The Time is Short

1 Corinthians 7:29-35

Preached by Dan Brown on December 3, 2006 at Stony Brook Community Church

In this morning’s bulletin, you’ll find a list of this week’s happenings: A Habitat for Humanity dedication ceremony, Angel Tree sign-ups, our Christmas pageant. Add to these the things outside of church that you have to plan for: Family & work Christmas parties, school parties, gift shopping. It’s a busy time.

One of the things that is most likely to undermine our joy and our peace this advent season is time. When we survey scripture on the theme of time, we find a common thread (Ps. 90:9-12, Rom. 13:11, Eph. 5:15-16, I Cor. 7:29-31). The theme that runs through all of these verses is this: “the time is short.” How does this theme of “the time is short” help us to think about time in practical ways?

Let’s look more closely at 1 Cor. 7. When Paul says here that time is short, he means that time is short for the world as we know it. Time is slipping away. It’s expiring. But his discussion of time has a particular context. 1 Corinthians 7 is about marriage and singleness. Members of the Corinthian church were getting uptight about marriage. In particular, the problem centered on whether it was more spiritual to be single than to be married. Some in the Corinthian church believed that in order to devote oneself entirely to the Lord one needed to be single. Some may even have thought it was best to divorce – or at least to live like singles – in order to be more devoted to the Lord. I Corinthians 7 addresses this pre-occupation. Paul’s point is simple: Marriage and singleness are not important enough to become preoccupied with them. Neither marriage nor singleness will have a determinative effect on one’s spiritual life. Both are fine. Then he broadens the discussion. The time is short, he says, and because the time is short, we should not become engrossed in the things of the world.

Paul gives three examples: First, Marriage. If you are married, he says, live as if you are not. Don’t let the responsibilities of marriage control or dictate your lives. Second, mourning and celebrating. Don’t let your feelings determine your life. Third, buying things. Go ahead, buy and sell, but don’t think things have any lasting value.

We can distill three lessons from what Paul is saying here.

Lesson #1: The time is short. Don’t be engrossed in the things of this world.

I like bubbles. They are pretty. They are fun. But I’m never tempted to get attached to them. Take the things in your life that you are attached to. You may have a house or a car. Think of them as soap bubbles. They won’t last. They are not that important. Sure you need them to get around or for shelter, but they are not that important. Do not get engrossed in the things of the world.

Lesson #2: The time is short. Don’t be anxious.

The time is short, be free of anxiety. Paul says that he would like the Corinthian believers to be free from concern. (1 Cor. 7:32-35) What does the time being short have to do with having no anxiety?

Take the worst case scenario. Monday morning your spouse leaves you. Your house is in foreclosed on. You are permanently disabled. Now the good news: the time is short. The worst that can happen to you is limited because the time is short. You can rejoice because the way things are now is not eternal.

Take the best case scenario. Monday morning a check for $50,000 arrives. You are offered three different jobs that are all better than the one you have now. You win a car. Here’s the bad news: The time is short. None of it has lasting value.

So, anxiety about the things that are bad, or concern about the things that are good, has no place because the time is short. Take stock of where your treasure is. The time is short.

Lesson #3: The time is short. Live in undivided devotion to the Lord.

(1 Cor. 7:35)

An event in the life of Jesus illustrates this. (Luke 10:38-42)

What is it that Martha got wrong and Mary got right? Martha’s problem was that her heart was divided. She was upset and distracted about many things. Jesus says to Martha: One thing is needed. What is that one thing that is needed? Undivided devotion to Jesus. Martha could have had this while preparing everything for Jesus, just as Mary had it while sitting at the feet of Jesus. The time was short for Mary and Martha. Jesus wasn’t going to be with them for very long. There was no need to get upset about little things. The time is short for us too. Too short to bear grudges, to short to become anxious, to short to get upset about small things. The one thing that we need is wholehearted devotion to the Lord.

These are the principles we need to keep in mind as we struggle with time: Do not become engrossed with the things of this world; Do not be anxious about the things of this world; live in undivided devotion to the Lord. If we gain a foundation of how God wants us to think about time, then the practical things will work themselves out. Let’s take a godly perspective on the time we have now. It’s small and short. Eternity is, well, eternal. How can I prepare for that?