A Time To Every Purpose Ecc 3: 1 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
In Ecc 3:1 Solomon wrote, there is a time to every purpose. God is extremely precise in his timing for every purpose. In Gen 1:14, God set the lights for “days” and for “years.” And so he already knows when certain things will happen. He has them scheduled. Look at few examples:
God set the time for the flood – Gen 5:22 – Methuselah’s name means, “When he is dead, it shall be sent.” Enoch knew something catastrophic was going to happen, thus he walked with God. Sure enough, the flood came the year that Methuselah died. This is because there is a time to every purpose.
God set the time for the Exodus – in Gen 15:13 the Lord told Abram that the nation whom his seed would serve was going to afflict his seed four hundred years. The nation is Egypt and the affliction started in Gen 21:9 when Ishmael was mocking Isaac, after Isaac was weaned. The mocking took place thirty years after Abram first went down to Egypt in Gen 12:10. According to Ex 12:40-41, therefore, the entire time of sojourning in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. Abram was born in 1996 BC, he entered Egypt in 1921 BC, when he was 75 years old. And the Jews left Egypt in 1491 BC.
God set the time for the Jewish captivity – 2 Chr 36:19-21 – the Jews were held captive by the Chaldeans for seventy years to allow the land to rest for the seventy years of sabbaths that were neglected from the time that Saul began to rule. Saul imposed such hardship on the people that they could no longer afford to let the land rest every 7 years [1 Sam 8:10-18]. There were 490 years between Saul’s ascension to the throne and Nebuchadnezzar’s attack on Jerusalem.
God set the time for the birth of Christ – Dan 9:24-25 – when you run out the dates in Daniel’s prophecy for the Messiah, you know the time of the Messiah’s birth. That’s how the “wise men from the east” [the land of the Chaldeans is east of Judea] knew to be looking for his star [Matt 2:1-2]. They were astrologers, among other things [Dan 1:20]. And they had heard about this prophecy when the Jews had been in captivity.
God set the time for the loosing of the four angels – Rev 9:14-16 – the time that the four angels are loosed from the Euphrates is set down to the very hour, of the very day, of the very month, of the very year in which it will happen. God has had that time set for at least 2,000 years.
Consider that there is a time to every purpose. That would indicate that God has a set time for:
Your marriage – Est 4:14 – Esther’s marriage to King Ahasuerus was “for such a time as this.” Don’t be hasty when it comes to marriage. Let God work the timing out so that you can become a prudent wife to be given to the right man [Prov 19:14] and so that you can become the right man to love and lead a wife and be favored by the Lord [Prov 18:22].
Your death – Heb 9:27 – the time of our death is appointed. Paul said, “the time of my departure is at hand.” Hezekiah’s time came and he prayed for more years [2 Ki 20:1-6]. God gave him 15 more years but bad things happened during that time. Manasseh, the wickedest king Judah ever had, was born during that time. Hezekiah showed all the treasures of his kingdom to the men from Babylon during that time. When you face a terminal illness, just remember that it might be your time. Prayerfully consider your options before jumping into the medical options. Sometimes people report that the fight wasn’t worth it.
Your call – 1 Ki 13:2 – God prophesied of king Josiah 351 years before this prophecy was fulfilled. He was the man God raised up to deal with the idolatry in Judah and Israel. When God calls you, you have to realize that timing is of the utmost importance. Pastor Boatman trained for over 15 years before he became the pastor of Bible Baptist Church. Missionary Dunbar trained for 13 years before moving to Brazil. Missionary Wells trained for at least a decade and a half before moving to Papua New Guinea. Men often want to rush into the ministry before they are ready. Give God time to fully prepare and enable you.
Salvation – 2 Cor 6:2 – speaking of timing, God is ready for you to be saved today. We recently met a young lady named Nicole, who wants God to provide her with evidence that he is real. Her boyfriend said, “What more evidence do you need besides the fact that he died for your sins and rose from the dead to give you eternal life?” She replied, “I just want him to do something now that shows me he is real.” It turns out that a lady in Walmart stopped to witness to her two weeks before we talked with her. Her father sent her a Bible the week before we talked with her. And then we talked with her. She said, “I think maybe God is trying to get my attention.” Indeed. And if he is trying to get your attention, you can be saved today.