How many of you have ever heard the term “time share”? I really don’t know who came up with this concept, but what I can tell you is that he/she must have become a multimillionaire. I say this because the term: “time share” means to buy a space of time in an apartment, normally one week at a time, in a hotel or apartment complex that is situated in popular vacationing areas.
This means that the owner of the building of hotel can sell each apartment 52 times, and the price for the time that you chose varies according to the time of year and location; also there is the fact that if you want to change your time slot from the location that you initially purchased, you have to pay a transfer fee. I can confidently tell you that none of this is cheap. But it doesn’t stop there; the beauty of it all is that once you have finished paying the original price for the time slot, you must continue to pay a monthly maintenance fee whether you use it or not. Without a doubt this has to be the best business transaction that has ever existed for an owner of an apartment building or hotel. I am sure that many of you must already be asking yourselves: what does any of this have to do with us? But I tell you today that “time share” has a lot to do with the life of a faithful believer. Let us now turn to the word of God and explore today’s theme.
Psalms 127:1-2 - Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain. 2It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep.
Perhaps some of you are already thinking that these verses have nothing to do with what I have explained to you about “time share”; however, not only do they have to do with the information that I have provided you, but rather they are essential for today’s message. I say this because in these verses we find three truths that will help us manage the time share that we enjoy here on earth, that is to say, the time that God allows us to live. What are these three truths? Let us now continue with our study to discover them.
I. Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it
In this verse we find the first truth that helps us identify the first thing that we must do if we truly want to enjoy the time that God grants us here on earth, I say this because the truth of it all is that this world is full of people that spend an entire lifetime running from one place to another seeking solutions, but they never find them. They never find the solutions to the pain and sadness, problems or situations because they have not built their life upon God, but rather they have either ignored or excluded Him completely. The problem is that once people do this, then regardless of how much effort you put into things or how hard you work in an attempt to resolve a situation, everything that you do is in vain. Let’s think about this for a moment to determine of what I am saying makes any sense. What would an owner of a hotel or apartment building proffer by putting up for sale a place for “time share” if no one was interested in buying it? Needless to say that he/she would not proffer anything, and their effort would be a failure. The same holds true for a believer. After all, what could we possibly proffer by saying that we are Christians if we do not use God’s Word as the foundation for our life?
In Matthew 16:12-19 we find that Jesus asked His disciples two questions. First, Jesus wanted them to tell Him what the people were saying about Him. Second, Jesus wanted to know what they (disciples) though about Him. In their answer we find what we all know to be Peter’s confession, when he stated: “…You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And after receiving this answer we find that the Lord said: “…Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Why have I called your attention to these verses? The reason why I called your attention to these verses is because in them we find extremely clear what I have said just a moment ago.
In the Lord’s answer to the disciples we find extremely clear that when we build, that is to say, when we use God’s truth as the foundation for our life, then there is no power or principality that can destroy us. Look carefully at what we are told here: “…and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Therefore, the first truth that helps us enjoy the time that the Lord grants us here on earth is that we must edify our life; we must edify all that we are in God’s truth. The foundation of our life must be built on solid ground so that when circumstances or difficult situations present themselves in our life, none of them will be able to weaken or destroy our faith. If we do not build upon God’s truth, then we have nothing. Tell the person sitting next to you: “Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it.”
II. Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.
As we all know, the cities of antiquity were very different from the cities of today. The cities of antiquities consisted of a space of land that was surrounded by fortified high walls, which was what protected it’s citizenry from the wild animals and the attacks from their enemies; on top of these walls you always found a contingent of guards or watchmen whose responsibility was to constantly scan the horizon, and sound the alarm if they saw an impending danger. Without a doubt, the cities of antiquity were very different from today’s cities. Now we should ask ourselves: what does it mean for us today when we read: “Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.” First of all, let us ask ourselves: what is our city? Like I explained a brief moment ago, the cities of antiquity represented a place of protection; a place that provided security for the population. Today our city is our home; our city today is our family. However, if we do not allow God to be the one that guards us, and be the one that directs our life at all times, then no matter how much we try, we will never be able to keep our family safe. How can we allow God to be the one that guards us?
We begin to allow God to be the one that guards our city when we share and take the time to mold the heart of our children, according to God’s truth and not according to the things of this world. This is why in Proverbs 22:6 we find that we are told: “…Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” In other words, as responsible parents and genuine followers of Christ, we must be the example to follow, and dedicate the appropriate time to our children. Let us never forget that being a good parent is much more that providing shelter, food and clothing; being a good parent according to God means taking the time to teach our children. This means that we must share the time to teach them God’s Word. Why is this so important? The answer to this question is easily found in 2 Timothy 3:16 when we read: “…All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” God’s Word is what will protect them and will show them the path to follow. God’s Word is the fortified wall of protection that will keep them safe in the middle of this wicked world. God’s Word is what will help them make the correct decisions when confronted by peer pressure.
We begin to allow God to be the one that guards our city when we share the time with our spouse. What do I mean by this? A while ago I read an article about the divorce rate, and this article stated that the mayor cause for divorce was that both members of the couple said that the other one did not understand him/her. And I want it to be very clear that we are not strictly speaking about newlyweds; a good portion of the statistics included people that had been married for a very long time. How could this happen? The main reason is the lack of communication between them. In other words, people do not take the time to share the time that God has granted them together. How can couples share the time that God has granted them together in a way that pleases God? The answer to this question is easily found in Ephesians 5:24-25 when we read: “Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. 25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her.”
Let us take the time to demonstrate our spouse how much we love and need him/her. How can we accomplish this? We accomplish this when we take the time to share the happy and difficult moments in our life.
We can accomplish this when we take the time to talk, listen, and share the blessings that God bestows on His people. Don’t allow anything to stop you from sharing time with your spouse; take the time to know him/her better; take the time to learn what makes them laugh and what makes them cry. Let us always remember that if God does not occupy the first place in our life, then no matter how hard we try, all of our effort will be in vain and we will live at the mercy of the devil. Tell the person sitting next to you: “…Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain.”
III. For so He gives His beloved sleep
Up until now we have seen the need to share our time to edify upon God’s truth. Up until now we have seen the need to share the time to teach our children, and to enjoy a home that is full of blessings. Up until now we have seen the need to allow God to be the one that guides our every step, but now the question that remains is: who does God guide? The answer to this question is easily found here when we read: “…It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep.” The key words here are: “…For so He gives His beloved sleep.” Let’s think about this for a moment to determine if what I am saying makes any sense. What does the word “sleep” here means? Sleep means peace, after all, who is able to fall asleep when they are full of pain and anguish? How does God guide? God guides His beloved. Who are his beloved? His beloved are all of us that are able to rest in His power, glory and majesty.
His beloved are all of us that completely trust that He is on control of everything. His beloved are all of us that do not doubt His Word, but rather draw our strength from it. His beloved are all of us that take the time to share with others His message of salvation. His beloved are all of us that share the time to demonstrate to others that there is a solution to their suffering; that there is hope; that there is a victory to be had, and that His name is Jesus. His beloved are all of us that persevere in leading a life of holiness. And for His beloved God has a beautiful promise, and we can find it in Philippians 4:7 when we read: “…and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” This is the peace that allows us to rest in God’s power. This is the peace that allows us to sleep, but the sad thing is that there are many that never obtain this peace. Why are there so many that never obtain this peace? The main reason why so many never obtain this peace that God offers is because many are so preoccupied with the worries of this world, that they do not give God the place that he deserves in their life. This is something that we cannot allow to happen in our life, God has to occupy the first place in all that we are. Like I said at the beginning, God has to be the foundation that we must use to build upon. Tell the person sitting next to you: “…For so He gives His beloved sleep.”
In conclusion; in Psalms 34:1-3 we find that we are told: “…I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. 3Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.” How can we bless the Lord at all times? We bless Him when we edify our house, that is to say, our home upon the foundation of His truth.
When we build upon the foundation of God’s truth, we will then be able to resist all attacks from the enemy. How can we praise the Lord continuously? We can praise Him continually when we allow Him to be the one to guard our city. We can continually praise Him by sharing the time to mold the heart of our children, and to share the time with our spouse at all times.
The Word tells us: “…My soul shall make its boast in the LORD; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. 3Oh, magnify the LORD with me, And let us exalt His name together.” How can we accomplish this? We can accomplish this by allowing God to occupy the first place in our life. We can accomplish this when we learn to rest in the love, mercy and glory of the Lord. We can accomplish this when we build upon God’s truth.
The “time share” that men sell are beautiful and luxurious. The “time share” that men sell are very profitable for the owners of the building or hotels, but are very expensive for those that allow themselves to be talked into, or allow themselves to be convinced that buying one of these places is the best thing that they can do. However, the “time share” that God offers is completely different.
The “time share” that God offers will allow you to build upon the foundation of His truth; the “time share” that God offers will help you to strengthen your children and your home; the “time share” that God offers will allow you to have the peace that He desires you to have in your life. The “time share” that God offers is permanent, there is no need for transfers. The “time share” that God offers is perfect in every sense of the word, and the beauty of it all is that it is completely free. God does not ask for a costly price, and He does not demand maintenance fees. All costs and fees were paid in advance by Jesus on the cross. The “time share” that God offers us is in the most luxurious and beautiful place that exists in the universe; the place where we will spend eternity next to Him. And all is completely FREE!
Today I am giving away a time share in the best and most luxurious place in the universe; would anyone care to have it?
