Probably no one alive today would disagree with the observation that we live in a changing world. Indeed, change has been part of our world throughout man’s history. Wars and other forces have resulted in the rise and fall of empires, new forms of government have replaced previous ones, and groups of people have moved from one place to another. Coupled with these large-scale changes, other entities like language, customs, culture, styles of dress, and the designs of buildings have all altered as changing times brought with them a desire for something different. New discoveries and new technology have played their part too, and sometimes a new invention has brought with it tremendous change, altering the course of history.
However, there is a paradox in all this change. On the one hand, man wants a change. Since Adam’s fall, the natural man has sought to find his happiness in the things of this world, and since he has a heart that nothing in this world can satisfy, he has constantly looked for something new or different. God has “set the world in their heart” (Eccl. 3:1111He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)), and the word “world” can also be translated “eternity” or “the infinite.” This aspect of man’s being has largely fueled his relentless quest for something novel that he hopes will, at last, provide a permanent object for his heart. Since he leaves God out of the picture, inevitably he confirms Solomon’s verdict: “All is vanity and vexation of spirit” (Eccl. 1:1414I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. (Ecclesiastes 1:14)).
Resistance to Change
On the other hand, there is a stubborn resistance to change in man’s natural heart — a resistance that resents anything that invades his “comfort zone” or alters his accustomed way of doing things. Thus it is not unusual to hear people complaining about change, since it may compel them to revise their patterns of thinking, perform tasks a different way, and perhaps adjust to a totally different way of life. Changes can be so significant that individuals and sometimes entire populations must reeducate themselves, find new employment, and perhaps even relocate to a new area. Even if the change is not quite this momentous, yet some find themselves simply uncomfortable with a world that is “not the same as it used to be.” The Word of God recognizes this difficulty, for in the same Book of Ecclesiastes we read the injunction, “Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? For thou dost not enquire wisely concerning this” (Eccl. 7:1010Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this. (Ecclesiastes 7:10)). It is usually older people who tend to look back to former days, thinking that things were better in the past, while perhaps forgetting the difficulties and problems of “the good old days.” Yet even younger ones may have this outlook, and thus we see Donald Trump elected on the slogan, “Make America great again.”
The Pace of Change
Nowhere is this paradox more apparent than in our modern world. Although change has always affected this world, for much of man’s history change came relatively slowly, especially in the realm of technology and inventions. Governments did change, bringing with them new laws and occasionally major adjustments, but for the most part life went on much as it had before. Generations lived and died, living in much the same way as their forefathers. However, this pace of change began to accelerate in the eighteenth century with the Industrial Revolution, and it quickened even more in the nineteenth century. The widespread use of the steam engine radically changed travel on both land and sea, for until the use of the steam locomotive, nothing on land had ever traveled faster than a horse. Inventions like the telephone, the internal combustion engine, and photography all made a tremendous impact on the world, as did the production and harnessing of electricity. With the twentieth century came the airplane and the extensive use of the automobile, as well as radio, television, submarines and nuclear power. The discovery of antibiotics and other potent drugs revolutionized the practice of medicine, while the use of computers and eventually the Internet has drastically altered our lives. The twenty-first century has brought with it the I-phone, Facebook and You Tube, to name a few further refinements in technology. In the political realm, many countries have attained sovereignty status, so that between the years 1900 and 2000 about 140 independent countries were added to the world’s total.
Moral and Spiritual
More important have been the moral and spiritual changes that have come about. On the one hand, the nineteenth century saw a tremendous revival, not only in the preaching of the gospel, but also in the recovery of the truth of the church. But Satan was at work too, and as the Source of this recovery has gradually been abandoned during the last fifty years, moral standards have also changed drastically. This downward trend has accelerated in geometric proportions during the past ten years. Many wonder where it will all end and feel as if they are being carried along by a current over which they have no control.
Technological and Political
Technological changes have brought benefits and thus are eagerly embraced, yet there is an uneasy feeling that somehow things are “out of control.” Life has become so complicated and fast-paced that many are unable to cope with it. Political changes and the breakup of empires have released some from the evils of colonialism, yet the proliferation of sovereign nations in the world has fostered other dilemmas and sometimes explosive crises. There is a strong desire in almost every ethnic group to have its own government and status in this world, yet in some cases there is a lack of wisdom, resources and ability to use that liberty. Man wants the change, but then finds that the change does not solve his problems; rather, it brings new conundrums of a different kind.
There are a number of reasons for these changes. Perhaps the first one is technological. As we have noted, for centuries man lived in much the same way as his ancestors, but in the last two hundred years, a virtual explosion of discoveries has changed the world. Whether in the military realm, in the commercial realm, or in the area of social media, the technology God has allowed man to invent has made an impact that could not be imagined until it happened. The Lord told Daniel that at “the time of the end,” “many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased” (Dan. 12:44But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. (Daniel 12:4)). Surely this is happening today.
Restlessness
Second, the restlessness of nations is a major factor in the changes in this world. The Lord Jesus foretold that there would come a time when there would be “upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roar of the sea and the rolling waves” (Luke 21:2525And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; (Luke 21:25) JND). The sea is often a picture of the nations in agitation, and while we know that the actual fulfilment of this prophecy is future, yet we see the beginnings of it today. As an example during the twentieth century, it is well-known that Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs were able to live together in India for centuries, often in the same states, cities and villages. Yet within two years after World War II, the violence and bloodshed that erupted there from religious fanaticism could not be controlled. Britain was compelled not only to grant India its independence but, against the wishes of many even in India, also to partition it and create Pakistan as a primarily Muslim state. So serious was the crisis that this momentous task had to be carried out in a few months.
Other factors have contributed to change, such as moral decay, which we have already mentioned. Population growth has also affected this world in a real way. Since 1900, the world’s population has more than quadrupled, straining resources that are finite.
God’s Purposes
But perhaps the greatest reason for change in this world is that God is accomplishing His purposes, for He has before Him the honor and glory of His beloved Son. That blessed One came into the world in love and grace, and man rejected Him. But He will be vindicated in the very world that cast Him out, and Paul reminds us that “He must reign, until he hath put all enemies under his feet” (1 Cor. 15:2525For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. (1 Corinthians 15:25)). We are approaching the time of the end; God is setting everything in place so that His Son can judge this world and reign in millennial glory. Man may have His purposes, but as another has aptly said, “God’s ways are behind the scenes, but He moves all the scenes which He is behind. We have to learn this and let Him work and not think much of man’s busy movements: They will accomplish God’s — the rest of them all perish and disappear. We have only in peace to do His will.”
We, as believers, can be thankful that the Lord Jesus says to us, “I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you” (John 15:1515Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. (John 15:15)). As those who know where it will all end, we can go on in peace, seeking Christ’s interests down here and confident that “all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us” (2 Cor. 1:2020For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us. (2 Corinthians 1:20)).
W. J. Prost