⁷ He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying through David after so long a time just as has been said before, “Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts.”

Time is a fascinating idea! The word “today” occurs eight times in Hebrews. Three times we are warned: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (see 3:7-8, 3:15). Not tomorrow, but today.

One of the first thoughts that came to my mind the day I was saved, was the idea that, “Today is the first day of the rest of my life.” And the next day, when it came, the thought occurred to me again, “Today is the first day of the rest of my life.” Even within one day, there is a sequence of behind and before. I am no longer in the time that is past this exact moment—that is behind me. And I am not yet in the time that comes after this moment—that is before me. As I move through time, the future becomes now, and the now becomes the past. ButI am always in the present.

Lest we get lost in the philosophical musing of Mars Hill mind games, there is an important truth that the writer of Hebrews is conveying. In responding to God, the only time we have for this is now! Procrastination is the same as rebellion. We fool ourselves in believing there is merit in thinking, “Tomorrow I will follow God.” We must do it now.

God is very definitive about this. He “fixes” a certain day. The word “fix” means to limit; it’s a declaration of God that fastens an action to a limited realm of fulfillment. In the whole scope of our passage through time, as we traverse the span of before and after, God has determined only one point, the everlasting present, in which we can make the decision of eternal consequence. Tomorrow never arrives because it keeps moving ahead of us at the same rate as the past recedes from us, and at the same rate that we pass through the present. The sequence rate of time does not change.

The only thing that can change, therefore, is us. Me. The command is ever present. David, who wrote this song, was reflecting back on Israel’s ten rebellions against God. Each time was a “Today” when they made the decision to not obey God faithfully. The urgency of God is combined here with the mercy of God. One time disobedience is sufficient for the penalty of eternal separation from God. But, in the same way that we are called upon “Today” to repent, God likewise mercifully warns us “Today.” Christian, in what area of your life do you need to repent “Today?”