What Time Is It?

 "He has saved us and called us to a holy life - not because of anything that we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." 2 Timothy 1: 9,10

    My dad always wore a watch. As a dad to three daughters, he would chide us to be promptly ready for church, often sitting out in the car, looking at his watch while we ran around in a flurry. He could often be heard saying, "You can't fault a man for being on time."

    Our creator gave the concept of time to mankind when he set the sun, moon and stars into place. He, however, is not bound by time. He is infinite, which is tough to grasp. As a child, I recall trying to understand how God could have no beginning or no end; it made my head spin so I quit trying. Another conundrum is found in the verse above: How could He grant us grace before the beginning of time? This is where faith comes in. Just as a child has no knowledge of how to run a checking account, I leave these enigmas for my Father to figure out.

    Getting back to my dad...I wonder how he likes living in heaven where eternity reigns and the Light of the World replaces the sun and moon? Does he still think he should sit down to dinner at 6:00? Or is he reveling in the abandon that comes with everlasting life where there is no more sorrow, worry, pain or limitation? I wager he is having the time of his life!

    "Every true Christian is a citizen of two worlds: the world of time and the world of eternity. We are, paradoxically, in the world and yet not of the world...As Christians, we must never surrender our supreme loyalty to any time-bound custom or earth-bound idea, for at the heart of our universe is a higher reality - God and His kingdom of love - to which we must be conformed." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.