Redeeming the Time
Ephesians 5:16; Psalm 90:10-12

The Feast of the Circumcision of Christ falls eight days after His birth. As was the custom of the people of God, the baby boys were brought to the Temple to be circumcised. Circumcision was the ritual that brought these children into covenantal relationship with God. During the circumcision ceremony the child was named as well. Mary named her son Jesus on this day. Hence, the Church has often examined the doctrine of the covenant or studied the different names of Christ. Moreover, since the circumcision of Christ falls on New Year's Day it also affords us an opportunity to consider the subject of time, and that is what we want to do this evening.

In Psalm 90:10, the Psalmist states: "The days of our lives are seventy years;" and we are fortunate if we reach "eighty years." One guy decided to take this passage literally. He assumed God would give him seventy years and no more. At the time he was thirty-five years old, which meant he had thirty-five years left. He wanted to make the best of his life. So he took out a calculator and multiplied 365 times thirty-five. The total came to 12,775. That's how many days he had left until God plucked his soul out of the world. Next he went to a stationary store and bought 12,775 sheets of standard, eight-and-a-half by eleven-inch paper. He brought the paper home. In his office on a table he stacked all the sheets; about three feet tall. Each day he took one paper off the top and threw it into the trash. By removing the sheets the stack gradually shortened. When the paper ran out it was his time to die. He believed his idea a wise one for the Psalmist also tells us to "number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12).

On the threshold of a new year it behooves us to evaluate how we are doing with the years the Lord has given us. St. Paul exhorts us in Ephesians 5:16 to "redeem the time." Salvation is dynamic, not stationary. We have a living faith. Consequently, each year we grow in our love for Christ and others. Each year we improve in our service to others. St. Paul exhorts us to "increase more and more" (1 Thessalonians 4:10). This suggests an increase in faith; an increase in our obedience to God's law, an increase in kindness and compassion, courage and discipline, yea, we progress in holiness and righteousness all the days of our lives.

For this reason New Year's resolutions may be helpful. A New Year's resolution inclines your heart to redeem the time. Would God be pleased if in the next year you were to spend more time with your children? Save some money every month? Limit your time on video games? Watch less television? Read good books? Study through the entire Bible? Dedicate more time to prayer and devotions? Eat a more healthy diet? Get more exercise? Get more sleep? Be more thankful? These are admirable ambitions; pleasing to God and worthy of your resolve.

In order to use their time more efficiently, some people make a list of what needs to be done. Hectic schedules demand it. You write out a list of tasks in the morning, and then go on in the day checking off those items as you accomplish them. A day-timer not only helps you complete the things that need to be done, it disposes you towards punctuality. Since every person is responsible to God for using his time wisely it logically follows that arriving late is a form of theft. To arrive late and cause others to wait for you is to steal from them one of their most precious commodities, their time.

We already mentioned a regular schedule for prayer and Bible reading. The best time for most people is early morning ­ it is the only time of day when you can be fairly sure of not being interrupted, and it is hard to improve on the serenity of the early hours. There is spiritual advantage in communing with God before you commune with people, or get buried in the newspaper. Think of the benefit you would receive if your attitude toward others arose out of your life in the Lord? Offering to God the first hour of the day is a token of consecration of all our time.

As we begin this New Year let us also remember the rationale for the Church Calendar. The Christian view of time is linear; there is a past, present and future. Yet time is also rhythmic; that is, there are fundamental patterns that repeat. God created the sun, moon and stars on the fourth day "for signs and seasons, and for days and years" (Gen. 1:14). The truths of the Gospel are best communicated in an annual sequence. The resurrection for example, occurred once in history. We embrace this truth daily as we strive to "walk in newness of life." We also have a weekly observance of the resurrection on Sunday. A daily and weekly observance of the resurrection is fine, but nothing roots that truth more firmly in our souls as a spectacular, annual celebration called Easter.

This habit of setting aside one day or season out of the year is a way to "sacralize" or sanctify time. For instance, repentance for sin is a daily duty, yet to set apart a particular season to give penitence special emphasis is spiritually satisfying and humanly necessary. It is called Lent. We simply cannot focus on all the Christian duties every day of the year. We are wired to make certain days special. Since we cannot escape time we are called to sanctify it, and that is what the Church has done for us.

This perpetual and repeated remembrance of the life of Christ is the principle underlying the liturgical year. Most evangelicals celebrate Christmas and Easter, but Anglicans take it much farther. There are more than two events in the Gospel drama. Jesus did a lot more then merely come forth from the womb and rise from the dead. In His redemption of the world, the Lord passed through a rich sequence of mysterious and marvelous events, each one of which is most glorious in its significance, and most beneficial for us to think on. These events include Advent, Christ's birth, the Circumcision of Christ, followed by Epiphany, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Holy Week, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Day, Pentecost, Ascension, the season of Trinity, and many saints' days. At St. Luke's we try to observe the whole calendar of Gospel events. Feast after feast comes and goes during the course of a year, and if you are diligent to attend these services, then you will come to feel that you are walking very close to the great drama of redemption enacted by our Lord. There will be a perpetual sense of joy and anticipation. Together we stir one another along with "Now we are coming to Epiphany!" or "Palm Sunday is approaching, we'll wave palm branches as we process into the church!" "We're getting close to Lent. A time to fast." "Ascension comes on Thursday and we'll give attention to Christ's exaltation and kingship." Thus, as we march through the Church festivals year after year the Holy Spirit puts the highlights of redemption in our minds and engraves them on our hearts.

And, there is no reason to distrust the saints' days. The English Reformation wisely pruned off the abuses of the Middle Ages and focused on the themes and emphases appropriate to each departed saint. We avoid prayers to them and our intercessions fly to Christ alone for He is our only Mediator between God and men.

On the other hand, Hebrews chapter eleven reminds us that we are surrounded with a great and awesome cloud of witnesses. These great Christians have fascinating histories, and have left us sublime examples to follow. For instance, on St. Thomas's Day we remember his doubts about Christ and how he eventually came to greater faith. With St. Luke's festival we recall that he was a physician and historian who set forth the healing power of the Gospel. On St. Mark's Day we observe how God purged him of his youthful faults and weaknesses. Hence, we are encouraged by his example that when we stumble and fall, like him, we are to get back up, and keep going. If we can set aside days to honor national figures like Washington, Lincoln, and Martin Luther King, Jr. how much more should we as Christians sanctify particular days to honor St. Paul, St. Peter, John, and Luke?

The Church calendar thus offers a seemingly endless variety of distinctive devotions ­ prayer vigils, morning and evening prayer, the litany, the lectionary, feasts and fasts, the austerity of Lent, the joy of Easter, and always the Word and Sacrament. Our participation in the Church year introduces us to a world with endless layers of meaning. Thus, on an annual basis the incarnation is rehearsed, and the pattern of what Jesus did for you and me passes before our eyes. Indeed, all our senses ­ sight, sound smell, taste, and touch ­ are stimulated, and time is truly redeemed in worship.

Since the Fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden, time has been cursed. Pagan religions strive to escape time; not Christianity. Like all things twisted by the curse, Christ came to redeem and sanctify it.

At the Final Judgment you shall stand before that dreadful Judge Jesus, and He will judge you as to how you are using your time on earth. It is therefore essential that you evaluate if you are wisely employing your time and talents. At the outset of this New Year 2003 be resolved to number your days and redeem the time God has granted you. Sanctify your daily schedule. Immerse yourself in the Church's annual cycle. Be committed to daily devotional time. With God's help, make this the year you seriously resolve to amend your defects and strengthen your weaknesses.

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