Time to embrace Christ now
Each country goes every century through different phases. Wars and economic up- and downturns often serve as markers for before and after. In future, we will refer to circumstances before, during and after COVID-19.
The Industrial Revolution heralded a new phase in human history. Engines of all sorts propelled machines in factories that could produce thousands of identical items in a short time. Engines also transformed transport on water, land and in the air.
A latecomer in the Industrial Revolution was electronic devices, which changed our lifestyle, communication, recreation and data management dramatically.
Electronic devices themselves have gone quickly through several phases, such as the floppy, stiffy, zip-drive, CD, DVD, memory stick, magnetic tape, harddrive and solid-state drive. Smartphones have gone through many phases the past 20 years.
Every new technology causes mixed feelings: we welcome improvement, but we are left with obsolete equipment that still works well but has become outdated. Over ten years, we will laugh about the gadgets we now see as cutting-edge technology.
Weapons have progressed from stonetipped spears and arrows, that could hit something 30 paces away, to guided missiles that can explode targets 1,000 kilometers from us. Three decades from now, personal transport may be quite different. Driverless, electric taxis, moving like buses through a city, may pick up or deliver wherever they are called. Pollution, commuting, parking problems and expensive cars may be gone.
The Bible has made use of technology to spread its message of salvation. It took about 1,500 years to complete the entire Bible. New handwritten copies were produced by devoted scribes. This process proceeded till the 15th century when Gutenberg invented the printing press. It started a new era of Bible distribution.
The Bible is by far the most printed book in history. However, paper copies are increasingly overtaken by copies on electronic devices. Talking Bibles look like Bibles but contain the whole Bible in auditory form stored on memory card. It brings the Bible to blind and illiterate people.
The whole Bible can now be read in most languages on the internet, or it can be stored on laptops or other devices. Moses said that God’s word is not far-off, but near (Deut. 30:11-14). It is now more so than ever before.
Christ commissioned his disciples to take the message of salvation to the whole world (Matt. 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). It is being done by television, radio, internet, missionaries, and Bible distribution.
This phase of unhindered spreading of the gospel will not last forever. The Antichrist will put a stop to it. The freedom to accept the good news of
Christ will also not last. Now is the time to embrace it wholeheartedly as a gracious gift from God.