Your Day in Romans - 13:8-14

[Al Moak]

The Eighteenth Sermon
Romans 13:8-14
The Eternal And The Present

The instruction in the following verses is intensely practical.  And the reason given for heeding its admonitions is extremely important as well. Speaking to each of us in our Lord's Name, the apostle says, "And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand."

Professor John Murray, late of Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, captured the essence of the thoughts here when he said, "the day of Christ, though not yet come, is nevertheless throwing its light backward upon the present.  In that light believers must now live."  He simply meant that the fact of our Lord Jesus Christ's return to this world at the end of the present age should make a great difference in our lives today.  In fact, all that we do in this present age needs to be measured against that great day of the return of our Lord.  The worth of what we do, what we say, and even what we think - all are established against that backdrop. 

The old saying is abundantly true:

Only one life
''Twill soon be past.
Only what's done
For Christ will last.

There is what should be an obvious caution here: we must not think that good deeds can in any way purchase our entrance into heaven.  They cannot.  In fact, such thinking just reveals an unrepentant mind, a mind that hasn't yet learned its own, fallen and rebellious nature.  Only the deeds and self sacrifice of our Savior could ever be enough to purchase redemption from sin and entrance into His everlasting Kingdom.

Nevertheless, it must be pointed out that every deed done in this life does have eternal consequences, and, to the Christian, that fact should be a matter of rejoicing.  It means that what you and I do now really matters - eternally!  Our lives are not wasted motion!

The reason lies in what theologians call "partially realized eschatology."  That just mean that, though the age in which we live isn't yet the final and eternal one, yet Kingdom people are even now beginning to rule with their Lord.  The final age is "partly" here.

With this in mind, it's important to heed Paul's exhortation in verse 12, where he says, "And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand.  Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.  Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts."  He's just saying that with one eye on the heavens, from which our Lord will return, we also need to get busy here and now!

We don't know when our Lord will return - but the fact remains that He WILL return!  The apostle tells us about it and about what we should do about it in his letter to the Thessalonians.  He says, "For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.  For when they say, 'Peace and Safety!' then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.  But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.  You are all sons of light and sons of the day.  We are not of the night nor of darkness.  Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.  For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night.  But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation."

Some make fun of Christians who, they say, are looking for "pie in the sky, by and by."  But dear people - we ARE looking for the return of our Lord at an unexpected moment - and THAT should make a marked difference in our present, everyday lives!

And we are not alone in being affected by the expectation  of our Lord's coming.  As Paul pointed out in the eighth chapter of this letter, "For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.  For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him Who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God."  in the visions of the Revelation made to John, God's people are heard singing, "You ... have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth."

Simply put, even the creation awaits the last day, the day of Christ's return, the day in which the people of God will actually rule in His Name in this world.  But the important thing is that, even now, we are "kings and priest," and, as we do His will in this world, we are already beginning to rule with Him, so that the effects of what we do now will continue into the age to come and have eternal consequences!

And of course what is true of the physical realm is equally true of the moral one.  How we deal with ourselves and others here and now will also have eternal consequences.  Our Lord, in His parable of the talents, told us about it when he said, "His Lord said to him, 'well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things.  Enter into the joy of your Lord."

Much of this life is preparatory - it is not an end in itself.  Looking at verse 8 here, for instance, we can say that if we succeed at not remaining in debt to anyone here and now, then we'll be our Master's stewards over much more hereafter.  The meaning of these words isn't that we should never incur obligations, but only that we should try our best to pay those obligations - rather than simply continuing to owe them.  If we're successful in doing so, then He'll make us His stewards hereafter as well.

It becomes even more plain when he says, "cast off the works of darkness ... put on the armor of light."  He's simply saying that we should cease to participate in works done in ignorance of the great Day, but that we should instead live with that defining day in view.  As the Psalmist said, "So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom."

The apostle continues with an exhortation to neighborly love as one aspect of our behavior that needs to be developed now.  The reason for such love is that we'll be called upon for even greater love for one another hereafter. What we learn here about loving one another will bear fruit there.

So - if we're really preparing for that wonderful and eternal day, then obviously we'll put aside this world's ignorant and careless behavior to follow in our Lord's footsteps.

We can conclude that the coming age will not be one of unending indulgence of the flesh (to think so is a form of idolatry).  And, contrary to what we might naturally imagine, that doesn't mean a never-ending joyless existence.  We're told that we shall, in Christ's words, "enter into the joy of our Lord."  His joy was not focussed in fleshly indulgence but in totally giving body, soul, and spirit to the service of His Father - even when it took Him to the Cross.  That kind of living was His delight, not His drudgery.  It will be our delight as well.

We need to look to Him as our Example.  The writer to the Hebrews says, " . . . looking to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the Cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."  There was set before our Lord eternal joy, and He has thoroughly realized it.

It should be the same for us.  We need to understand that such an expectation doesn't need to result in a monastic life or in giving up all earthly pleasures and joys - but it should move us to make all things secondary to serving and glorifying our God.  Can we do that?  Can we set aside some of the transient in favor of the eternal?  By His Spirit we can.  By becoming more and more acquainted with our Lord - and His joy - we can and will. 

The writer to the Hebrews tells us why and he tells us how.  He says, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. "

It's by "looking unto Jesus" that we can succeed.  That just involves our use of the Scriptures to become more and more enthralled by Him and by what He's doing - that's how to become successful in setting aside the transient in favor of the eternal.  In Philippians we're told, "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself."

In summary, we need to realize once again that our faith is not merely a faith of doctrine and ritual.  It's a faith that's realized in actual living and in eternal expectation.  It's a faith that reaches out to the Christ Who is coming again!