Romans 13:11-12 -- On Gospel Urgency

"And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light."
Romans 13:11-12


The idea that we need to wake up, that our salvation is near, and that the night is far spent all give a sense of urgency to these verses. I think often we don't feel that in our daily lives... we think we have time to learn, to overcome, to repent, etc. And in some ways that is true. Christ died in part so that we *could* have that time to change.

The urgency I think comes because of our complacency. We are always putting off those essential changes in our lives, thinking that we can do it later, but there are things that we can't learn unless we lay the foundation. A lot of things take practice, and time, and dedication that don't work on a deathbed, or in a similarly time-limited situation.

The longer we wait, the more entrenched we become, whether it is in sin or just in inaction, so God is reminding us... wake up, get up, make some changes. Move forward on the path rather than stopping in the middle of the road to have yet another picnic. :)

Let's start today. A new habit of reading or praying will pay off over time, as we learn to communicate with God more closely. Waiting for later just delays us, and can result in frustration when we don't feel that same Spirit that others apparently do. Let's start a new project and find ways to do good. It might take time to build up the project, but as we work on it and are committed to God and to helping others, God will bless us and help us to become better and to do more good.