Redeeming the Time (Part 2)
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit…” (Ephesians 5:15–18, ESV)
Quick Recap on the Series
We are in the middle of a series of posts talking about how to redeem God’s good gifts from sin. In my previous post, I wrote about redeeming God’s gift of time. Paul tells us to redeem the time in Ephesians 5:16, then follows that statement with some ways to bring about that redemption. The first action was to understand the Lord’s will, which I spoke about in my last post. This week we’ll look at his next action step.
Alcohol-Filled vs Spirit-Filled
The second way Paul tells us to redeem the time is by not getting drunk. At first glance, this catches us off guard. I suppose some people would argue that getting drunk is not a waste of time, but most people would agree: Getting drunk is not a good use of your time.
However, Paul is aiming at something deeper than drinking too much alcohol and loosing control. He contrasts getting drunk with “…be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). So, there’s something more going on here. While I think Paul is prohibiting getting drunk, I also think he is using it as a symbol of something deeper—our sinful nature.
When we are filled with alcohol, we “lay down our inhibitions” and “let it all hang out,” which is another way of saying, “We loose control and allow our inner desires to take over—inner desires controlled by our sinful nature.”
So, Paul contrasts this by telling us to be filled with the Spirit. When we are filled with the Spirit, we put to death the deeds of the flesh (Romans 8:13) and we begin walking in newness of life. We are not living “out of control,” but in control of the Holy Spirit who is waging war against our sinful nature (Galatians 5:17).
Time Redeemed Through Righteous Living
When we understand the passage in this way, Paul is telling us we can redeem the time by living righteous lives in step with the Holy Spirit. We are redeeming the time by killing sin in our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are redeeming the time by overcoming our sinful inner desires—through the power of the Holy Spirit—and living lives filled with the Spirit.
Another way to say this is: When we spend our time in sinful pursuits, we are wasting our lives. Yet, when we spend our time walking in the fullness of the Spirit, we will begin to live righteous lives and redeem the time.
Simplistic, But Not
As I wrote that last paragraph, I imagined readers saying, “Well, duh! Of course we knew that sinful living was a waste of time.” Yet, I wonder how much we truly KNOW that. When you look over your day, and evaluate whether or not it was productive—whether you used your time to the best of your ability—do you evaluate it based on what you accomplished, or based on what sins were overcome?
Of course, we can redeem the time through our work or accomplishments. That’s not what I’m saying. What I’m saying is: Have you ever viewed your day as productive based on overcoming sin and temptation?
A Workday Example
Maybe you had a miserable day at work, everything seemed to go wrong and you felt like you accomplished nothing. However, you responded to these situations by getting on your knees and praying for the Spirit to give you strength, perseverance, and contentment amid these trials—and the Spirit helped you get through the day with a good attitude. You redeemed the time by being filled with the Spirit. That’s a productive day.