Time is from beginning to end. While it has a beginning
and an end, we can rejoice with the fact that time is just an event
in eternity. God exists in eternity. There is eternity because God exists.
In the first chapter of the book of John, we can find these words: "In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. He was with God in the beginning." The Bible talks about the
"beginning", which refers to the time of creation.
The book of Genesis, the first book in the Bible, says, "In the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth." God created the light, sky,
earth, water, plants, animals and human being. God did not create time
as a separate element, although the constant mention of the phrase "in
the beginning" suggests the existence of time.
The beginning refers to the beginning of time. Time began when God created
the universe. When God created the universe, time began. Does the Bible
also speak of end? Yes, it talks about the end of the physical world.
What will happen in the end of time? The physical world and our sensory
experience of the physical world will end. After time, there will be
a new form of existence not based on the physical world but on the level
of existence of God, which is eternal.
There are two popular concepts of time. The first says time exists only
in the mind, but not in the physical world. Time, therefore, is only
an illusion of the mind. Here, time is being distinguished from change.
Time does not have anything to do with change. Things change because
they undergo processes like motion, growth, process and state of being.
There is only present. Past and future do not exist in the physical
world but occur only in the mind, which has abilities to recall and
expect. These abilities are based on man's sensory experience of the
world.
In the second concept of time, people refer to time as the cause of
change itself. Time is a collection of instants, a causal event that
encompasses everything. Here, an event cannot happen without the influence
of time. Events like motion, growth, process and even "state of being"
happen simultaneously because time encompasses all of them. Time is
like a thread that links the universe, holding all living and non-living
things in perfect harmony.
These two concepts are different in the sense that the first is viewed
as a way by which man perceives or measures change while the other is
viewed as the change itself. In the first concept, man measures motion,
growth, process and state of being according to the revolution and rotation
of the earth. In the second concept, time is being viewed as the unifying
element that causes motion, growth, process and state of being.
It is therefore assumed that the two concepts of time refer to two different
entities. One refers to the perception of change and the other to change
itself. The first concept, being more of a philosophical question, explains
things based on man's perception while the second concept, being a much
more ambitious question, attempts to explain life and existence in general.
For this reason, it is almost impossible to settle the question "Does
time exist?"
Why are there past, present and future? There is only present. Past
and future do not exist in the physical world but occur only in our
mind, which has abilities to recall and expect. These abilities are
based on our sensory experience of the world. We can remember playing
with toys ten years ago and expect to get married ten years hence.
Why do we have nights and days? The fact that we have nights and days
does not have anything to do with time. We all know that the rotation
of the earth and its revolution around the sun gives us nights and days.
We base our time according to these two processes. We call it one day,
divided in 24 hours, when the Earth makes a complete rotation and we
call it one year, divided in 12 months, when it makes a complete revolution
around the sun. The fact that there are stars in the sky only proves
the existence of God. "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies
proclaim the work of His hands" (Psalm 19:1).
Who is responsible for time? Our times are in God's hands (Psalm 31:15).
The Bible proclaims God as the Creator of the universe who is unbounded
by the power of time. In the Book of Romans, Paul, the first missionary,
wrote that neither time nor any power could limit God's love. "Neither
death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the
future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else
in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that
is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39).
Rather, it is He who is responsible for time that holds the universe
together in perfect harmony. In the Book of Colossians, Paul referred
to Jesus Christ as the Son of God who controls all things. "He is the
image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by
Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible
and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all
things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and
in Him all things hold together" (Colossians 1:15-17).
What do philosophers and scientists tell about time? Albert Einstein,
for one, believes that time exists as a part of an element that also
includes space. Most physicists do. In his general theory of relativity,
Einstein describes time and space as a warped element. Now, many physicists
are trying to establish that time is an element, like space, that can
influence a physical phenomenon. Time, according to them, is also a
physical element although it has no physical form. Scientists believe
that speed as fast as light can alter time. Time travel, according to
them, is not impossible.
In the western hemisphere, there are four major climatic seasons, namely:
spring, summer, autumn and winter. The fact that the weather suddenly
becomes cool after it was hot does not have anything to do with time.
Again, it is the result of the revolution of the Earth around the sun
and the slight tilt in the Earth's axis.
How about movement or growth? Is it possible to complete a 100-meter
sprint if time does not dictate it? Of course, it is. The fact that
an athlete moves from the first meter to the 100th meter of space does
not have anything to do with time? It is called motion, which is affected
by space. Motion is determined by speed, which in turn is measured according
to the ability of the athlete to move from the first meter to the 100th
meter in relation to the rotation of the earth. For example, an Olympian
sprinter can run 100 meters in 10 seconds. As we can see, we have made
a very good way of measuring movement or speed according to the rotation
of the earth.
How can a child turn into a fine lady, if there is no time? A child
will not always be a child. She grows. We call this process "growth".
Like motion, growth is a process. Usually, a baby girl turns into a
fine lady normally after 18 years. This means that a baby girl becomes
a lady after the Earth made 18 complete revolutions around the sun.
Not all girls aged 18 years old have the same heights. Time did not
run faster on some girls, causing them to grow taller. Height is most
often dictated by the person's genetic code and by what she eats.
The Bible supports the concepts of motion, growth, season, birth and
death. "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity
under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die" (Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
in part). It talks about beginning and end.
In the end, there would be existence in eternity. Eternity is not a
reference to time but to God's existence. God is "from everlasting to
everlasting." (Psalm 90:2 in part). Eternity is boundless. Inappropriately
coined with time, eternity rather refers to God's existence. Eternity,
in other words, is timeless. There is eternity because there is God.
He is "from all eternity" (Psalm 93:2). "I am the Alpha and the Omega,"
says the Lord God "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty"
(Revelation 1:8).
What will happen in the end of time? After time, there will be a new
form of existence not based on the physical world but on the level of
existence of God. There would be no time in the end, but only existence
in eternity. God promised that He would give us a new level of existence
in the end of time. By then, we will be free from the physical world,
which is governed by space and time. We will be free from our thoughts,
which are governed by reason based on the concepts of space and time.
In chapter 21 of the Book of Revelation, John wrote that God would live
with His people in a new heaven and a new earth where the old order
of things has passed away.
Scientists do not believe in eternity, because they explain things according
to their sensory experience of the world. Their observation is mainly
confined to the physical world where time seems to dictate everything.
They deny God because their understanding is limited to the concept
of time, which has a beginning and an end. They analyze things according
to their sensory experience of the physical world and are not able to
see the spiritual truth. "For what is seen is temporary, but what is
unseen is eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:18)
Eternity, or God's existence, encompasses time. Time is an event in
eternity. Somewhere in eternity, time began but will also end. What
will be left in the end is eternity, or God's existence, whose length
is unbounded and therefore can never be measured.
The joy of knowing the eternity of God springs from our hope that He
has given us eternal life in Jesus Christ His Son. "For God so loved
the world He gave His One and only Son, that whoever believes in Him
shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
We believe that the end of the physical world is near, as manifested
by terrible things that men are now capable of doing. The signs that
the Bible mentions about the last days are now taking place. "There
will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves,
lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents,
ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control,
brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers
of pleasure rather than lovers of God - having a form of godliness but
denying its power. Have nothing to do with them" (2 Timothy 3:1-5).
In the last days, our Lord Jesus Christ will return unexpectedly. "The
day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with
a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything
in it will be laid bare" (2 Peter 3:10). The Bible warns that the Lord's
coming will be a cruel day that will punish the sinners. "See, the day
of the Lord is coming - a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger - to
make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it" (Isaiah 13:9).
The apostle Paul said that when Jesus Christ returns to Earth, "He will
punish those who do not know God and do not obey the Gospel of our Lord
Jesus Christ. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and
shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of His power"
(2 Thessalonians 1:8-9).
We believe that the end is near and the only reason it has not yet come
is man's continuous rejection of His salvation. The Lord, who has promised
to return, is not slow in keeping His promise. "He is patient with you,
not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2
Peter 3:9). "Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation"
(2 Peter 3:15).
The salvation of the Lord refers to our right to Heaven where there
is eternal life. After our short stint on earth, we will face judgment
before God. Our life here, although temporary, will determine where
our souls shall spend eternity. The question is: "What good will it
be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul" (Matthew
16:26)?
Only by believing in Jesus Christ as the Son of God can anybody find
salvation. "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son does not have
life" (I John 5:11-13). "No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever
acknowledges the Son has the Father also" (I John 2:23). "Yet to all
who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right
to become children of God" (John 1:12).
Jesus Christ will return to establish an everlasting kingdom, which
all those who believe in His name shall take part of. "In His great
mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection
of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never
perish, spoil or fade - kept in heaven for you, who through faith are
shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready
to be revealed at the last time" (1 Peter 1:3-5).
Bible verses were quoted from the New International
Version (NIV).
