When Paul arrived in Athens in Acts 17, it was a bit of a culture shock, because “All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived in Athens spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas,” verse 21. Imagine that: being able to sit around and do nothing but discuss whatever the latest “new” ideas are, verse 19.
But isn’t that a bit like our world today, because we too have our share of rich globalists who seem to be doing nothing but meeting together to talk about and listen to new ideas for saving the planet. But what they’re coming up with is quite bizarre, like getting us all to eat insects rather than meat, or get all of us driving electric cars, or get us all vaccinated with experimental drugs, or get us all herded into 15 minute cities, or control our every move through surveillance, or block out the sun to cool the planet – and whatever else they can dream up, outdoing each other with their nonsense. And millions of people support the craziness – not because it’s tried and tested, but simply because it’s “novel” and new.
We live in a world hooked on novelty, witness those who line up outside stores for hours to grab the latest new technology, or those swooning over ridiculous new ideologies like biological men becoming “women” and allowing them to compete in women’s sports. It’s ludicrous, but it’s novel, it’s new, so “let’s try it and see what happens.” Like what happens to children being sexually groomed by cross dressing adults in school. And then make sure it happens by censoring and shaming anyone who disagrees, and ridiculing those who talk of consequences and damage.
We’re all being treated like guinea pigs by bored and weird people who lust for the power to see their nutty ideas come to fruition, no matter what damage to people or the planet. Which made me wonder what God would have us Christians do.
We’ve got one thing in our favour, in that nothing God asks of us is novel or new or untried. It’s all tried and tested. It works. And for centuries it’s worked wonders in shattered and empty lives.
So we wait while the world revels in its nonsense until the consequences are too great to ignore, and shattered people are ready to listen to what God has to offer – just as those bored, restless Athenians were willing to listen to Paul in Acts 17. “Got any new ideas?” they asked him. Yes, he said: God exists and we are his children (verses 24-29), so try that on for size and see what happens.
Buck To Basics 