Redeem the Time video audio notes. You can’t afford to spend or waste the valuable limited time you have left doing something you’re not passionate about. You can’t afford to spend the next three years on a job you don’t enjoy. God has given us this amazing gift of time called life. Don’t spend it frivolously. Don’t waste it. Redeem it. Redeem the Time.
TRUST GOD’S TIMING
By Pastor Delbert Young
Redeem the Time
Audio
Video
Redeem the Time video audio notes
Scriptures: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, Ephesians 5:15-17, Joel 2:25, Galatians 4:4-5, Ephesians 5:18-20
We are talking about how to and why we should Trust God’s Timing. We’ve talked about how every matter has a Proper Time set by God and how we must go through the procedure to reach what matters. We also talked about how we must Wait in Hope as hope is a Key. Hope is necessary since we will likely experience misery as we go through the required procedure. Today I want to begin talking about Redeeming the Time. You could easily miss your healing, opportunity, goal, wish, settling an argument, restoring a relationship, your dream, and the answer to your prayer if you don’t redeem the time, but what does Redeeming the Time mean?
Today, I want you to leave knowing what Redeeming the Time means and a few very practical and contextual ways to do it.
Next time we’ll talk about more ways to redeem the time.
Life is flying past you. Once today is gone, it’s gone. There is no rewind button. There is no pause button. You will never get today back. The time you’re given to be here is your one shot at life. You won’t get a “do over.” You can’t relive your twenties, or your thirties, or forties, etc. There is a time marked out specifically for you.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 There is a TIME for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: A TIME TO BE BORN 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 scatter stones and a TIME to gather them, a TIME to embrace and a TIME to refrain, a TIME to search and a TIME to give up, a TIME to keep and a TIME to throw away, a TIME to tear and a TIME to mend, 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.
Isn’t the passage beautiful and poetic? Of the twenty-nine “time to…” mentions, there are two overriding important ones for you. There was a time for you to come into this world, and there is a time for you to leave this world. It’s the way for all of us. The remaining twenty-seven “time to” mentions are happening now represented by the “mark,” the dash, on a tombstone between the date of birth and the date of death. There are many “time to…” set by God specifically for you.
God has placed hopes in your heart. He’s placed dreams, desires, and goals you want to accomplish. We’ve all heard and likely said the terms “spending time” and “wasting time.” On what are you “spending” your time? Where are you investing your precious, valuable time? On what are you “wasting” your time? You can’t afford to spend or waste the valuable limited time you have left doing something you’re not passionate. You can’t afford to spend the next three years on a job you don’t enjoy. God has given us this amazing gift of time called life. Don’t spend it frivolously. Don’t waste it.
We all need to ask, “What’s my plan for my future? Do I have a plan other than making money? Where am I going to spend the majority of my time? What will I purchase with my time? Where am I investing my time? How do I plan to use my time left to accomplish my hopes, dreams, desires, and goals?” You will need to redeem your time.
(KJV) Ephesians 5:15-17 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as FOOLS, but as WISE, REDEEMING THE TIME, because the days are evil. Wherefore BE YE NOT UNWISE, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.
We know if we are wise by our redeeming the time, but what does redeeming the time mean?
(Amplified) Ephesians 5:15-17 Look carefully then how you walk! LIVE PURPOSEFULLY and worthily and ACCURATELY, not as the unwise and witless, but AS WISE (sensible, intelligent people), MAKING THE VERY MOST OF THE TIME[BUYING UP EACH OPPORTUNITY], because the days are evil. Therefore do not be vague and thoughtless and foolish, but understanding and firmly grasping what the will of the Lord is.
A wise person walks around thinking about time – circumspectly. We are to be constantly thinking on purpose about what we’re doing with time. Wise people redeem the time because the days are evil. (evil – poneros {pon-ay-ros’} – full of labors, annoyances, hardships) Evil takes away your valuable, precious, and irreplaceable time. Use your time understanding what the will of the Lord is. A wise person understands and firmly grasps the will of the Lord is where your life is full, blessed, and victorious, as you reach your destiny.
It says, “Live purposefully.” Are you an “on purpose person?” The apostle is instructing us causing us to ask, “How can I make the most of what’s left of my life.” Wise people live/walk on purpose – circumspectly (KJV). How you spend your time shows if you’re wise or witless. It shows how intelligent and sensible you are. We all know unwise and witless people. People waste their lives because they wasted their time. Something evil happened. The Lord says to not be like them. You be wise. Walk around on purpose.
Are you redeeming the time? What is your definition and understanding of “redeeming the time?” What does it mean to you? Most people think it means restoring or getting back time. No. Restoring time is not redeeming time.
(KJV) Joel 2:25 And I WILL RESTORE TO YOU THE YEARS that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm…
Restoring is getting back years already gone. Redeeming the time is making the very best of the time we have now. You and I can’t restore our years. Only God supernaturally can. However, you and I can redeem the time.
The Greek word translated redeeming in Ephesians 5:15 is exagorazo {ex-ag-or-ad’-zo}. It means: to redeem; payment required to buy from another; to buy up for one’s self use; to make wise and sacred use of every opportunity for doing good: metaph. of Christ freeing the elect from the dominion of the Mosaic Law at the price of his vicarious death.
Galatians 4:4-5 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, TO REDEEM THOSE UNDER LAW, that we might receive the full rights of sons.
Jesus Christ redeemed those under the Law of Moses. He paid the price – his sacrificial death.
I want to give us another thought, and then we’ll move on to a real life application for redeeming the time. The dictionary defines redeem as to buy back, regain possession of, or exchange for money, goods, etc.; to pay ransom is to redeem from captivity by paying a stipulated price; to free, liberate, rescue, save.
When we’re talking about redeeming the time, we’re not saying restoring the time. See it as taking a valuable precious heirloom or item to a pawn shop. It’s your possession. The pawn shop gives you money but holds your valuable precious heirloom. You can redeem your precious possession from the pawn shop if in an allotted time you pay the agreed price, or if you will, pay the ransom.
Perhaps the best way to see redeeming the time is as a kidnapping. Imagine your child kidnapped. Your child is valuable, precious, and irreplaceable. A ransom is given to redeem the child. Your child does not belong to the kidnapper. You are responsible for your child. However, they hold your child captive until redeemed. Your child is gone forever, and you will never get them back unless you redeem your child. It’s a video of Redeeming the Time. It’s your time. You are responsible for your time. You are to protect it. Once it’s gone, it’s gone. You can’t restore it, but you can redeem it if you are willing to pay the ransom.
So how does this unwrap concerning our redeeming the time?
Well, what holds your precious, valuable, irreplaceable time? What has kidnapped your time? For what have you pawned your time? The apostle is telling us to go and redeem the time. Pay whatever ransom is required, but get possession of your time. It belongs to you. The days are evil. Kidnappers and pawn sharks have your time.
I want to remain in context as we begin looking at some practical ways we redeem the time. The next verses say;
Ephesians 5:18-20 DO NOT GET DRUNK ON WINE, which leads to debauchery. INSTEAD, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I’m not getting into the wrong or right of alcohol. It is not what the apostle is doing. We all know if you become a drunk, it will cause your life to be a debauchery – wasted life. Have you ever heard the term, “They are wasted”? The thought here isn’t only wine or alcohol. It’s any mind altering substance. People are kidnapped by substance abuse. Our society is full of it. People pawn their lives to alcohol, drugs, marijuana, etc. literally. What is the ransom? Redeeming the Time is paying the ransom to be free, whatever the cost, and using the time you have left fulfilling the Lord’s will – psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, etc.
Looking at this from a slightly different angle, what has kidnapped your worship? What holds possession of your singing, praising, worship, praying, giving, ministering, etc.? Does pride have your worship kidnapped? Have you pawned your worship for greed? Is your worship in the pawn shop? Redeem the time. Worship is the Lord’s will.
I want to close with this.
‘”I’ll never be happy,” he says. “I believe I’ll die alone. I would want it that way. I’ve been a loner all my life with my secrets and my pain. I’m really lost, but I’m trying to find myself.” “I’m really a sad, pathetic case.” The divorced father of six is blunt, gregarious, funny, vulgar, outrageous, sad, angry, and bitter and at times, introspective about the opportunities he squandered over the last two decades. He discusses his drug use (“The weed got me”), lack of self-esteem and sexual addiction. “MY WHOLE LIFE HAS BEEN A WASTE – I’VE BEEN A FAILURE.” This is from an interview with the former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson in an interview with USA Today.
Tyson said, “My whole life has been a waste…”
It’s so sad. What a fighter he was. He wasted his life because he wasted his time. Evil kidnapped his time. He pawned his time. We’ve all been given an amazing gift. It’s the gift of time. Life is made of time. Time is a gift from God every day. What if, before we went to sleep, we asked, “Did I make the very most of my time today? Did I spend my time wisely today? How much time did I trash today? Did I pawn my time today? Did anything kidnap my time today?”
God has placed hopes in your heart. He’s placed dreams, desires, and goals you want to accomplish. Redeeming the time makes this possible. By redeeming the time you are redeeming the time for your healing, for the special opportunity taking you to the next level of living, for your goal, for the restoration of a relationship, for your dream, and for the problem you’re praying about. Trust God’s Timing. Time is the most precious thing he has given you. The days are evil. Evil is attempting to take your precious, irreplaceable, valuable time. God wants you to redeem it and live a blessed, full, fulfilled, victorious life. Trust God with your time.
Redeem the Time video audio notes
Redeem the Time video audio notes
Related messages:
Trust God’s Timing sermon series
Specific with Time – sermon video audio notes
Redeeming the Gibeonites in Me sermon
Pay Taxes Should We or Not Luke 20:19-26
Also see:
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/boxing/2005-06-02-tyson-saraceno_x.htm