Some years ago there were twin brothers, both of whom were brought up in the Republic of Ireland. One of them immigrated to America in his youth, went into business, and was quite successful, while the other remained in Ireland. A number of years later the one who had immigrated to America went home for a visit. His brother in Ireland immediately stopped what he was doing, invited him to sit down, and remarked, “We need to take some time and do some catching up! You know, when the Lord made time, He made lots of it!” The brother from America grunted, then commented, “I think He made only half as much in America!” This anecdote, a true story, points out the fact that different cultures view time differently. Some believe fervently that “time is money” and that every minute must be used to advantage. Others, in different cultures, believe that the event and what it entails is far more important than its timing, and they are willing to have a much more relaxed schedule, even if it means accomplishing less in concrete terms. We may well ask, What does Scripture have to say about this?
As always, we find that Scripture is perfectly balanced and suits every culture. God did not need to write one Word for the West and another for the East. No, the Word of God speaks to every culture and, when necessary, judges every culture.
God’s Order of Time
If we speak about a linear view of time, yes, the Bible presents God as a God of order. When God set to work to establish the present creation, He brought order out of what had become chaos. The world in which we live, and the universe in which our world is located, runs with exact precision and is maintained that way by the One who is “upholding all things by the word of His power” (Heb. 1:33Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; (Hebrews 1:3)). Also, when our Lord was on earth, He acted in keeping with timing and order. When He kept the last Passover with His disciples, Scripture says, “When the hour was come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him” (Luke 22:1414And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. (Luke 22:14)). Neither our Lord nor His disciples took the occasion casually and came late. Likewise, it is recorded that “Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, which is the ninth hour” (Acts 3:11Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. (Acts 3:1)), showing us that they were prompt in being there at a specific time.
Likewise, in our own lives, there are things that ought to be done on time, not only as a courtesy to others, but in the case of spiritual things, out of reverence for the Lord Himself. This requires self-discipline, but we should be willing to exercise ourselves in this way, rather than pleasing ourselves. To be continually late for agreed-upon appointments and events is to display a self-centeredness that imposes our will on others, often without regard to the inconvenience to them.
“No Time Even to Eat”
However, we also find in Scripture that our Lord sometimes altered plans that had been made and inconvenienced Himself in order to accommodate others. For example, we read in Mark 6:3131And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat. (Mark 6:31) that the Lord said to His disciples, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while.” They had been busy, with no time even to eat. But we know well what happened. Although the Lord and His disciples had departed privately by ship, the people were aware of it, and evidently outran them around the shore of the lake. Here it was the selfishness and thoughtlessness of the people that imposed on our Lord and His disciples, and surely it would have been quite in order for Him to dismiss the people, saying that He and His disciples needed to rest a bit. But no, “He was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd” (Mark 6:3434And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things. (Mark 6:34)). Instead of dismissing them, He taught them many things, and then He fed them when they were hungry. Our Lord changed His plans, not in order to please Himself, but rather to accommodate the needs of others and to do His Father’s will.
A Time to Visit
In another example, we find our Lord taking the time to visit with a sinful woman at Sychar’s well, en route from Judea to Galilee, and even going without His necessary food in order to spend the necessary time to complete His visit with her.
Likewise, Paul and Silas received a clear call to go to Macedonia, from a man in a vision: “Come over into Macedonia, and help us” (Acts 16:99And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. (Acts 16:9)). Yet when they arrived, they initially found only women having prayer at the riverside. But they were content to minister to these women, and it was only after some time, and after they were beaten and thrown into prison, that they met up with the man in the vision — doubtless the Philippian jailor.
Thus we see that while God is a God of order and punctuality, yet Scripture allows for priorities in our Christian lives and the taking of time to accomplish what God has given us to do. The great thing is to be walking with the Lord, to be sensitive to the leading of His Spirit, and to recognize that He will give us guidance as to how to use our time. We never find our Lord inconveniencing others by being casual about time, nor do we ever find Him wasting time. But we do find Him inconveniencing Himself in order to do the Father’s will and taking the time to complete that work, rather than adhering to a strict schedule. These are good examples for us to follow as Christians.
W. J. Prost