Aligning Time Commitments with God's Priorities in Christian Life
The first great commandment—to love God with all one's heart, soul, mind, and strength [5]—establishes the foundational priority for Christian time and energy. This total devotion shapes how believers allocate their days, requiring that every commitment be measured against God's revealed will rather than cultural expectations or personal ambition.
The Biblical Framework for Priorities
Scripture presents time itself as part of God's sovereign ordering. Ecclesiastes acknowledges seasons for different activities—"a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted" [4]—yet this recognition of natural rhythms does not absolve believers from discernment about which activities merit their investment. The apostle Paul speaks of God's plan "for the fullness of time" [3], indicating that divine purposes unfold according to appointed seasons. This theological reality means Christians must discern not merely what is permissible but what aligns with God's redemptive timeline for their lives.
The call to decision-making appears throughout Scripture as necessary for genuine service. One cannot serve two masters [1], and double-mindedness stands opposed to the wholehearted commitment God requires [1]. Following God fully, as exemplified by Caleb and Joshua, means refusing to turn "to the right or left" [1] when competing demands arise. This decisiveness extends to "keeping the commandments of God" and "being on the Lord's side" [1]—concrete actions that require saying no to other options.
Diligence in Specific Spheres
Christian diligence manifests in particular domains that Scripture identifies as worthy of sustained effort. Seeking God requires diligence [2], as does obeying Him and hearkening to His voice [2]. The cultivation of Christian graces demands intentional labor [2], not passive accumulation. Believers are called to diligence in "making our call, &c, sure" [2]—a reference to 2 Peter 1:10's exhortation to confirm one's election through active pursuit of virtue.
Significantly, this diligence extends to "lawful business" [2], indicating that ordinary vocational work falls within the scope of Christian responsibility when properly ordered. The tradition represented in these sources does not advocate withdrawal from worldly engagement but rather its subordination to higher purposes. As one commentary notes, Christianity "is designed not only to inform our judgments, but to reform our hearts and lives" [9], meaning that right priorities must translate into observable patterns of time use.
The Standard of Maturity
The goal toward which believers direct their time is maturity measured by Christ Himself [7]. This maturity involves gaining "a deeper knowledge of God's Son" [7] through the Spirit's transforming work, which aims to make people "fully like Christ" [7]. Such transformation cannot occur through sporadic attention; it requires the sustained investment of one's primary energies.
The writer to the Hebrews emphasizes that faith in God's promises enables endurance through difficulties [6]. The heroes of faith "earned a good reputation" [6] precisely because they oriented their lives around divine promises rather than immediate gratification. Though "none of them received all that God had promised" in their lifetimes [6], their faithful allocation of time and energy testified to their confidence in God's ultimate fulfillment.
Practical Sacrifices
Christian priorities find concrete expression in specific practices. Doing good and sharing with those in need constitute "basic Christian sacrifices" [10] that characterize life in the believing community. These are not optional add-ons but essential markers of a life rightly ordered. The tradition emphasizes "labours of love" [2] as requiring diligence, suggesting that acts of service demand intentional scheduling rather than occurring accidentally.
One commentator urges believers to consider "the nature and shortness of the present season of life" [8], arguing that awareness of time's brevity should intensify vigilance in Christian duty. This urgency does not produce frantic activity but rather focused attention on what Scripture identifies as eternally significant—loving God, obeying His commands, and serving others in ways that reflect Christ's self-giving pattern.
Sources
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Decision — Necessary to the service of God -- Lu 9:62. Exhortations to -- Jos 24:14,15. Exhibited in Seeking God with the heart. -- 2Ch 15:12. Keeping the commandments of God. -- Ne 10:29. Being on the Lord's side. -- Ex 32:26. Following God fully. -- Nu 14:24; 32:12; Jos 14:8. Serving God. -- Isa 56:6. Loving God perfectly. -- De 6:5. Blessedness of. -- Jos 1:7. Opposed to A divided service. -- Mt 6:24. Double-mindedness. -- Jas 1:8. Halting between two opinions. -- 1Ki 18:21. Turning to the right or left. -- De 5:32. Not setting the heart aright. -- Ps 78:8,37. Exe”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Diligence — Christ, an example -- Mr 1:35; Lu 2:49. Required by God in Seeking him. -- 1Ch 22:19; Heb 11:6. Obeying him. -- De 6:17; 11:13. Hearkening to him. -- Isa 55:2. Striving after perfection. -- Php 3:13,14. Cultivating Christian graces. -- 2Pe 1:5. Keeping the souls. -- De 4:9. Keeping the heart. -- Pr 4:23. Labours of love. -- Heb 6:10-12. Following every good work. -- 1Ti 5:10. Guarding against defilement. -- Heb 12:15. Seeking to be found spotless. -- 2Pe 3:14. Making our call, &c, sure. -- 2Pe 1:10. Self-examination. -- Ps 77:6. Lawful business. -- Pr 27:”
- Ephesians “Ephesians 1:10 (BSB) — as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ.”
- Ecclesiastes “a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; -- Ecclesiastes 3:2”
- Mark “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’This is the first commandment. -- Mark 12:30”
- Hebrews (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Hebrews 11:39: 11:39-40 The way to live as God’s people under the new covenant is to live as all these people did under the old covenant: by faith in God’s promises, enduring any difficulties faced in this world. • earned a good reputation: God has borne witness to their faithfulness (see also 11:2). • yet none of them received all that God had promised: They all died prior to Christ’s promised coming; the something better began with Christ’s sacrificial work (8:3–10:18) and anticipates the future culmination of God’s plan for his people. • would not reach perfection: See stud”
- Ephesians (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Ephesians 4:13: 4:13 The goal of ministry is for the whole Christian community to understand and experience the Christian faith more deeply and gain a deeper knowledge of God’s Son. In this way, believers will be mature in the Lord (see 1 Cor 2:6; 14:20; Phil 3:15; Col 1:28; 4:12; cp. Heb 5:14; Jas 1:4; 3:2). The standard of maturity is Christ himself; the Spirit’s transforming work is to make people fully like Christ (Rom 8:29).”
- Romans (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Romans 13:11: And that, knowing the time - Dr. Taylor has given a judicious paraphrase of this and the following verses: "And all the duties of a virtuous and holy life we should the more carefully and zealously perform, considering the nature and shortness of the present season of life; which will convince us that it is now high time to rouse and shake off sleep, and apply with vigilance and vigor to the duties of our Christian life; for that eternal salvation, which is the object of our Christian faith and hope, and the great motive of our religion, is every day nearer to us t”
- Romans (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Romans 12 (introduction): The apostle, having at large cleared and confirmed the prime fundamental doctrines of Christianity, comes in the next place to press the principal duties. We mistake our religion if we look upon it only as a system of notions and a guide to speculation. No, it is a practical religion, that tends to the right ordering of the conversation. It is designed not only to inform our judgments, but to reform our hearts and lives. From the method of the apostle's writing in this, as in some other of the epistles (as from the management of the principal minister”
- Hebrews (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Hebrews 13:16: 13:16 to do good and to share with those in need: These are basic Christian sacrifices (6:10; 10:24, 34; 13:1-3); they characterize life in the Christian community.”