There is an old hymn I used to sing as a young Christian which has the lyrics:
‘There is a story sweet to hear,
I love to tell it too;
it fills my heart with hope and cheer,
‘Tis old yet ever new.’
I was reminded of this hymn as I walked around London last weekend, marvelling at how the old buildings were juxtaposed among newly built skyscrapers:
Just down from Tower Bridge (built in the late 19th century) was this modern sea vessel:
Further along the South Bank of the River Thames, a replica of the 16th century galleon Golden Hinde, vessel used by Sir Francis Drake to circumnavigate the globe between 1577-80, is situated in dry dock:
Not far from this, the recently built Shard skyscraper can be seen:
This juxtaposition of old and new can seem bizarre at first, but Christianity has long had to adapt to the times and there is a sense in which we retain the ‘old’ truths of the gospel and yet seek to convey these in a manner that is relevant and meaningful to our modern society. Something of this balance between old and new is captured by John in his first letter: ‘Dear friends, I am not writing you a new command but an old one, which you have had since the beginning. This old command is the message you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.‘ (1 John 2:7-8) The writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us that there is nothing new under the sun (Eccl 1:9) and yet we continue to find new ways to express old truths. It has ever been thus, and so we should not be surprised to find the new springing up amongst the old, sign of God’s creative spark still at work in His world.