“In Christ all things are made new.” – II Corinthians 5: 17
We like to get new things, don’t we? It might be a new book or a new sweater. It could be a new phone or tool or something for your home. Usually new acquisitions bring us a sense of pleasure and satisfaction. When it comes to new ideas and ways to look at life, however, it can be a different matter. Two obvious reasons for this are fear and resistance to change. It can be frightening to learn that there is a better way to do something. Quite often it is easier and less threatening to stay with the known than to move to the unknown or risk the unexpected. Change can require that we let go of something or give up the control that we feel is rightfully ours.
When Jesus began to preach and to teach in the cities and synagogues, there was an unbelievable amount of opposition. Everything He said seemed to be so new and so different. He told the people that He was bringing them GOOD NEWS, but for many it did not feel that way. They were not prepared for a Messiah who would come into the world as a man rather than a king. They had their own ideas and plans for this event, so they resisted the truth and held on to their old ways of thinking. The people whose hearts were prepared for the Messiah, however, discovered that the arrival of the kingdom of God was exactly what He called it – “Good News”.
Human nature has not changed much over the centuries, has it? The Scriptures are full of good news for us but too often we choose to remain ignorant or to hold on to our own viewpoints. In our new 12 week series, “What’s New?”, we’ll be exploring what the Bible has to say about seeing life from a new perspective, from God’s viewpoint, with eternity kept clearly in focus. Who knows what God might want you to discover as you study His Word and what it would mean for you to more fully experience the new life that is found in Jesus.
