THE ESSENCE OF TIME
J.C.Cordova, D.Min., LCSW
In the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he
prayed. And Simon and those who were with him pursued him, and they found him and said to
him, "Every one is searching for you." And he said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns,
that I may preach there also; for that is why I came out." And he went throughout all Galilee,
preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons (Mark 1:35-39).
Time is an essential international unit system created to measure duration. A clock or a watch
divides time into increments of seconds, minutes and hours. Twenty four hour increments, we call
days. Thirty or thirty one days except for February form a month. Twelve months comprise a year.
One hundred years form century, and so on.
We keep time for all human activities. We do not live aimlessly. Rather, we set goals for our lives.
We get up at a specific hour in the morning. We allocate so many minutes to get ready for the day
ahead. We allot so much time to eat breakfast with the family. We leave for school or work at a
specific hour. We work from certain hour to certain hour following a strict schedule. Back home, we
do our schoolwork or chores in a systematic manner while gaging ourselves by the clock. We spend
our leisure time with the family in intimate fellowship and participate in a number of activities. Finally,
we go to sleep at a precise moment and sleep an exact amount of hours. The next day, we repeat
the same routine. Then, we take vacations at a particular time of the year. Every year, we celebrate
birthdays of relatives and friends. We observe holidays set at intervals during the year. We keep all
personal appointments at specific times.
Without the ability to measure time, life would be vague and chaotic. None of the functions
mentioned above could be done in an orderly fashion. Imagine a life without goals and direction
showing up at work whenever we feel like or making business or personal appointments and
presenting ourselves at will.
Allow me one personal example. My first music teacher at age six or seven was a cousin who played
violin in the philharmonic orchestra of Havana, Cuba. From him, I learned that music is the art of
combining time and space. The great musical compositions of the masters of old and the more
contemporary composers are nothing but the millions of arrangements of the seven musical notes
set on pentagrams according to spacing and timing. Bad, good or excellent rhythm is determined by
timing and spacing. The great concert players excel in properly using these two elements. Most
people enjoy good music but not so off timing playing. The concept of time is essential for organized
living in all aspects of life.
In this passage, we find Jesus getting up from bed early in the morning and going to a secluded
place to spend time with God. Memories of his early silent retreat at Horeb come to mind when Jesus
communed with the LORD and got from Him a clear mission and direction to do his job. In fact, we
find Jesus in constant contact with the Father all through his ministry. For Jesus, praying was priority
one.
Now, Jesus disciples looked for the teacher and found him praying. They informed Jesus that people
were looking for him. Folks were in need of direct assistance to resolve personal problems and
misfortunes of others.
The question now is what to do. Does Jesus respond to this call and meet these needs. In light of his
mission, Jesus states: "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also.” Clearly, Jesus
divine requirement is to move on from town to town throughout the region proclaiming God’s love
message and restoring health to suffering folks as a demonstration of the Father’s care for
humanity. And here time is of the essence.
The above action of Jesus begs the following questions. What is a mission? How does a mission
develop? What do we do as a missionary? Any dictionary of your choosing will define the word
mission as a definite responsibility given to a person or group of people to perform during an
appointed time. In fact, many people refer to “their mission in life.” Some people come into this world
with a set vocation which they may or may not fulfill. For example, my elder sister was a
schoolteacher. Well, I recall that as a little girl she used to place her dolls sitting in a row while she
taught them. My wife and her twin sister became schoolteachers, as they wanted to be from early
childhood on. My wife retired after many years of public school teaching. Her sense of
accomplishment is tremendous, as she repeatedly recalls what she did in her classroom and the
many lives she helped to form.
In general, each person has a sense of mission but life circumstances move them in different
directions frustrating talents. Few get to an older age not having accomplished much, yet lamenting
that they wasted their time doing what they should not have done instead of engaging in what they
were supposed to have done.
As Christians, we all have a mission to preform. It is our duty to be the best we can be in whatever it
is that we do as a doctor, a lawyer, a business person, an office worker, a worker in the industry or
commerce or a plain laborer. One must make sense of existence and his or her place in it. The
highest end is union with God and service to others.
According to the writer or writers of Hebrew poetry: “For everything there is a season, and a time for
every matter under heaven:
a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
a time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace” (Ecclesiastes 3:108).
According to Mark, Jesus began his ministry saying: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is
at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15). The right time is now. What time? Is it
time for humanity to take inventory of what each person has done with his or her life and make
corrections according to divine expectations?
Yes, the time is now. In fact, it is the eternal now. The message has not changed simply because
God does not change. Here is what the prophet Isaiah said in a part of a poem:
The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever (40:8).
We live now. This is our watch. Jesus said to his disciples: “Whatever you bind on earth will be
bound in heaven; whatever you do not bound on earth, will not be bound in heaven” (Matthew 18:
18). In other words, the resumé counts. According to the book of Revelations, the Lord says as
follows:
Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense, to repay every one for what he has done. I am
the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. (22:11-13).
It is up to each believer to reflect the expectations of God from each human being now while each
has time to do it.
But for humanity to see the love of God, each believer has to reflect the proper conduct. Examine
the teachings of Jesus reflected in the Sermon on the Mount concerning the character traits his
disciples should exhibit, particularly as he summarizes saying: “Let your light so shine before man
that they may see your good deeds and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
Excellent conduct as taught by the Judeo-Christian religious tradition is what is expected. Nothing
less is acceptable.
Living in a showcase is not easy, of course. But this is what God requires. The conduct exhibited by
countless folks calling themselves Christians or Jews is most unfortunate. These people should not
be our models. Rather, we should be theirs. We should demand good, decent conduct. Many people
are abusing freedom to do wrong. This is very unfortunate and unacceptable. And frankly, if the real
committed members of the Judeo-Christian religious tradition do not stand up and strongly oppose
present hurtful indecent behavior, the old Talmudic saying: “If you are kind to the cruel, you will
eventually become cruel to the kind” will continue to become reality. In plain English: if we continue
to let bad citizens do wrong, sooner of later their wrong will affect us all badly.
Jesus did his job exceptionally well. Should not each of us as followers of his teachings do ours in
like manner in our time? It is my fervent prayer that we get to it without delay.