Understanding the Mystery of Time

We turned the clocks back during the night and daylight savings time ended for this year. Of course, we only turned back the measurement of time, we did not turn back time itself. Time marches on, regardless of what we do with the clocks.

Time is a linear thing that moves only in one direction. While humans and other living things on the earth are bound by time, God is not. He lives outside of time. He is eternal and dwells in eternity, meaning time does not control Him at all. That is how He can know what will be in the future- because He is already there, even while He is with us in the present.

“I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come—the Almighty One.” Revelation 1:8 (New Living Translation, NLT)

It is difficult for the human mind to comprehend living outside of time, where there is no measure of seconds, minutes, and hours. Yet, God lives there. In a way, to Him, time is simply a container. It holds a portion of eternity within itself. God took a portion of eternity, sectioned it off, and called it time. Time has set limits, or boundaries. It has a beginning and it has an ending. It will only last so long. There is only so much time, and then time will be no more.

God knew what would transpire on earth. He knew man would sin and He established time so that the earth and its inhabitants would only have to deal with a fallen world for a certain amount of time. Then, when we have reached the end of what we call time, He will clean up the earth, and we will have all of eternity to enjoy a new heaven and earth with Him.