“… for since the fathers fell asleep (died) all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” (2 Peter 3:4)
This was a very astute observation for Peter, an uneducated fisherman living during the time of Jesus. Even more so, because he then goes on to explain why that assumption is not always true.
Don’t most of us living in the modern world likewise believe that “all things continue as they were”? Those who study the financial markets look to their past, on the belief that certain, predictable patterns reoccur, sometimes at regular intervals. Military strategists study past wars and specific battles, for clues about how to win (or lose) wars still somewhere in our future. The politically minded study previous campaign wins and losses for clues as to what from the past can be applied to the next election.
Businesses study competitors, on the theory that what has worked for one company might well work for themselves. Some people study historical figures and seek to apply the parts of those historical lives to the observer’s life in the present or future. Many Americans – perhaps even most – try to emulate the lives of celebrities or other famous people, in the hope that doing so will give them a similar result.
It’s hard to deny that during a typical human lifespan, say 75 years, many things do remain the same. Two things might give us a different perspective on this: first, longer lifetimes (which may be on the horizon), and second, faster technological development, which is already here and increasing beyond most of our abilities to keep up with it.
So, we do understand that not all things remain the same, but we still proceed as if they did. In fact, it’s always news to us in our lives when things don’t remain the same. An unexpected health emergency, losing our job, learning that a good friend is moving away … the list goes on. We expect our lives to be consistent, and it seems that we often try to re-establish that consistency in our own lives when it is taken from us. Most of us don’t like “different.”
Like individuals, nations expect “all things to continue as they were.” So, it would seem, do political parties. Many Republicans were pleasantly surprised when Donald Trump won the presidency during the last election. Many Democrats were devastated. Things had been going their way pretty much since the end of Ronald Reagan’s presidency. Democrats worked together with “moderate” Republican presidents behind the scenes, but the agenda always moved slowly toward progressive ends.
The Democrats’ “normal” was that America would soon enter a progressive utopia ushered in with a Clinton victory. That view was shaken. No, it can’t be! We were robbed! Trump conspired with the Russians! He’s a traitor; he’s unstable! And so it goes, because things are supposed to remain the same!
The problem here isn’t Trump’s election. The problem is the Democrats’ expectations. It’s rather like the global “climate warming/cooling/change” industry that has convinced itself and its adherents that the climate has never changed in the past. Thus, it must not be allowed to change in the future, or terrible things will happen. But the climate does change, at the behest of things we have no control over whatsoever. Volcanos sometimes erupt, spewing ash miles high where it encircles the globe and affects the weather for years. Our sun’s momentary blips can have a generational impact upon our climate.
Comparing our perspective during a single lifetime to geologic time is akin to the perspective a fruit fly might have on the results of a multi-generational experiment. It is futile and meaningless. After all, the experiment only lasted a few weeks or months. The fruit fly’s view would have as much validity as ours does when applied on a geologic time scale.
Things do change. Often there is no way that we can know in advance, and nothing we can do to prevent it. This matters not whether you believe the Hand of God is directing it, or it is simply a cosmic hiccup in the universe’s existence.
For God’s perspective on our time frame, you might want to read his one and only book: The Bible. You could start with the verse above. God alone transcends time. That’s one reason his perspective is so valuable.
Absolution: The Singularity. Start reading with a click: craigemcmillan.com.
