“It is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed” (Romans 13:11, KJV). Paul the apostle wrote these words to the church at Rome. These words suggest that the church at Rome had spiritually fallen asleep.
Paul’s words seem to focus on the passive lifestyle of those believers. They were not living in readiness for the Lord’s return. Paul words were a wake-up call to the church. In the next verse, he challenged the members to cast off the works of darkness and to walk in the light (verse 12).
Paul’s choice of the words darkness and light is most befitting. We tend to sleep in darkness and awaken in the light. Similarly, those who walk in darkness are spiritually asleep. Only those who walk in the light of God’s Word are awake. When one is spiritually asleep, he is not aware of what’s happening in his world. Sad but true, that seems to be the status of many believers today.
Note the reason Paul issues this wake-up call: “for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.” Everyday, we become one day closer to the Lord’s return. It is past time for believers to stop playing church.
Ironically, Paul’s epistle was addressed, “To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints…” (Romans 1:7, KJV). Still, they were asleep because they failed to walk in the light. And they needed a serious wake-up call. The same is true for believers today who do the same.
We know how to do church, if you know what I mean. Personally, I love good Bible-preaching and teaching. I love the excitement of our worship experience in church. But the Lord is not impressed with our religious fervor.
Wake Up to Reaching the Lost
The local church is also the place designated to equip and motivate us to reach the lost. We commonly refer to this end goal as the Great Commission.
Perhaps within your household, certainly in your extended family, some of your loved ones are bound and need to be set free. As an ambassador for Christ, you should take an active role in helping them realize salvation.
The urgency of the need for the church to wake up is reflected in the current state of our world. In some places, for instance, Christians are being persecuted solely for their faith. Even in America, the squeeze is being put on those of us belonging to the Christian faith. The message of the world is that we must embrace the “new norms” of our society or else. But we have been called to be the light of this dark world.
The irony is that the closer we come to the Lord’s return, the less engaged the church appears to be. How long will we who name the name of Christ hold our peace while a dying world screams in pain and despair? Do we not pray to God, attend church, and read our Bible for such a time as this?
The devil comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. God forbid that we allow ourselves to be lulled to sleep while he does. It’s good for us to rejoice in the Lord. We should faithfully come together to worship Him and to fellowship with the people of God. But if we fail to discern the times and to sense the urgency of the hour, we are yet asleep. It is past time for the church to wake up.
Copyright © 2022 by Frank King. All rights reserved.