“Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity.”-{Colossians 4:5}
Every moment we live is a gift from God and to be maximized for Him and His cause. Paul said “conduct yourselves with wisdom towards outsiders.”
“Conduct,” is a command and is continuous, meaning it is to be the new habit, the new progressive pattern of your life. It speaks of the way we are to live our lives as followers of Christ.
“Wisdom.” Living wisely, which means taking the knowledge of His Word and applying it accurately to your circumstances so those “outsiders” those outside of Christ may see or hear nothing that would contradict your profession. It is to live in an honorable way towards God and non believers. Lips and life matching up with your profession! It’s no pain talking about honesty, integrity, and then stealing. That would not be aligning up with your profession of belonging to Christ, it would be conduct that is inconsistent and contradicts your profession of faith in Him!
“Making The Most…”– {Exagorazo}. It is used 4 times in the New Testament,-{Gal 3:13; 4:5; Eph 5;16; Col 4:5.}. “Redeeming.” It means literally “to buy out of the market’s place.” The idea is to completely redeem. Two ways the word “exagorazo” is used in the New Testament. It was used of buying back a slave from a slave market in order to set them completely free! We are to buy up all the time we have and devote for the LORD! It was used to gain an advantage, opportunity,to make the most of! This is how it is used here in Colossians and in Ephesians 5:16. Take advantage of the opportunity that comes your way! In the context here it means to share the Gospel!
We are stewards of the time God has given us. God has given us 1,440 minutes each day. We are on Divine assignment from Him and for Him! Is what we are spending our time on, worth Jesus dying for? The opportunities we have, we are to take advantage to share the Gospel! Be a good steward of your time. Imagine a soldier in a war zone, deciding to head off on a cruise instead of actively involved under the leadership of the commander. Would seem crazy. Dereliction of duty, failing to fulfill one’s obligation! We are in a spiritual warfare Ephesians 6 teaches us. Does that mean you cant go on a cruise? No, that’s taking it to an extreme, but on your cruise does not mean you turn off caring about Him and His cause and on the cruise you can pray and even there see if He gives you an opportunity to share the Gospel! Wherever you are be looking out for opportunities!
“Time”-{kairos} refers to a specific as used here rather than time in general.-{chronos}.
The English word “opportunity” comes from the Latin and means “toward the port.” It suggests a ship taking advantage of the wind and tide to arrive safely in the harbor. The brevity of life is a strong argument for making the best use of every opportunity God gives us.”-{preceptaustin}
Kairos speaks of a space of time for opportunities which believers are given. Sometimes what we see as inconveniences, interruptions are opportunities. To clutch on to your plan, aganda, and when someone or something interrupts it, to get upset is to lose sight of who we are here for and why! We each are allotted a certain amount of time on this earth for… Him! I love the verse that I call “David’s Obituary,” in Acts 13;36 says, “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed.” What a wonderful, gracious commentary on his life. No, he was not perfect, but his heart was towards Him as He testified David had a heart after His. He served god’s purpose in his generation…
Time is to be used for eternity. Be alert to the opportunities you have to share the Gospel, seize the opportunity, buy up that opportunity! Take a farmer as an example. There is a time to sow, and then when it comes harvest time, there is a window of opportunity to get the harvest in, and that may mean early mornings working through to late in the evening in order to gather in all of the harvest. The farmer is looking out, watching for the time to harvest having sowed. So we too much be “alert” watching for the opportunities we have for the Gospel with people. They can happen in a store, school, hospital, work, sports, expect the unexpected, for in those moments God can open up a door for the Word to be shared! It can be as easy as asking someone at a store. who is serving you ‘How are you?’ The standard answer may be “fine” and then they ask out of politeness,”How are you?” expecting the same distant and impersonal response. In times past, due to my muscle disease I may honestly say,”Not too good, But you know what i was thinking on…” and share a verse, and that may open up an opportunity or not, but it has given an opportunity to share His Word with them and He can bring to their mind on another occasion opening their mind to understand. Some sow, some reap but God gives the increase.
Remember, everyone we meet or see will all enter eternity, some sooner than others and has nothing to do with age, sex, nationality. Death is not an accident but a Divine appointment, “And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,”-{Hebrews 9:27}. Paul said he was “appointed” for the sake of the Gospel.-{Phil 1;16}. The word spoke of being “set” designated, “assigned” and in the circumstances he found himself in which was prison he used that to advance the gospel through sharing. He was on Divine assignment as are you and me, wherever we find ourselves. Look around at the people in your circumstances, that is the part of the harvest field God has “appointed” you to be in for His Gospel, co-laboring with Him! Paul could have said, “when” I get out of here “then I will share” and wasted the opportunities he had in the prison! He did not, as he also did not when he was in prison with Silas and a suicidal jailer and family were saved that night because Paul used the circumstances he found himself in to share the Gospel!-{Read Acts 16; Phil 1:12}. How often we live “when” and “then” type of mentality lives. “When” this happens, “then” I will…
It reminds me of the man I met and told me he had nearly died from a disease and told me his message was now to tell people to slow down and smell the rose and then he said something I have never forgotten, “when I retire I would like to do what you do as a hobby!” “When” and “then!” How did he know he would live long enough to retire! Life is short. Don’t assume.
It reminds me of another time entering the front room of a home of a dear man whom I had met at a summer sports outreach several years earlier, where athletes conducted clinics and shared the Gospel. Each year he would take his two week summer vacation and end up on the sports field handing out drinks to thirsty kids in the summer heat. I was asked to speak at his church and his young son afterwards accompanied me back to his house as his dad wanted to see me. “When” I walked in the man was laying in his bed in the front room as he was very sick, he was dying, he turned to his son and asked concerning me, “Did he preach the Gospel!” He was on his death bed and his concern was unsaved people! Life is short, don’t adopt the “when” and “then” attitude, because before you know it, you will be entering eternity!
Jesus spoke directly with Nicodemus of his need to be “born again.”-{John 3}. Jesus sought help from the woman at the well, to engage her in conversation in order to share with her. He said, He had to go through Samaria, in those days the Samaritans were despised and people would go the long way around to avoid them, not Jesus He loved them and went to save a woman!-{John 4}. He was concerned about people and the Father’s Honor. He came to seek and save the lost and He has entrusted us with His message of salvation. How are we treating it?
Paul wrote in Philippians 1:12 – “Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel,”-{Philippians 1:12}. In his circumstances, imprisoned, he tells them that his circumstances have worked out to advance the Gospel. -{v13}. His circumstances were not an obstacle but a springboard for the Gospel!
In Philippians 1:16, Paul wrote-“…I am appointed for the defense of the gospel;”-{Philippians 1:16}. He was “assigned,” it was used of a soldier assigned to a specific post. Like a soldier is with a specific, strategic assignment, so Paul said he was assigned for the Gospel…in the circumstances he was in!
Eph 3:1- “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles.”-{Ephesians 3:1}. Note, Paul did not say he was Rome’s prisoner but Christ’s, and see his eternal perspective in his circumstances was others orientated why he was in those circumstances, “…for the sake of you Gentiles.” “For” gives the explanation,”…the sake of you Gentiles.” He was saying -I am here for…you! In our circumstances we are there for…others!
Acts 16- Paul imprisoned when the prison was shaken and the doors opened he could have ran but he stopped to share with a suicidal jailer and he and his family were all saved. Paul used his circumstances as opportunities for the benefit of others and the Gospel for Jesus sake. He lived in light of eternity.
“The days are evil…” we must buy up every opportunity, every day.
We who sit within the safety of the ark of Christ should be conscious of the spiritual need of those in great eternal danger or who are “outside” Christ! Don’t sit back in the leisure of selfishness, for love is concerned with the welfare of others. God so loved HE GAVE…” Jesus could have neglected Nicodemus, the woman at the well… Paul could have rejected the call to go down by the river where Lydia was, he could have ran from the prison and neglected the suicidal jailer and his household… the same when he was in prison in Philippi {Phil 1:12-13} and the same when he wrote to the Colossians. Love seeks the best and highest good of another. Whose good are you seeking?
Every circumstance, Affords you a New opportunity. Pray for it. Be looking for it. Seize the Opportunity!
“Making The Most Of Your Opportunities.”