Text: Ephesians 5:15–21
We’re continuing our series on being a good and faithful steward with the life that God has entrusted to us. And today we’re looking at a very important area of stewardship that we have been given by our Father: the stewardship of our time.
Paul addresses this directly in Ephesians 5. Notice what he says in verses 15 through 21:
“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. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”
Time Is the One Resource You Can’t Replace
Time is a precious resource. I was thinking about it: with enough time and effort, we can make more money. We can buy more supplies. We can build more things. We can create new and better resources than we had before. If given enough time, energy, and opportunity, we have the ability to recreate so many of the resources we use.
But no one in human history has found a way to produce more time.
Before God spoke anything into existence, He decided how much time He was going to allot to every person and to every era in human history. He knew how long each moment would last. He knew how long our lives would last. Folks, He has your last day written down in His records in heaven. He knows the moment you will take your last breath. It will not be a surprise to Him.
And that number cannot be changed, no matter how hard we try.
God has created a timetable, and everything is working out according to His plan. We cannot adjust God’s timeframe. That’s simply the reality of living in this world. We are finite beings. God has given us the ability to influence and affect a lot of things, but one thing we have no control over is the speed of time and the amount of time we have.
How People Respond to the Brevity of Life
Unbelievers don’t handle this reality very well. Human beings naturally resist the truth that we are limited in the amount of time we’ve been given in this world. And people typically choose to do one of three things with that truth.
Some ignore it and live for the moment
Some people will ignore reality and just live for the moment. They live moment by moment doing whatever seems best in that moment. They may make plans and talk about the future, but in reality they’re not really thinking long-term. They make their decisions for the moment and try to pretend life is not going to end.
Some accept it—but chase pleasure with what’s left
Then there are others who realize time is limited. They embrace the brevity of life. But instead of letting that lead them toward a wise path, they make the choice to have as much fun as possible with the little time they’ve been given.
I had a conversation with someone not too long ago about life, what happens after, and whether there is a God. It was a deep conversation, and her conclusion was this: “I don’t know if any of that is real or not. All I know is I’ve got a little time here, and I’m just going to enjoy it as much as I can.”
That’s the conclusion many people come to: I’ve got a little time, so I’m going to make it as big as I can.
Some fight it and try to extend life at all costs
Then there are others who realize their time is limited, but they resist the limits of their lives and strive moment by moment to extend their days as much as possible.
Now, don’t get me wrong—there’s nothing wrong with exercise. There’s nothing wrong with good dieting decisions. There’s nothing wrong with taking supplements and medicines, going to doctors, and trying to improve your quality of life. I thank God we have the opportunity to do these things.
But there are people who are trying to make themselves as infinite as possible. They are trying to extend their lifetime as much as they possibly can. They are resisting the natural limitations that God has given us in this world.
None of these options are good, and none of them are healthy.
How Believers View Time Differently
As believers, we also recognize we are only here for a little while. But we don’t have to dread that reality like the rest of the world, because we know this is temporary. Our true hope is not in this world—it’s in the home that awaits us in the new creation with our God and Savior.
In that place, time will never end. There are no limits to our existence. We will not reach an end of eternity. This existence will go on forever and ever, and it will be infinitely glorious and infinitely pleasant. As we enter the eternal kingdom of Christ, we will have a never-ending stream of time in which we are able to serve God and enjoy His glory.
So we don’t have to fear the limitations of our life. We don’t have to resist them. In fact, as believers there should be a part of us that anticipates the opportunity to enter into eternity, because we know it is infinitely greater than living in this sin-cursed world with all of its brokenness.
But accepting the brevity of life does not mean we waste the time we have here.
Some believers come to the conclusion: “I’m going to heaven one day. This world is not all there is. I’m just passing through.” And that reality causes them to sit back, relax, and stop trying to do anything productive for the glory of God.
That is not a helpful way to live.
For the last few weeks, we’ve been reminded we are called to be good stewards of everything God has given us. Everything you have belongs to God. Everything you have has been given to you for the glory of God and the service of God. And if we use it well, we will be rewarded one day when we enter our eternal home.
So with that reality, we need to understand this: how we spend our time matters to God.
What It Means to “Redeem” the Time
That’s why Paul calls us to redeem our time.
Now, that does not mean you break out your checkbook and start buying time. That’s not what he’s talking about. The word redeem means to make the best use of something. It means you are using it to its maximum potential—you are optimizing it to the fullest.
Biblical scholars seem to agree that Paul’s use of the word time here is referring to the life a believer has been given: the seconds, the hours, the days, the years that make up our existence. That is your time.
Paul is saying that we as believers need to be redeeming—making the best use of—our time.
Just because this is not our permanent home, just because we have a better day waiting for us, does not mean we kick our feet up, relax, and coast through life waiting for Jesus to come back.
We are to redeem the time. We are to make the best use of the time and the best use of the opportunities we’ve been given.
I like the way John MacArthur put it: we are to make the most of our time on this evil earth in fulfilling God’s purposes, lining up every opportunity for useful worship and service.
Walk Circumspectly: Live With Intentionality
Paul tells us to “walk circumspectly.” The word walk in the Bible means to live—your daily conduct, your manner of life. And we don’t really use the word circumspectly anymore, do we? It simply means with intentionality and with great attention and care.
He’s saying: live your life intentionally. Live your life carefully. Pay attention to every step you take.
We can think carefully about how we use our time and wisely spend the moments we’ve been given, or we can live by the moment—just letting what happens happen.
There is a saying that was popularized in the 1950s. It’s the Spanish phrase: que sera sera—“what will be, will be.” That’s the motto of people drifting through life: “What’s going to happen is going to happen. I’m just going to see how it plays out.”
That’s not how God has called us to live.
You can be wise with your time and have something to present to God one day, or you can be a fool with your time—wasting it, letting it slip away, and then one day wondering where it went.
And Paul gives a reason: “Redeeming the time because the days are evil.” We are not living in a day that naturally drifts toward usefulness. The natural tendency of fallen man is to waste God-given opportunities while chasing comfort and self.
Paul was saying that in his day—two thousand years ago. And think about how much farther we’ve come since Paul’s day.
If you default to the base setting we are on, you are not going to trend toward godliness. It has to be a conscious daily decision to use your time well and to live for the glory of God.
So Paul lays it out: walk with wisdom. Live with intentionality. Do not be a fool with your time. Make the best use of your opportunities, because you are living in an evil day.
The question becomes: how do we do this? How do we ensure our time is used in a way that is most glorifying to God?
In this passage, we find four principles that guide us.
Be educated about the will of God
Paul says in verse 17: “Be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”
This answers the question, What am I supposed to do with my time? Before we can use our time well, we have to understand how we should be using it.
There are millions of ways you could spend your time. There are endless combinations of how you could take the hours of your week and put them to use. And I don’t know about you, but that can be stressful.
In our house, free time doesn’t happen a lot. And when free time does happen, it can paralyze me sometimes because I think, “I don’t have much of this… so what do I do with it that will be most beneficial—to me and to others?” Sometimes we have to choose between one good thing and another good thing. Sometimes we have to avoid things that aren’t good at all.
So how do we decide? Paul says we need to understand the will of the Lord.
In every situation, we need to know what is pleasing to the Lord in that moment. When you walk into a moment of life, you need to have in your mind how you’re going to glorify God in that moment.
We don’t think about that enough. Most of the time, we think about pleasing God after the moment, looking backward and saying, “I didn’t do a good job in that moment.” But we need to be proactive.
When I open my eyes in the morning and Devani is standing next to my bed asking for waffles and chocolate milk, I need to be prepared to answer that in a way that glorifies God.
When I get a phone call at work and Emma is telling me something is going terribly wrong at the house and she needs me to come home as quick as I can, I need to be prepared to respond in a way that glorifies God.
When I receive an email, a phone call, when I sit down to eat my lunch—I need to think about how I’m going to do that to the glory of God.
You might say, “Justin, that sounds like overkill.” But Paul said, “Whether you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
You need to eat to the glory of God. You need to drink to the glory of God. You need to live to the glory of God.
Every moment of your life is not yours. It belongs to the Father, and you need to give serious attention to what you’re doing with it.
And I’m telling you: if you listen to the world about how to use your time, you’re going to get it wrong. If you listen to your gut, you’re probably going to get it wrong at least half the time.
So how do we understand the will of the Lord?
First, take inventory of what God has put in your life for you to do. What has God called you to do?
For me, I can tell you plainly: God has called me first and foremost to be a husband—to Emma Renee Oaks. That’s my first calling. If I’m not doing that well, my kids will suffer, the church will suffer, my job will suffer, I will suffer. If I’m not being the husband God has called me to be, I’m failing in every other area.
He has called me to be a father to these four wonderful children. And if Emma has her way, one day it will be five. And if I’m not doing that well, I’m failing in every other area.
He has called me to be the pastor of Temple Baptist Church and a preacher of the Word. And He has called me to be a faithful employee.
God has given me specific responsibilities, and if I’m not fulfilling them with excellence, I am not redeeming my time.
So you need to think seriously about your stage of life. What responsibilities has God given you right now? Not what you want to do, and not what you enjoy doing. What has God placed into your life for you to steward?
Then ask: How does the Bible tell me to execute those responsibilities?
What does the Bible say about being a good husband? A good father? A good grandparent? It’s in there, by the way. What does it say about being a good employee? A good friend? A good homeowner?
And when I walk into that situation—when I receive that phone call—this goes back to what my father-in-law was telling us a few weeks ago: you need to have a Word that does something in your life.
The Bible is not something we read and then put on the shelf and say, “I am a good Christian because I read my Bible today.” The Word that is in your heart is more important than the Word that is on your shelf.
When I walk into work on Monday morning, when I come home and enter the chaos of my household, I need to have something from the Word of God in me that tells me how to respond in that moment.
That’s how you understand what the will of the Lord is.
So here’s the question: How is the Word guiding the daily moments of your life? And the more important question is: How can the Word guide you in the week to come?
I hope you’ll take that seriously and put legs to it this week. Ask the questions, then go find the answers. And if you need help finding them, that’s why I’m here. Call me. We’ll work through it together.
This Word is living. It is active. It is sharper than a two-edged sword. And it can guide any part of your life that you need it to guide.
Be filled and empowered with the Holy Spirit
Next, Paul says in verse 18: “Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.”
So what does it mean to be filled with the Holy Spirit?
A lot of people think of being filled with the Spirit as some transcendent emotional experience—something mystical—where a person is overtaken and suddenly things supernatural start happening in them and around them.
Now, the Holy Spirit is supernatural, and His work will lead you into greater joy, greater peace, and greater power. But when Scripture speaks about being filled with the Spirit, it’s not calling us to chase an emotional moment.
Being filled with the Spirit is living in such a way that the Holy Spirit is the supreme influence in your life—day by day and moment by moment.
Paul contrasts it with being drunk with wine. In those days, many Romans would have drunken parties, and that was the way they thought they could hear from their gods. They would get slam drunk, have ungodly parties, and expect that out of that moment of ecstasy their god would speak.
Christians lived in that culture, so they were influenced by it. Paul says: that’s not how you are led by your God.
You’re not looking for physical or emotional ecstasy. You’re looking for a consistent and faithful presence that guides you day by day and moment by moment.
To be filled with the Spirit is to let Him have the influence. You’re not under the influence of alcohol. You’re not under the influence of anger and bitterness. You’re not under the influence of your emotions. You are under the influence of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
And you will see evidence of that. The fruit of the Spirit will show up in your life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control. If you’re being led by the Spirit, those things become evident.
And understand this: being under His influence is the only way you can truly live out step one. You need the Holy Spirit opening the encyclopedia of God’s Word and applying it to your life in real time.
You ever had a Scripture hit your mind at just the right moment? You know where that came from? That’s the Holy Spirit guiding you.
And this isn’t a one-time event. Some talk about “the filling of the Spirit” as a single dramatic moment, but that’s not what Paul means here. The verb Paul uses is in the active present tense—meaning it is ongoing. It’s not past tense. It’s not perfect tense. It’s active present tense: you need to be continually filled.
When you’re saved, you are indwelt with the Spirit. He’s in there. But the question is: how much control does He have over your life?
So if we want to make the best use of our time, we need to ask God to fill us with His Spirit—to let the Spirit have greater influence in our lives.
Exalt God in every moment
Third, Paul shows us that redeeming our time involves living in worship.
Verses 19 and 20 say we are to be speaking to ourselves in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs; singing and making melody in our hearts to the Lord; and giving thanks always for all things unto God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
If you want to make the best use of your time, it is essential that God’s glory and praise are the focus of your mind throughout your day.
The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins with the question: What is the chief end of man? Or, to say it in modern English: what is the primary purpose of man’s life on earth?
And the answer: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
That is why we were created—to know God, glorify God, and reflect His glory so others can see it. That’s why everything we do should be done as worship.
When we wake up first thing in the morning, the first words on our lips should be praise.
When we walk into work, we should say, “God, thank You for providing a way for me to live. Thank You for another opportunity to serve You. Help me to do it well.”
When I wake up to my bell ringing for chocolate milk and waffles, I need to say, “God, thank You for this child You’ve put in my life, and thank You that I have waffles and chocolate milk to give him.”
Every moment becomes an opportunity for worship.
And folks, understand: 1 Corinthians 13 tells us we can do all the right things, but if the heart is not right, the act is not right. You can do the right actions with the wrong motive. You can sacrifice greatly, but if it isn’t done with love for God and love for others, it is wasted.
Psalm 51 says God is not pleased with sacrifice as performance; He is pleased with a broken and contrite spirit.
If you want to redeem your time well, build the habit of praising God from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed. It will change you. It will make hard moments easier to bear. It will replace complaining with gratitude, and gratitude with joy.
Edify one another through humble service
Finally, Paul says in verse 21: “Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”
I was listening to John MacArthur preach a sermon on something completely unrelated to this topic, and it helped me tremendously. He explained that this phrase means we are making ourselves servants of one another.
And when you keep reading the passage, Paul applies it to wives and husbands, children, servants and masters. In other words, regardless of your position, age, gender, race, ethnicity, job, or income level, all of us are to make ourselves servants of one another.
Philippians 2 tells us Jesus did not grasp at His rights, but humbled Himself and took the form of a servant. Folks, the most exalted being in the universe came down here and made Himself a servant so that God might be glorified in Him.
That’s what Paul is calling us to do with our time.
We’re not looking for how everyone else can serve us. We’re not looking for how to enjoy every moment as much as possible. We’re looking for this: How can I take this moment and use it to serve God and serve someone else?
That is how we redeem the time.
A Closing Question
So, if you want to be confident when you stand before God one day—if you want to be able to look back and be grateful for how you used your life—then give serious thought and attention to Paul’s words.
Be educated on God’s will. Be empowered by His Holy Spirit. Exalt God moment by moment. And edify one another through humble service.
How are you going to redeem your time this week?
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