MIF 19:2 (Mar-Apr 1987)
Redeeming The Time
“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Psalm 90:12).
Psalm 90 is the only psalm attributed to Moses, who lived 400 years before David. It is a prayer, probably written in the wilderness when the people rebelled and complained under his leadership. Among other things, it teaches us man’s frailty in contrast to the strength and power of God.
To number our days means to consider well how we should spend the time left to us in view of the immence of the Lord’s return. Because the time of His return is uncertain, we should apply our hearts to the pursuit of wisdom, seizing every opportunity remaining to please God in the use of our time, and in our manner and conduct of life.
In Ephesians 5:15-17 the Apostle Paul expresses the same thought — to be wise and redeem, or “buy up,” the time, understanding and doing the Lord’s will. The days in which we live are as evil as they were in Paul’s time, so we should measure the worth of our lives in the light of moral and spiritual values, and not on a temporal or worldly scale.
The Lord Jesus said in Luke 12:40, “Be ye therefore ready also; for the Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not.” So let us plan the days remaining in relation to the work we have left to do for Christ and prepare for the time when we shall give account of ourselves to God at the judgment seat of Christ (Romans 14:12; 2 Corinthians 5:10). The last recorded words of our Lord in the Bible are, “Surely I come quickly” (Revelation 22:20). Thus let us spend our time seeking wisdom. His coming may be nearer than we think!