ZA MAGAZINE // seek truth.

Ephesians 5:15-16
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

Ephesians 5:16 KJV
Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

How many of you waste time? Who here has never wasted a single second of his or her life? No one? Good. We’re all in the same camp. Understand that this article is for me as much as, if not more than, anyone else. I am so good at losing hours.

I’ve known that it isn’t healthy to waste time, but seeing it on the pages of the Bible made it all the more convicting. Let’s step into the passage.

Verse 15 is simply the start of the sentence. Be careful how you walk; walk wisely. There are two main things to take from this verse. First, walk carefully. There’s a difference between walking around in a shopping mall and walking in the woods, right? When you’re in the mall the floor is level and consistent; you know that there will be nothing to trip over but your own two feet. In the woods, though, there could be ditches, rocks, roots, poison ivy, snakes, changes in elevation…take your pick. Paul is telling us to walk as though we’re in the woods. But he also tells us to do so wisely. After all, if the goal is to get from point A to point B as safely and efficiently as possible, then why would you try to blaze a trail when one already exists? Sure, a blazed trail is still gonna have its rocks and roots, but it’s a lot better than hacking brush with a machete!

There’s a little more to that imagery, but we’ll save it for verse 16. Verse 16 says two things: Don’t waste time, and the days are evil. First things first.

I included the KJV translation because I prefer the way it renders the passage. Both translations ultimately give the same meaning, but the KJV’s use of the word “redeem” adds weight to the fact that the days are evil. The word “redeem” means “to buy back” in its simplest definition. When Jesus redeemed the Christian, He saw us in prison and paid the ransom so that we could be set free. Take this idea and apply it to time. Our time is in jail. Doing good is not the norm, it is the exception. Being lazy is easy; doing meaningful things takes effort. To redeem the time means that we have to make a conscious effort to snatch the minutes from a world that would have us do nothing with them. So it’s not that the ESV is wrong here, it’s just that the KJV’s use of “redeem” is a much more active verb.

Now, what’s with this “the days are evil” bit? I mean, isn’t it true that things in this world are inherently neutral and that what people do with it determines whether it’s good or evil? That’s how I’ve always viewed it, anyways. I think Paul is trying to say here that evil is the default. That our days, much like our souls, can be good if Jesus is in them, but otherwise both the soul and the day is inclined to evil. Or, you can look at “the days” as representative of the climate of the times. We live in an evil era! How many people get raped, how many get murdered? How many people lie, cheat, and steal their way to the top? How many distractions are in place to keep us from using our time to our best ability? The days are certainly evil!

So back to the woods. Those rocks, roots, snakes, and poison ivy are all things that would keep us from getting from point A to point B safely and efficiently. We can watch out for them and avoid them. That is, we can see the TV on and choose to waste time there or we can choose to turn it off and walk out of the room. But Paul also mentions walking wisely; walking on the path instead of blazing a trail. To me, this is the difference between turning off the television and not having cable in the first place. We can never remove every distraction from our lives, but we can choose some of our battles. As I type this article, my Internet cable is unplugged. If it was plugged in, it’d be that much easier to get distracted.

Alright, so we have a pretty good sense of the passage now, right? But I fear that I’ve raised more questions than I’ve answered. “Are you saying, Brendan, that I can’t watch TV? Is it a sin to be on Facebook?” No. But this alludes to a broader and more important question: “What constitutes using my time well?”

I’d try to think this one through, but someone has already done so, and provides a good place to start. Commentator Albert Barnes says:

“They redeem their time who employ it
1. in gaining useful knowledge;
2. in doing good to others;
3. in employing it for the purpose of an honest livelihood for themselves and families;
4. in prayer and self-examination, to make the heart better;
5. in seeking salvation, and in endeavouring to do the will of God.”

This is good. 1 and 3 cover schooling and employment, 4 covers growing as a Christian, and 2 and 5 cover doing God’s will. I’d like to add a sixth point: in resting meaningfully. Barnes doesn’t specifically allow for an hour of Mario Kart to unwind, nor does he seem to condone vacation time.

But the greater idea here is that everything we do should have a purpose. Why do I play Smash Brothers on the Nintendo with people? Am I avoiding real work or do I wish to build relationships with people? Why do I play ultimate frisbee? Do I do it to reach people, shine a light, and get in shape, or is it for lesser reasons? Can you watch TV? Sure! But why are you doing it and what are you gaining from it? Can you be on Facebook? Sure! But are you using it for the right reasons? These are the questions that we have to be asking ourselves.

It’s been said (though I forget where) that one of the reasons why Jesus was perfect was that he never wasted a millisecond of time. Everything He did had a purpose. Imagine what we could do as Christians if we learned to discipline ourselves and budget our time!

Grace and peace,
Brendan