Time is our most precious resource in many senses. For one thing, our reserves are constantly being depleted. Secondly, we never know when our allotment of time will come to an end. Thirdly, there is no way to obtain or buy more for oneself. And finally, time lost can never be found again. With these factors in mind, how we best manage and maximize the use of the time we have here on earth has to be considered a critical priority in all of our lives.
As one ponders this very provocative and important concept, one must be impressed with just how precious little time we have to live, in comparison with the eternity of our universe. I am currently 67 years old and if I live to 80 that means I have approximately 5,000 more days of life left here on planet earth. Only 5,000 more days left to live can be quite a disheartening thing, especially when you know that your health most likely will continue to decline throughout the remainder of your life.
The Bible, from both its internal witness and from external evidence, has proven to be a book of incredible beauty, insight and influence to generation after generation with respect to this most intriguing concept of time.
Its internal witness has fascinated mankind along all avenues of time. Its incomparable account of the beginning of time, space, matter and life as told in Genesis 1 is full of beauty, mystery and plausibility. No one can truly say they have pondered all the alternatives to creation without reading its account. Eternal life, the most sought-after dream of every human being who has ever lived, is graphically explored, explained and visually depicted for us throughout the New Testament. The romantic in all of us should long to examine this portal in time. Finally, the great bulk of the Bible is devoted to giving out advice on how to best utilize these approximately 30,000 days of life we have to live; if we live to about 80 years old.
The external evidence is all around us today for anyone who takes the time to look. The way we view time is just another by-product of this 2,000-year-old book.
The time has come for us to reexamine our place in time and eternity and allow ourselves the rare privilege to journey into the pages of the world of “Father Time,” the God of the Bible.