What is the relationship between God and time?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

God created time and exists outside of it, unbound by its limitations. Yet He also works within time to accomplish His purposes and care for His people. From creation to salvation, the Bible shows that God planned everything—even before time began. Jesus, fully God and fully human, entered time to dwell with us and now intercedes for us in real time. Because God is both eternal and present, we can trust Him with our future and find comfort in His nearness today.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Time began when God created the universe—He is eternal and exists outside of time (Genesis 1:1; Psalm 90:2); time is inherent in creation, as seen in the sun, moon, and stars made on the fourth day to mark days and seasons (Genesis 1:14–19), meaning that when God created the cosmos, He also created the time-bound structure in which it operates.
• God visibly entered time to reveal Himself and to dwell with His people (Exodus 40:34–38).
• God is outside of time because He existed before it. Moses, who recorded the Genesis account, said, “Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:2). Being “from everlasting to everlasting” means that He is eternal and timeless.
• God, speaking to the people of Israel through Isaiah, refers to Himself as, “The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 40:28b). Being everlasting means that God is outside of time. While we think in terms of beginning, middle, and end, God sees all of time at once.
• Though God exists outside of time, His omnipresence means He also works within time to accomplish His purposes and care for His people—like guiding Israel daily by cloud and fire (Exodus 13:21).

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• John alluded to Genesis 1:1 in John 1:1 when he said, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The “Word” is Jesus, the Son of God (John 1:14–18). John continued, “All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made” (John 1:3). The Son of God is said to have been with the Father “in the beginning” and that all of creation came through Him. The Son and Father co-existed before there was time.
• Similarly, Paul said in Colossians about Jesus: “He is the image of the invisible God …. by Him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:15 a, 16–17). As God, Jesus existed before all things because He is the Creator of all things.
• God planned salvation before time. For example, in 2 Timothy 1:9 Paul says about believers, “[God] who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not because of our works, but because of His own purpose and grace, which He gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began.” In Ephesians, he also said, “[the Father] chose us in [Jesus] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him” (Ephesians 1:4). The “foundation of the world” is a way of describing the first creation act. Even before that, believers were chosen in Jesus for salvation.
• Not only was our salvation planned before creation, our good works were also planned before time! “We are [the Father’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we would walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
• For God, time is “nothing.” In 2 Peter, we read, “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8). While Peter was not making a specific argument that God is outside of time, what he was saying was that God’s relationship to time is much different than ours. We see the slow passage of time, but for God, time is nothing of significance. One day and one-thousand days are exactly alike to God. That makes sense when considering that God created it and stands outside of it.
• However, though He is outside of time, God entered into time. This is most clearly displayed when the Son of God added on humanity (Philippians 2:6–8). Though He is fully God, He also became fully human. Because He is God, the Son of God is omni-present and transcendent (outside of time). However, as human, Jesus is also localized and lived day-by-day like the rest of us.
• Evidence of Jesus’ time-bound humanity include that He was born a baby (Luke 2:1–7), grew older (Luke 2:42), and learned obedience (Hebrews 5:8). Also, He could be wearied as a day wore on (John 4:1–6) and see things more clearly after the passage of time (Mark 11:12–13). In His humanity, Jesus was just like us, including being time bound!
• Jesus currently ministers in His humanity, personally interceding for each believer in real time (Hebrews 7:25).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

We have a transcendent God, meaning He created time and is outside of it. However, He is also an immanent God, meaning He is near us, inside of time. God controls time yet also enters it to minister to we who are bound by it. Because God is outside of time, we can trust everything that is in our future is under His watchful eye. We can rest in the fact that though we can’t see what tomorrow brings (Matthew 6:25–34), not only does God know, but He has actively planned our future for His glory and our good (Romans 8:28). That is, indeed, comforting!

Being inside of time means that He is near us, particularly with regards to believers. He knows our struggles right now. It is not just a knowledge that humans are suffering in general, but He is there when things go horribly bad, and He is there when things are unbelievably great. He knows our trials and our joys. What’s more, because the Son of God added on humanity, He experientially knows what life is like and can sympathize with us (Hebrews 4:15). As we go through this life, He intercedes for us…in real time (Hebrews 7:25).

What a great God we have. Trust Him fully because time is “nothing” to Him—it’s a speck in His eternal hand, and He knew the end even before He created the beginning. But also praise Him that He is not a distant, hands-off God but that He cares deeply for you…by name! You are known by Him and, if you are a believer, you are being individually cared for by Him on a day-by-day, hour-by-hour, minute-by-minute basis.

UNDERSTAND

• God created time and exists outside of it.
• Though transcendent, God reveals Himself within time, guides His people, and works daily in history and in personal lives.
• Being outside of time, God planned all things—including salvation—before time began.

REFLECT

• How does knowing that God exists outside of time affect the way you trust Him with your future?
• How have you experienced God's presence in your life during specific moments of struggle or joy?
• How does it comfort you to know that Jesus understands your day-by-day life and intercedes for you in real time?

ENGAGE

• How can understanding that God created time change the way we view His sovereignty and control over history?
• In what ways does Jesus entering into time shape our understanding of God’s nearness and care for us?
• What might encourage or challenge us in knowing that God planned salvation and good works before time began?