Reformed Reflections

We live in an age of rapid change. Modern man boasts in all that has been changed in this century. And this is true. Our farmers don't work their fields with horses and wooden ploughs. None of us travel with horse and buggy. How many of us have not travelled by plane to see a relative or to go on a holiday? TV, radio, and satellite dishes are common place. Since modern man is so different from his fore-bearers, they say that historic Christianity is no longer relevant.

So many have thrown overboard the faith of their fathers. And what do they turn to? Astrology, witchcraft, the new age movement, sects and cults, - the bizarre. This shows that all the changes a man boasts about are only external. They are not changes in man himself, but merely in his environment, in his activities. Man's needs have not changed. I was reminded of that when I read Bernard Chairvaux's essay on loving God. He wrote, "...no matter how many things or goods one man possesses, he will always be lusting after what is perceived to be still missing." He commented that God alone can give ultimate satisfaction. What Bernard Clairvaux (1090-1153) said so long ago is still applicable today. "Rest is in God alone."

Man experiences no real peace in this world, but he has no restlessness to disturb him in the eternal state with God. Thus the soul can say with confidence, "It is good for me to draw near to God. Whom have I in heaven but Thee...God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (Ps. 73:28, 25, 26). Car models, fashions, technology may rapidly change, but man's heart does not. The Gospel is still the "power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16). In our uncertain times as a nation, we do well to reflect on the truth that "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, yes and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).

Rev. Johan D. Tangelder