And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  (12) The night is far spent, the day is at hand.  Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  (13) Let us walk properly as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.  (14) Bur put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul – a towering theologiccal exposition of the gospel.  Our verses today concern an application of that theology.  Paul is writing to motivate believers to holy living:  we are saved through faith by grace – not of ourselves but as a gift from God.  Paul makes use of metaphors of darkness and light – Christ is the light of the world and we are called by God to that light.  The sinful world is the darkness which is eternal death.  It’s interesting that the world sells itself as enlightened and infers that the Christians are living in darkness.

The Bible says the world is in darkness concerning God and man.  None of man are basically righteous or good and the period of darkness is also a time of moral and spiritual darkness as opposed to the light of the gospel.  Jesus Christ ushered in the light – the faith, love and hope of salvation.  Paul thought of believers as already in light and he expected them to live like sons of day/light.  Not only is the believer to take off the garments of darkness (all those darling sins) but to put on the armor of God – the protection of grace.

Paul piles on time phrases here – time, hour, night, day, nearer – all of which give a strong sense of urgency.  We should feel warned not to let the urgent crowd out the important.    Time and opportunity are limited.  Mick Jagger in 1964 sang the song “Time is on our side” but you don’t hear that included in Rolling Stones concerts today.

Paul is saying that the first coming of Christ Jesus brought salvation to believers and the 2nd is for judgment on unbelievers and final salvation for believers.  It is still dark but the night is almost gone.  We are to live with the possibility that Christ will come at any time and the certainity that He WILL come.  Believers have been saved in the past, are being saved in the present and will be completely saved in the future.

I remember seeing a play about a woman who squandered her time and opportunities and when death came her last words were “I thought I had more time.”