The More Things Change...
“History is more than a record of the past; it is a teacher and a warning. It reminds us that no matter how far humanity wanders from its Creator, the invitation to return remains. The greatest civilizations are not those that become the most powerful but those that remain faithful to the eternal truths that gave them life.”
Armstrong Williams, commentator, author, entrepreneur (Epoch Times, 8/11/26)
Early man (long before Abraham) did not know the God of the Bible, but he did know there was plenty in his world to fear – things he had no control over – like thunder and lightning, violent winds, floods, droughts, and even wild beasts. Thinking that some unseen being or force had to be in control of these things, he wanted to find a way to appease this being or force. In other words, he saw a need to ask “someone or something” for mercy and relief from these catastrophic events. Thus, early man came to worship “inexplicable” things in nature, like the sun, moon, stars, sea, or a mountain.
But man soon decided he needed a god he could readily approach – something tangible to see and worship. At first, many hand-fashioned gods were images of animals, such as cattle, certain birds, snakes, etc. Then, man’s gods became anthropomorphic – that is, human-like in features. In that sense, we can say that man created god(s). Eventually, some leaders required worship of their favorite gods, like Baal, Moloch, and so on. Thus was born paganism.
Then Yahweh, man’s Creator, the one true God, looked on His creation after Adam’s sin and saw man’s now inherent evil becoming increasingly manifest – so He first chose Abraham and later Abraham’s descendants, the people Israel, to declare, live by, and disseminate His laws and bring the world into balance. But the Israelites strayed badly, and the Gentiles (mostly pagans) continued worshiping their idols – and even though God wanted all people to become righteous and return to His bosom, no one could keep His laws. So He sent His Son Jesus to sacrifice Himself on the cross to pay the just penalty for all the world’s sins (past, present, and future) and thereby provide a conditional path for man to return to Him. The condition was belief and trust in Jesus plus repentance. That was God’s invitation to return that Mr. Williams referred to in the quote above – the Christian Gospel.
So Christianity spread throughout the world, and while there have been high and low periods of intensity, it shows no signs of going away. (Billy Graham once said the Bible is an anvil that has worn out a thousand hammers.) In the last several decades, there has been a low ebb of belief in this country and in other Western countries – but right now, a revival may be taking shape, because the level of fear in the West has risen. For example, there is fear of war, fear of climate disasters, fear of economic despair or collapse, and fear of political upheaval. In general, when widespread fear is on an upswing, faith increases with it, and the churches begin to fill.
In fearful times, man begins to look increasingly upward and inward, and not so much outward. Intuitively, the recognition returns to many of us that we are basically spiritual beings and not political or economic creatures. Indeed, life’s “battle” has always been between human ambition and spiritual truth – and while it’s true that in recent years, we as a people have tended to reshape truth to fit our ambitions (moral relativism), we seem lately to be turning back (looking upward) to God’s absolute truths, as found in the Bible.
Here is where history comes in. When we look inward, we may think the problems of today are unique. But to help us “perceive” what we see looking inward, we also need to look backward in history. Here is what Armstrong Williams says on that subject:
“Every generation believes that it is confronting new problems. More often we are facing ancient human weaknesses dressed in modern clothing. Pride still destroys leaders. Greed still corrupts institutions. Envy still divides neighbors. Hatred still fuels violence. Fear still clouds judgment. And love, genuine sacrificial love, remains the one force capable of healing wounds that power alone never can.”
For example, pride (arrogance) destroyed King Saul, King Ahab, and Pharoah in the Bible, and more recently, people like Adolph Hitler and Nicholas Maduro (Venezuela) – and it may destroy Donald Trump today if he’s not careful. This kind of pride in some leaders amounts to “playing God.”
Moreover, greed led to the downfall of Babylon and Assyria in the Bible, and more recently to the Great Depression, the collapse of Enron, and the Great Recession. (We note that this is not the “greed” that those on the left cite as the cause of poverty and other ills. As emphasized in other articles here, the greed they refer to is not greed at all. It simply reflects their erroneous belief that if someone gets rich, his wealth must somehow be taken from others. But the economy is not a zero-sum game.)
And of course envy still divides neighbors, but it was prevalent enough in Biblical times to rate its own commandment, the tenth – thou shall not covet a neighbor’s goods or his wife – and coveting is just another term for envy. Envy was recorded in the Bible as far back as Cain and Abel – i.e., Cain was envious of his brother’s favor with God. Is envy a problem today? Indeed, socialism is the politics of envy. It pits the have-nots against the haves. In fact, our young people (who are still have-nots) look favorably at socialism, but that’s because they don’t know correct history and the lessons it teaches.
Then, there’s the age-old problem of hatred fueling violence. Hatred is often a by-product of envy. For example, Cain grew so envious of Abel that he grew to hate him, and he killed him. Saul’s envy of David’s growing fame also evolved into hatred, prompting Saul to make several (unsuccessful) attempts on David’s life. Today, America and Americans are hated by many, particularly Muslims, and this has led to violence in several cases – such as the attack on the USS Cole and 9/11, plus several plots nipped in the bud. And we often see hatred as the basis for mass shootings. Also, since Biblical times, many have hated Israel and the Jews, and we have seen that hatred erupt many times – for example, the Holocaust and more recently, the October 7th massacre by Hamas and the steady launch of missile attacks by Iran.
Fear began immediately after Adam and Eve sinned – fear of God, fear of the world outside the Heavenly gates, fear of wild beasts, fear of pain, etc. Fear has never left the world and still lurks in the lives of most people. Does fear cloud judgment? Probably in many or even most cases where it is strong. But faith is the counterweight to fear – the stronger your faith, the lesser your fear, both in general and in specific situations.
So all these problems – pride, greed, envy, hatred, and fear – are as old as civilization itself. And while the details of solutions, then and now, vary with the circumstances, the general solution is the same – faith in God, which brings peace of mind (Col 3:15) and leads to love, unconditional and even sacrificial love. Faith and love not only can allay existing fear but can exclude that emotion altogether in many situations. For example, death looms for everyone, but people of strong faith do not fear it. On the other hand, some non-believers are terrified when their time is running out.
But doesn’t the Bible command us to fear God and keep His commandments (Eccl 12:13)? Is that the same kind of fear one might have, say, when the boss announces he must lay off a third of the workforce? No. The fear of God is reverential – it means being in awe of God – that kind of fear – the kind of fear that inspires prayer.
There are situations, of course, in which strong fear will take hold even if you’re a believer in God – like being held at gunpoint by a robber, or driving into an unexpected and heavy snowstorm with no cellphone. In such circumstances, your faith will at least keep you from panicking. With the robber, the best thing you can do is silently ask God for help (pray) and willingly give up your wallet, etc. In the snowstorm, if you pray for good judgment, it will come to you.
Overall, we suggest you use the Bible as history as well as spiritual strength – i.e., learn its teachings and warnings for problems involving pride, greed, envy, hatred, and fear. The problems are basically the same now as they were then. And the general solutions – with faith in God as a basis – are also essentially the same. The more things change, the more they remain the same.
Norbert J. Kuk