourselves to defend the faith

What is it that keeps us from doing these things more often? Sometimes it can be our jobs. We may be required to work long hours. Sometimes it can be domestic duties. Mothers, especially those with young children, can find that a great deal of their day is taken up with the care and teaching of their children as well as household chores, and preparing meals.

But for many believers the thing that steals our free time is the seeking of comfort. I mean sitting in front of the tv, surfing the web, on our phone. We engage in vacuous non-activities because they are comfortable. We cater to our own appetites for food and comfort. Sadly, our gods are our belly and our butt (Phil. 3:18-19).

We do need rest. The activities I mentioned are a form of rest. But the right proportion of rest for us is 1/7^th of our week. Less than this is not healthy and more than this is not wise.

Do you remember the vow of the Nazirite? It is found in Numbers chapter six. The apostle Paul took this vow (Acts 18:18). John the Baptist took it. Samuel took it, as did Samson.

It was a consecration to the Lord. According to Numbers both men and women could take the vow. A person who desired to live closer to the Lord would live as a Nazirite. The word nazirite in Hebrew means “to be separated.” That is, consecrated to the Lord and away from common things. It was a temporary vow, although both Samson and John appear to have been life-long Nazirites.

One of the terms of consecration was the abstaining from any substance that came from the grape. A Nazirite could not even eat the seeds nor the skins of grapes. What is the meaning of this?

In typology, wine or anything of the grape signifies earthly pleasure or worldly enjoyment. In order to be fully consecrated to the Lord we must deny ourselves earthly pleasures and comforts. Not perpetually. The vow of the Nazirite was a temporary vow. John the Baptist was the exception.[9]

So, what must we do, saints of the Living God? We must make the best use of our time. We must deny our bellies. We must deny our butts. Instead, we elect to do those things that will draw us closer to the Lord and to our loved ones. We…

• devote ourselves to reading and studying the apostles’ teaching
• seek and enjoy fellowship with other disciples
• invite others over for a meal (and, when you are invited, come prepared to encourage your hosts with something new from the word of God)
• pray! (when you are tempted to do some vacuous inactivity, instead go to a room, close the door, and pray!)
• verbalize thankfulness
• prepare ourselves to defend the faith

Do these things and you will not only feel better, but you will draw closer to the One who loves us.