In the letter to the Ephesians, we are able to observe an excellent series of advice that the apostle Paul provided from his prison cell to a congregation he held dear to his heart. During the first century, the city of Ephesus was a very profitable and transited port. As a result, this brought about many challenges and temptations for the Ephesians and it made the apostle worry greatly for his brethren. Therefore, it should come as no surprise when Paul gives them the following advice: “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16). The apostle’s words immediately illuminates an inquiry in the mind of the studious reader: Can time be held hostage? His choice in words are fascinatingly interesting due to the implication he is making concerning the management of our time. It is wise to begin to discern the apostle’s lesson by examining the word in it’s original language. According to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, the word used by Paul is exagorazó, and it is defined as a type of payment made to recover from the power of another; a ransom (Thayer, G1805). Having defined the word in it’s original form we are able to visualize more Paul’s teaching in his letter to the Ephesians. Our God, through His chosen apostle, enlightens our understanding that it is possible for our time to be held for ransom, by us. This action, according to Paul, makes the person foolish. Therefore, as the pieces of this enigma begin to fit together, we are able to grasp the importance of how well we manage our time. Better yet, we are able to see that his focus is more on what we are choosing to spend our time on. Paul is able to understand that spending our time on “the unfruitful works of darkness” is what makes a man foolish (Ephesians 5:11). This is how man makes his time hostage. Participating in unfruitful works is another way of saying living life in lustful sin. Hence the purpose of Paul’s exhortation that we must redeem our time from the prisons of sin where we once lived outside of Christ. Observe that the inspired writer very subtly lays the path toward this lesson by reminding us that “you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord” (Ephesians 5:8). He encourages us to self-exam our current way of living to determine if it is different from our previous form of living. His descriptive use of light and dark shows the stark difference that should exist between our lives before Christ and after Christ. However, this can only be so if we have been applying our time wisely in the choices that we make. Our God amplifies our understanding by opening our mind’s eye to the cruel reality of how in another time, we were unaware that by our sinful living we misused the time given to us and remained stagnate in things that “reap corruption” (Galatians 6:8). Our Master also emphasized this threat when he posed the following question: “What profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost” (Luke 9:25)? With this question, Paul’s conclusion that utilizing our time for the things of the flesh is foolish is irrefutably confirmed. The Master’s warning also demonstrates how our time becomes a victim of sin. Focusing our time solely on the matters of this world becomes the snare that makes us become negligent with our spiritual affair. Hence the reason the apostle Paul describes them as “unfruitful works.” The apostle Peter, too, strongly encourages us to learn how to diligently begin our focus on our spiritual affairs by illustrating us as “newborn babes, [who] desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious” (1st Peter 2:2-3). The apostle speaks of the example of a newborn to describe the desire one must have for learning God’s word. It exhibits the urgency man has when he is taken out of his previous, sinful life. He teaches us, once more, that living a life that neglects spiritual affairs starves the soul. Therefore when man is rescued from that spiritual starvation, the soul is ravaging to feed from God’s unadulterated word. Like the infant who begins to cry desperately because he is hungry and wants to feed, the same must be so for he who has chosen to begin living in Christ. The journey to rescuing his time from a lustful life begins with the assiduous study of the bible. Both apostles urge every Christian to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2nd Peter 3:18). However, this process must not be done so with indifference or at a slow pace. Falling back in to that train of thought is allowing more of our time to be taken hostage once again. Reverting to the example given by Peter, if a newborn cries because he is hungry, the parent will move swiftly to feed him. The loud, uncontrollable cries of the child become a powerful motivator for the parent to take action with urgency; not with indifference. This is how we all should seek to feed our souls with God’s undefiled word. The apostolic exhortation illuminates the folly that a carnal life has. Therefore, it is cruel to continue starving our soul by giving priority to the things of the flesh. It was this unwise error that neglected our interior man in the first place! Observe that Peter states that this urgency is understood by those who have “tasted that the Lord is gracious” (1st Peter 2:3b). To continue living an unfruitful life where our time is imprisoned by the lusts of the flesh serves as proof that we did not taste the Lord’s pure word. All who do not grow and remain stagnate in their faith have not fed themselves with undefiled milk. Their growth has been stunned because instead they have been drinking milk diluted and polluted by man’s opinion. They have allowed their spiritual health to be hindered by convenience. An anemic soul is clearly visible in the lack of time used to dedicate to his spiritual life. Although it is true that knowledge of God’s word is key, it is dangerous to misunderstand that this will suffice for growth. A healthy, well fed soul can be seen through his actions. To wisely redeem our time is to become “doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:21-22). These words mirror Peter’s illustration of the infant seeking “the pure milk of the word.” Like the child is able to distinguish between watered milk and pure milk, it is imperative that we, too, quickly learn the difference between God’s truth and man’s deceit. Ignoring this valuable lesson, will retake our time hostage.
