Romans 13:11-14
You know what time it is, how it is now the time to wake from sleep. For we are closer now to salvation than when we first believed. The night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us life honorably as in the day. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
When Charlie Kirk died, the people of God reacted in different ways. Many felt grieved and sad and cried for someone they hadn’t even heard of before. Some felt sad and angry at the injustice and had a strong desire for justice to be done. Others felt a calling to go to church, open a Bible and pray, sometimes after many years away from their faith. I felt shock and disbelief that he was gone. I felt sad and convicted that he died a martyr and that God would honor his death and bring good out of this tragedy. And some days later I felt a burning, rising conviction that I could not let his death be in vain on my watch and that such a shock is a wake up call. We hear of martyrs all around the world, but usually “somewhere else,” not on our soil. Here God chose to take His precious son home and leave us with an American martyr that will impact the whole world for His kingdom even more in his death. He already had a great impact in his life, but now countless millions will live for his memory by the same principles he espoused in his short and powerful life here on earth. Indeed, we are called to live a life sold out to God just as he did.
Inspired by Charlie, I determined to rekindle my habit of memorizing scripture at work between customers. I cashier at Walmart and for a time I kept verses in my pocket and in this way memorized more than I ever imagined I could retain. In that season I was on fire for the Word and lived a life that was the closest to holiness I’ve managed so far. That ended about 2 years ago when I fell in love with my husband and we married a short time later. I became so absorbed in him that I pretty much stopped studying Bible and lost my fire, though I did funnel that same passion in my marriage and love for the God-granted gift that he is to me. Nevertheless, at the turn of the year, I felt a rising conviction to make study a part of my life again. I started studying a half hour 3 mornings per week. I did that for 5 straight months and then started sleeping later and it fell away slowly. With Charlie’s death, a much stronger conviction told me I must study every morning and rememorize my scriptures at work every day. I must pray not 3 times a week, but every day. This needs to be a crucial part of my daily life. And I do it for his example to be honored, even as I am called to do it to honor Jesus’ life and death as well. In fact, I really am called to do it to honor every martyr. My husband always says, the Christian highway that we walk on has been paved by the blood of the martyrs.
So, the first day I set out to begin this practice I plucked a scripture card from my old pile of verses to take to work. And what I plucked out at random amazed me! It was the above scripture from Romans 13. The Call to wake up!! I had grown sleepy, lulled in pleasure in my husband away from the Word of God, lulled in the daily life that is not alive with the Word and faith and prayer. The life God is calling me to now is one of a living faith!! And I believe He is calling all of His people to rise up and live for Him with all their hearts just like Charlie did. So I want to study this verse in greater detail now, line by line, to see what we can glean for our lives from this precious call of God on us. Here we go!
The first line says, “You know what time it is, how it is now the time to wake from sleep. For we are closer to salvation now than when we first believed.” This line is amazing. Day follows day and the routine of daily living can cause us to lose sight of the great magnitude of Jesus’ saving work in our lives. Our life of faith began one crucial day in our history or for some of you may yet begin on a day just as crucial to you. From that point forward, we are one day closer to being united with the Lord Jesus forever. Whether we die on earth or get raptured in His second coming, time will cease for us one day and eternity will begin. This life, long and slow as it may seem, is miniscule compared to infinity. Psalm 39:5 says, “Surely every man at his best is a mere breath.” Psalm 144:4 says, “For they are like a breath of air; their days are like a passing shadow.” No matter how long it may seem, we are to meditate on God’s wisdom and consider how our life is fleeting, ultimately, compared to eternity.
This does not mean, however, that our life is insignificant. Indeed, consider what the apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:24-25 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” When we run this fleeting race of life for the prize of eternal life, we must strive to be first, to do our utmost best! To make the most of the short time we have here and the most of each day, one day at a time. We are one step closer to our last day on earth and our first day fully redeemed in eternity! Jesus said we do not know the day or the hour of His return and that, for some, He will come as a thief in the night. We are to live with extra oil for our lamps like the good virgins- to keep the work of the Holy Spirit alive in our life day by day for we do not know when the bridegroom will return for us but we must be ever more prepared for His arrival as each passing day that time grows closer to us than when we first believed!
The last half of our key scripture says, “The night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armor of light… Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” We sleep in the night and when day comes, we wake up, so what is this night that is far gone in our lives? When it is night, we cannot see in the darkness- there is no light. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world!” The night in our lives is the period of our lives when we knew not our Lord, when our minds and hearts were darkened by our sin nature before we received the Holy Spirit and got cleansed from our sins. In that time, we had not God’s wisdom to guide us in our lives. We did not know the Word of God nor seek it. We lived for the desires of our flesh, in our carnal lusts seeking pleasure perhaps or living for ourselves rather than others. Perhaps we pursued a career at the expense of loving our family. Perhaps we pleasured our flesh drinking alcohol or pursuing fleeting relationships sexually. Perhaps we indulged our emotions, letting our frustrations and temper get the better of us or refusing to forgive those who have hurt us. Perhaps we lived a life of distraction watching television or social media or shopping and putting priority on material pursuits. Maybe we worried too much about our appearance and not enough about our character. But then, one day, we repented and asked Jesus to save our souls. Blessed day!
The night of our lives was lit up by His Light and we came into the Day of His faith. He cleansed us by the power of His Spirit and took our selfish desires from us and convicted our souls to take up our cross and follow Him! He called us to love like Him and lay down our lives for our friends, to live for the Body of Christ and for the lost. To deny ourselves and die to ourselves. In Matthew 16:25, Jesus said, “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for My sake will find it.” Indeed, we are called to lose our life by giving our time, mind, and heart to God and His service. Study the Bible every day, Pray every day, Give and serve others in love every day, Live the courage of Truth every day, and indeed, be ready to lay your life down just like Charlie did for your faith any day, Live each day like it is your last day here for your Savior and Make the most of your fleeting time in this world, for your crown is not just any crown, but the crown of Life eternal!
2 Cor 4:16-18
So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.