The Unexpected Hour

Time

The concept of time is very interesting and also difficult to describe.

Time can run and stand still.
Time can escape us and sneak up on us.
Time is both fleeting and precious.
There can be so much time and not enough time.
Time is both distant and near.
Time is something people gain and lose everyday.
Time can be calculated, but not truly measured because it is relative to its subject and situation.
 

It's quite the paradox! But did you know that there was a time when there was no time?

In the Beginning

The Bible opens with these three words, signaling to the reader the moment time began. The first chapter of Genesis reveals that the concept of time did not exist before God, but was initiated the moment He formed the heavens and the earth. He divided the light from the darkness, forming the very first day (Gen. 1:3-5). He established the sun, moon and stars to give light on the earth, to be used for both signs and seasons, and to record days and years (Gen. 1:14-18). All of creation has a beginning and an ending. The Creator, however, has no beginning or ending because He existed before time began and will remain when time comes to an end (Isa. 46:9-10, Rev. 1:8; 21:6; 22:13, Isa. 43:10).

Let's look at this from a different angle. If you have been in church for any amount of time, you may have heard the popular phrase,

"God is good, all the time. All the time, God is good."

Notice this phrase starts and ends with the statement that "God is good," and then sandwiched in between this statement we find the notion of time. 

Looking at this simple phrase, we can see that God's goodness exists outside the restraints of time and is in no way relative to the concept of time. Instead, it is absolute that the nature of God is good. There has never been a time when God is not good because He was good before time began and will remain good after time ends.

Imagining the end of time can be just as challenging as describing it in the first place. But the Word of God teaches us that there will in fact be an end to this time in which we live. The disciples understood that Jesus would return before the end of time, which is why they approached Him privately to ask, "what will be the sign of Your coming, and the end of the age?" (Matt. 24:3). Jesus then shared with them several signs to expect just before His return. Unfortunately, knowing that Jesus will return is very different than knowing when He will return.

The Unexpected Hour

This morning I opened my eyes around 4:50 am, sadly an entire hour and 10 minutes before my alarm clock. As I laid in bed, I heard the voice of the Lord whisper, "If you had known what hour the thief would come..." and my sense of hearing suddenly heightened as I listened intently for any strange noises in my home. After an extended period of silence, I succumbed to my "night owl" nature and went back to sleep, not ready to receive any grand revelations so early in the morning.

After returning home from work, however, I discovered that there are only three passages of scripture in the entire Bible that refer to a thief coming at a certain hour: Matthew 24:42-44, Luke 12:39-40 and Revelation 3:1-3. All three passages were spoken by Jesus and all refer to His return. The theme of all three scriptures can be summed up in the following phrase:

Jesus is returning at the stroke of "The Unexpected Hour" on the grand clock of time, an hour that we are quickly approaching. We cannot prevent it, we cannot escape it, we cannot control it. We can and should, however, prepare for it. Throughout these three passages, Jesus warns believers to "watch," "be ready," "hold fast," "repent" and "strengthen the things which remain." This simply means we have to turn our focus away from the world's issues and redirect all of our attention to God and His Word, actively pursuing His will in this earth.

No Time Like the Present

The present is truly the gift that we receive and unwrap on every "today" of the year. Time was created by God and thus belongs to God. We must not fear losing time because it was never ours to begin with. Instead, we must redeem the time we've been given, not wasting it on the things of this earth which quickly fade away (Eph. 5:15-16, Col. 4:5-6, 1 Cor. 7:31, 1 John 2:17). We must cherish and spend it wisely, preparing for the return of the King.

Roll With It

Naturally, I'm a perfectionist. While this attribute is often noted in job interviews as a positive-weakness of a potential new hire, it has always paralyzed me in my walk with God. I want to get everything right, so I will hesitate to take a step if I'm not absolutely 100% certain it's God's will. Mix that with dramatic and it's a recipe for disaster. Inside my theatrical mind, one wrong move from my character can ultimately ruin the scene transforming the entire play of my life into a tragedy. Therefore, it is better to play it safe, steer clear of risks and avoid changes to my role.

I learned something new and interesting about that word role from the book When God Rescripts Your Life by singer and author Jaci Velasquez. She writes,

There are certain roles that have been established within our society, family, church, community and beyond. Some are God-given (e.g. husband, wife and child) while others have been developed over time in society (e.g. business owner, homemaker and carpenter). Then there are the God-given roles that have been reshaped by societal views. As an illustration, the roles of men and women now greatly contrast with the roles from just 30 years ago. Not as though there were any changes to the Word of God, but to societal perspective. As proven throughout history, it is far better for us to uphold any and every role based on what God says, rather than what society says.

Sometimes when God speaks, it shakes up our perspective and, at times, transforms our role. I've heard of four guys who were just going about their daily lives, functioning in their respective roles as fishermen until the Word of God changed everything. Suddenly, they heard a voice call out, "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men" (Matt 4:19).

They didn't yet know that this man was the living Word, God in the flesh (John 1:1, 14) and with a simple command and a great promise, they left everything behind to follow Jesus. I wonder what would have happened to Peter, Andrew, James and John if they decided to stay in their societal roles as fishermen, rather than rolling with their God-given roles as fishers-of-men.

For a perfectionist like me, it's very tempting to stay in my lane, safely confined within the walls of my perceived roles as a woman, as a Christian, as a writer, as a sister and so on. But I have to allow God to develop me in every role of my life for His purpose and plans, which are far greater than mine (Isaiah 55:8-9), just like these four fishermen developed into disciples, into witnesses, into fishers-of-men, into apostles and into martyrs. They just had to follow Jesus as the roll of His script for their lives unraveled before their eyes.

Evangelist Victor Jackson recently shared this thought on Facebook that reaffirms this concept:

"The Apostles were not trying to be Apostles, they were trying to be like Jesus. As they were trying to be like Jesus, they became Apostles."

- Victor Jackson (victormjackson.238) July 27, 2020

It's time to stop pressuring ourselves to fit the mold of whatever "role" we think we need to fill. If God is calling you to be a fisher-of-men, don't strive to become a fisher-of-men. Instead, leave behind your net and everything you thought you knew about fishing and strive to follow Jesus. I don't need to strive to be perfect, but I need to strive to be like Christ, who is perfect. What about you? What role(s) and mindsets are you willing to leave behind? As we follow Christ and learn His ways (Matt. 11:28-29), we will fulfill His purpose for our lives. Just gotta roll with it!

Am I Reactive or Proactive?

I recently had a conversation with my mother about the ongoing worldwide pandemic. She mentioned how experts claim to have warned that America would not be prepared to handle a pandemic, but despite the warnings nothing was done until it was too late [I promise to bypass the conspiracy theories].

The approach of many people around the world, and certainly within our nation, to COVID-19 could be labeled as reactive. By this, I mean that actions were taken in response to the unfolding circumstances. This is not uncommon, as Newton's well-known third law of motion lets us know that for every action there follows a reaction which is similar in size, yet opposite in direction. Hindsight is often 20/20 (a now infamous number) and I can imagine many people entering this year differently if they had insight of the ensuing events. I know I would have.

It can be easy to ignore warnings or take them for granted. The dentist warns me every year of the potential consequences of not flossing, and yet with each visit I somehow accumulate more packs of dental floss in my medicine cabinet than I actually use. Flossing my teeth would be a proactive approach because my actions now would prevent, avoid or delay future problems. But if I wait for my teeth to rot, then my reactive approach will be too little too late. Help me, Lord!

Throughout scripture there are hundreds of warnings regarding future events, such as the flood, Israel's slavery in Egypt and captivity, the Messiah and the end times. Jesus warned His disciples of His return using a parable that depicts a faithful servant and an evil servant in Luke 12. The faithful one is described as the servant who is watching and awaiting the master's return, regardless of the inconvenient timing. The evil servant believes the master is delayed and is described as abusive towards other servants, drunk and not looking for the master.

Unfortunately, the evil servant had a reactive approach. His circumstances caused him to wrongly believe that his master was postponing his return. He reacts to this with a self-serving attitude and indulges in sinful and foolish behavior. On the contrary, the faithful servant takes a proactive approach as he lives in a state of constant awareness, preparing and eagerly looking forward to his master's return.

As followers of Christ, we cannot afford to be reactive as we live in these last days. Instead, we must be proactive by preparing ourselves for His return, remaining sober and watchful (1 Peter 5:8, 1 Thessalonians 5:5-8, 1 Peter 1:13-16). Jesus warned that the servant who knows the master's will and decides to neither prepare himself nor do his master's will is going to face punishment (Luke 12:47).

Distractions must be conquered with devotion and discipline.

We have been given all of the warnings and signs. Let us be diligent to not make the same mistake. Some of us didn't realize the devastating effects of this virus, but God's Word is true and everything will come to pass just as it is written because He declared it so. We must seek to understand the Lord's will and we must choose to walk in it, preparing and eagerly awaiting our Master's return.

When I'm No Longer Drawn to God

I can look back over my life and remember key moments when I felt God drawing me closer to Him. Sometimes, I could literally feel the tugging on my heart to spend more time with Him in prayer or in worship. Other times, my spirit would feel heavy and weighed down by the burdens of life and He would remind me to just come lay them down at His feet (Matt. 11:28-30).

As the scent of sweet nectar draws the buzzing bees and other insects to feast, the human soul is drawn to the sweet, refreshing waters of the Spirit of God (John 7:37-39). There is an overflow of life, peace and abundant joy awaiting the thirsting soul. But what happens when my soul is no longer thirsty?

During those periods when I would be so drawn to God, I couldn't get enough of Him. I wanted to spend every moment soaking in His presence, diving into His Word, pouring out prayers and petitions to Him with no interference. I would immediately dismiss every distraction because nothing compared to being with Jesus.

Then the day would come where I wouldn't feel drawn by God to do anything with Him. I know! Certainly, this means God wants me to relax, take a break and just do something that I enjoy. So I did just that. Then one day turned into another and before long, that feeling of God drawing me closer to Him became no more than a distant memory. Questions filled my mind. 

How did this happen? Is this the result of some sin in my life? Is God angry with me or disappointed in me? Was I selfish for doing something I enjoyed instead of spending more time with Him?

Drawn to God

No one can ever come to God without first being drawn by Him. I believe that every person at some point in his/her life is drawn by God, thus begins what is commonly referred to as the spiritual journey. We can either respond to the drawing of God or ignore it. Should we choose to respond, we begin taking steps to draw closer to God hoping to achieve some level of knowledge, understanding or experience.

Taste and See

The savory aroma escaping the stove and oven within a kitchen fills the nostrils of every passerby, beckoning him to step inside for a taste. Similarly, we are drawn to God and when we've tried Him, meaning we experience God or achieve some new knowledge or understanding of Him, it's as though we've sampled something so good that we just have to get some more of it! Like a Thanksgiving meal, we do not stop feasting until we are completely satisfied and can't eat another bite.

Full of God

God fills heaven and earth (Jeremiah 23:24), but cannot be contained within its vastness. Likewise, within each of us is a void, or emptiness, and God draws us so that He can fill us with Himself. If you've never been filled with the Holy Spirit of God like the disciples and all believers throughout Acts, there is no experience that compares to it! Jesus warned that without this experience, we can't see or enter the Kingdom of God (John 3:3-5).

So when we become "full" of His Spirit, and when we are "full" or satisfied with new knowledge or understanding of God, and when the euphoria of this experience fades away,

will we choose to want more of God?

It wasn't wrong for me to do something I enjoy. I didn't anger God by doing so. But do I only enjoy His fellowship when He draws me? When I'm no longer feeling drawn to God, I have to decide if I still want more. Not based on what I feel, but based on what I know.

I may not feel God pulling me deeper in prayer, but I know that when I pray in faith He hears and responds (2 Kings 20:5). I may not feel drawn to deeper worship, but I know that He is worthy of my worship (Psalm 29:2). I may not feel drawn to deeper Bible study, but I know that when I study His Word I become more aware of who He is and all that He does (2 Timothy 3:16-17). When I no longer feel God pulling me, I have to decide if I want to draw any closer or stay where I am. It takes discipline to keep pursuing Him, but when this is fueled by an inner desire to know Him, the journey will never end.

About the Author

My name is Demi. I am Apostolic by doctrine and Pentecostal by experience. Though I grew up in church, I did not begin pursuing an authentic relationship with Jesus Christ until the age of 18. The more I studied and applied the Word of God, the more my life was transformed. By the age of 20, I surrendered my life and my heart to the Lord and I never looked back. I received my Bachelor's in Converged Communications from Florida State College at Jacksonville. I am a member of and currently serve at The Pentecostals of Orange Park under Pastor C. Cody Thompson.