Weekly Devotion: Process of Time

“And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.” Genesis 4:3

The Bible starts with “In the beginning…” and yet eternity by definition has no beginning or end, so we understand this to mean the beginning of “time” or the beginning of history. History is just that, HIS STORY, i.e. God’s story, taking place in a trinity of dimensions; past, present, and future. The “process of time” then, is “every thing”, and “every purpose” that take place within “time”.

“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” Ecclesiastes 3:1

Webster’s dictionary defines “time” as “A continuum in which events succeed one another from past through present to future.” Someone once said, “If we waste our money, we are only out of money, but if we waste our time, we’ve lost a portion of our lives.” This truth is based on the Bible principle that Christians are to be “redeeming the time” that we have; budgeting it as we would other commodities.

“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:16

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, was so convicted not to waste time that he was said to have divided his daily schedule into 5-minute time blocks so as to make the most of it. Maybe that is why God allowed him to preach more than 9,000 sermons and log more than 250,000 miles on horseback on his preaching circuit throughout England. Benjamin Franklin said, “To love life is to love time; time is the stuff life is made of.” Franklin began documenting his time and then compared his time usage to his values; the Franklin Planner is the result of his work. Albert Einstein said, “Time has no independent existence apart from the order of events by which we measure it.” Moses’ prayed, “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12). God however, is the Alpha and Omega, he stands outside of “time” and wants to be known as the “I am” (Exodus 3:14); not I was or I will be, but “I am”, the eternal now! But since our lives are made up of events that happen in “time” we can only impact eternity if we base those events on the words of God. God can give us the “length of days, and long life, and peace” if we “keep” his “commandments”.

^“My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.” Proverbs 3:1, 2

Don’t be like the scoffers of 2 Peter 3:4 who say, “Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” All things are not continuing as they were from the beginning; things and purposes are waxing “worse and worse” (2 Timothy 3:13). But Jesus will come again in “the fulness of time” (Galatians 4:4) just like he did at his first coming and all of us will be called to bring an offering unto the Lord in the “process of time” just like Cain and Abel did. Friend, “time” is translated “opportunity” twice in the New Testament; why not take this opportunity to be saved, before father time runs out.

“(For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)” 2 Corinthians 6:2