Learning to Tell Time
Even in our digital world, learning to tell the time is still an important skill. How much more in our contested culture is learning to “tell the time” a critical practice for Christians?
When our daughter Adalyn was four years old, she finished our church’s pre-school program (called Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten or VPK here in Florida). It was time for kindergarten. The school we were moving her into wanted to do a basic assessment of her knowledge for class placement. She did well on the testing, reading above expectation and passing the other assessments. Only one element from the testing tripped her up: telling the time on an analog clock. My wife Laura and I remember laughing as she described her frustration, “They didn’t teach us how to read a clock in VPK. I mean, we cut out a paper clock, but we didn’t learn how to read a clock!” Eventually she did learn, because even in our digital world, learning to tell the time is still an important skill.
Telling the Time
How much more in our contested culture is learning to “tell the time” a critical practice for Christians? So much of life is wisely walking in the Word by the Spirit to know the time or season. We’re reminded of this principle from Ecclesiastes 3:2-8, the famous listing of opposing pairs:
a time to give birth and a time to die;
a time to plant and a time to uproot;
a time to kill and a time to heal;
a time to tear down and a time to build;
a time to weep and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn and a time to dance;
a time to throw stones and a time to gather stones;
a time to embrace and a time to avoid embracing;
a time to search and a time to count as lost;
a time to keep and a time to throw away;
a time to tear and a time to sew;
a time to be silent and a time to speak;
a time to love and a time to hate;
a time for war and a time for peace.
In each of these pairs, the Greek translation for “time” is the word kairos, which means season or appointed moment. God appoints moments and seasons—times—for his own purposes. We must learn to discern the moments and season. How do we learn to tell the time? The Bible’s answer: wisdom. In fact, learning to tell the time cultivates wisdom in our hearts: “Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts” (Ps 90:12).
When we get the time right, we walk in goodness, order, and beauty: “God has made everything appropriate (older versions render this literally as “beautiful”) in its time.” (Eccl 3:11). “At this time next year, Sarah will bear a son” (Gen 18:10). The Hebrew word for “time” describes something’s proper moment: giving birth (Gen 38); the menstrual period (Lev 15:25); rain in its season (Dt 28:12), mealtime (Ruth 2:14): when kings go to battle (2 Sam 11:1). God appoints the times for both good and destruction (2 Sam 24:15). The sons of Issachar understood the times (1 Chron 12:32). The comfort of those in Christ is that our “times are in Your hands” (Ps 31:15). We live through times of trouble, even times of punishment and discipline, but the Lord is our strength. “He will be the stability of your times” (Is 33:6). We are in the acceptable time of salvation (2 Cor 6:2), the time of the righteous branch of David (Jer 33:15). The time of the fulfilling of God’s eternal purposes (Mt 8:29) and the breaking in of the kingdom (Mk 1:15). The time for the nations to meet the Messiah (Lk 21:24). At the right time, Christ died for the ungodly (Rom 5:6). Satan’s time is short (Rev 12:12).
In other words, we live in the time in-between. Christ has come. He has been crucified for our sins, buried, and raised. He has ascended into heaven and now stands at the Father’s right hand where he rules over all. Yet he has not yet consummated his kingdom. So, how should we respond?
Living In-Between
The Bible gives us a slew of responses for living in the time in-between Christ’s ascension and his return. We can split these responses into virtues (habits of being) and actions (habits of doing).
The virtues/habits of being of our time: repentance, faith, patience, humility, awareness.
It’s time to repent and believe in the gospel (Mk 1:15)! If we do, times of refreshing may come (Acts 3:20).
“Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed” (Rom 13:11).
“So don’t judge anything prematurely, before the Lord comes, who will both bring to light what is hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the hearts. And then praise will come to each one from God” (1 Cor 4:5).
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the proper time” (1 Peter 5:6).
The actions/habits of doing of our time: teach, work, pray, preach
“Be alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36)
“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master has put in charge of his household, to give them food at the proper time?” (Matthew 24:45). Because the time of Christ’s return is still to come and we don’t know it (Mk 13:33; Acts 1:7).
“At the present time your surplus is available for their need, so that their abundance may in turn meet your need, in order that there may be equality.” (2 Cor 8:14)
“Therefore, as we have time, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith” (Gal 6:10).
“Make the most of the time, because the days are evil” (Eph 5:16).
“Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints” (Eph 6:18).
“Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and teaching” (2 Tim 4:2).
“Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
These are big picture, long-term Christian principles for all Christians everywhere before Christ returns. These principles, virtues and actions, intersect with the snapshot, shorter-term scope of our lives. In the scope of our lives, we live in certain seasons. We live in cultural and social seasons, and we live in personal and circumstantial seasons.
What Time Is It?
For example, on the cultural and social side, we live in a season of partisan political idolatry. Folks see one political side as righteous and the other as evil. Wisdom to tell the time takes the principles of Christian habits of being and doing, and applies them to this moment. The Christian virtue of patience, “not judging prematurely,” for example, might take the recent FBI warrant served at former President Trump’s residence at Mar-A-Lago and withhold judgment on either direction. Wisdom lets the story unfold before saying, “Trump was wrong!” or “Trump was wronged!”
On the personal and circumstantial side, we are wise to ask, “What time is it?” For example, a couple of weeks ago, I hurt myself playing baseball with my son Judson. I forgot that I’m older and fatter than I used to be. So now I need to let my body heal, even though I want to move heavy things to get our house in order, set up my home study, and so on. It’s time to physically hold back, so that my body can heal. This principle plays out in a zillion ways, from day-to-day, week-to-week, and year-to-year. While my kids are still in our house, for example, it’s time to be a present and faithful dad; it’s time to refuse to put ministry or hobbies or anything else above raising my kids as well as I can.
If we did an assessment to move you from Christian VPK to elementary in the school of Christ, would you be able to tell the time? Have you learned the practices of Christian faithfulness, virtuous habits of being and the active habits of doing that mark Christians before Jesus comes back?
In other words, what time is it, for you?