Thought for Today
Exodus 13:17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer; for God thought, "If the people face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt."
Psalm 102:25 Long ago you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 26 They will perish, but you endure; they will all wear out like a garment. You change them like clothing, and they pass away;
Matthew 18:3 "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
James 1:17 Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
Did you make it to church on time yesterday? Or, did you walk in 1 hour late, just in time for coffee? Alternatively, was yesterday one of the 2 times each year when you can ‘miss’ the sermon and blame it on the government’s insistence on Daylight Savings Time? I must admit, having spent the first 22 years of my life without the Uniform Time Act of 1966, I am still, all these years later, uncomfortable with our twice-yearly clock adjustments. Admittedly, I am equally uncomfortable with many other changes which have occurred during the last 59 years. I don’t keep a formal list, but I do regularly complain and lament about how different the world of 2025 is from the world of 1966 . . . and 1956 and even 1946.
It cannot be that I am now a crotchety, grumpy old man. Although, each morning the man looking at me in the mirror no long looks like the man who stared back at me each morning in 1946, 1956 or 1966. The world has changed during all those intervening years. The man I watch shave in the mirror during all those intervening years has changed.
There are words in every language which just sound ugly! Even if you enjoy eating yogurt, you must admit that is not an attractive sounding word. Sometimes we even change our grammar because the sound of a particular construction is not harmonious. The first example that comes to mind is the conjugation of the verb ’to go.’ Present tense is I go. Past tense, if normally conjugated, would be I goed. That is ugly and is potentially a source of confusion with the past tense of the verb ‘to goad.’ So, we substitute the past tense of the archaic verb ‘to wend,’ I went. Those of us who took koine Greek in seminary know that the ancient Greeks occasionally did just the same thing. Ironically (?) the classic example is with their verb for ‘I go,’ έρχομαι.
If we are comfortable with changing our grammar and our clocks, why are so many of us, especially as we age, uncomfortable with other changes? ‘Change’ may not be the ugliest word in the English language, but some days and at some times it is the most frightening and challenging word in the English language. As I have aged, ‘change’ has come to rank right up there with ‘test.’
Yet, change is ubiquitous for Christians. Our faith was born in change. Those of us who are of the Reformed Tradition should also remember one of the mottos of our tradition, “ecclesia reformata sed semper reformanda,” “the church reformed, but always being reformed.”
Jesus said, “"Truly I tell you, unless you change . . .” Christianity was a change from the legalism and xenophobia of ancient Judaism. The Protestant Reformation was a change from the perceived legalism and works righteousness of the prevailing Christianity of the 16th century. The world of the 21st century will surely necessitate other changes in the practices of Christians.
Thankfully, we are also aware of the immutability of God. The God of the 8th century BC, or if you prefer BCE, is the same God of the 21st century AD, or if you prefer CE. The Great I AM is also the Great I WAS and the Great I ALWAYS WILL BE. The psalmist knew, “26 They will perish, but you endure . . .” So too did Thomas O. Chisholm, who in 1923 penned Great is Thy Faithfulness, which begins, “Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father; there is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not, Thy compassions they fail not; As Thou hast been Thou forever will be.”
Stay safe, thank God for always being God, trust God,
Pastor Ray