The Problem with New

One popular concept that is extremely popular with January 1 st of any year is resolutions. We say that we are going to do things like go to the gym more often, eat healthier, read more books, or do who knows what else. Whatever we “resolve” to do though is always something new meaning we aren’t currently doing it right now. Now you know the problem with resolutions is that most are never kept! A survey conducted by Forbes in 2024 found that the average resolution only lasted 3.74 months. Why? Now please understand that this is not something that very few people know about. Most, if not all of us know the struggle that comes with keeping a New Year’s resolution but may not understand the depth of the reason it’s such a struggle. The reason is simple; there is a problem with the “new.”

Let me explain. There simply is not anything new under the Sun. Ecclesiastes 1:9 states,

“What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.”

Did you catch what Soloman said there? There is nothing new under the Sun. Yes, while we may look at something new that we may want to do and think that it will be the greatest thing ever, we are faced with a problem that is two-fold. First, is our lack of follow through. Yes, we may start with good intentions, but without the corresponding actions to back that up we will never reach our goals. The following proverb sums this thought up well by saying that the “road to hell is paved with good intentions.” While that sounds dramatic it is true because we can intend all we want to make it to church, to read the Bible, to really deal with the guilt we feel each Sunday when the gospel is presented saying, “I’ll do it tomorrow.” The problem is we never do.

The second problem is that there is a problem with the “new.” I’m referring to what Solomon just said in Ecclesiastes 1:9. You see, what happens often is that we seek something “new” that is somehow going to make us better. Sure, if we read more books, we will surely pick up more knowledge and if we go to the gym more often, and eat healthier, undoubtably we will get healthier. But then why do we not keep up with those things if the outcomes are so positive? The answer is that the “new” we want soon becomes the “new” that we really didn’t want in the first place. Somehow it has lost its allure, and we are stuck in the same complacency we were in just 3.74 months earlier if the survey from Forbes is right.

So, what’s the solution? The answer is that on our own we are helpless to overcome this sense of complacency, this desire for something new and improved. However, when you go to Revelation chapter 21 verse 5 you read these words written by the Apostle John as Jesus showed him the future,

“And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”
Also, he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

I like to ask this question often, so I am going to ask it again, did you catch that? Who is going to make all things “new.” Who is going disrupt the cycle that Solomon describes in Ecclesiastes 1:9? Who has both the authority and power to do this? The One seated on the throne, that’s who. You see, the problem inherent in all of us is that we think we are ok until something happens that shows us, we aren’t. Let me give you an illustration. Just this past December I came down with the lovely Flu. Now I’ve had the flu before, and not all experiences have been the same. This one surely was one for the books. I would lay in bed at night wide awake in a brain fog, congested, and running a fever and think to myself, “there is surely something wrong with me” and there was something wrong. I was sick. How could I tell? I could tell because of the symptoms that I was having told me that something was wrong with me! Well, we are all sick, and we are sick with something called sin and if we look at ourselves and around us we can see the symptoms that tell us that. Sin is something that we all have thanks to our rebellious sin nature that we inherited from Adam and Eve back in the Garden of Eden. It wasn’t that they didn’t believe in God, they simply chose to believe that they were good enough to lead their own lives instead of God. To put it another way they fell for the Devil’s bait, “hook line and sinker,” and the sad reality is that we all do this every day. We are led to believe that we are good enough on our own, yet if you continue in Ecclesiastes to chapter 2 verse 11 you read these words,

“Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the
sun.”

Nothing was gained. The things that we do this side of heaven that are devoid of God Solomon describes them as “chasing after the wind” and “meaningless.” Yet, we still look for something new, but according to Solomon there is nothing “new” under the Sun, it’s all been done before.

So, we cannot bring about the new on our own, can we? Sadly, we cannot and I think our failure at New Year’s resolutions points that out. We need help and that help only comes from God. God promises that one day He will make all things new and to highlight the truth that He is going to do this, He commands John to write these words down “because they are faithful and true.” So, God is telling us that it’s going to happen one day in the future, but you can take part in a change today that will bring about something “new” in your life. This change occurs when you decide to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Not only will Jesus and the Holy Spirit come to live in your Heart, but your life will also change dramatically for two reasons: first you will be saved and have Heaven to look forward to for all eternity. Second, you will be changed from the inside out as God, through Jesus begins to make all things “new” in you from the inside out. So, as you consider what resolutions to make this year won’t you consider Jesus? If you are looking for a new you, He is the only one that can truly make that happen!

The Greatest Gift

Have you ever wanted a specific gift growing up? I have and I remember when I was little that we used to receive these catalogues in the mail. As a child my part was to go through the catalogue and mark what I wanted. Did I receive much of what I asked for? No, but was what I received as gifts sufficient? You had better believe that they were.

You see, one of the problems with the world today is what many call a world view. It’s how we see the world and for many how they see the world has been conditioned by a great many things in their lives: previous experiences, the opinions of others, and what’s popular in culture to just name a few. So, to say that “we really want something” carries a lot of moral weight that can be determined with a few easy questions such as “why do you want this?” or “how will you use it?” These questions attempt to seek out the reasoning that we have for the gift in the first place. Yet, if we were honest with ourselves, we’d have to say that we, just like our kids, want something just because we want it with no practical reason behind it whatsoever. If you don’t believe me then just look at how retailers work at Christmas because they go out of their way to make you see things in their stores in the hope that you will see those items and want them just because they are there and they have a good price. 

So, what does this all really mean? Well, considering a secularized worldview that is absent of a religious influence what it means in the end is the answer to the question of “was the gift really worth it?” What did that gift do for you? Yes, it makes you happy in the short term but ultimately when the newness fades, we are drawn away to want other things, and the cycle just continues. However, in a Christian worldview the concept of a gift takes on a different meaning, especially as it relates to Jesus. Yes, many don’t go about seeking Him out like they once used to. In fact, if you go back to what I said earlier about our previous experiences, the opinions of others, and what is popular in culture right now as hallmarks of your decision making what I would say is that those things, devoid of a Christian worldview, leave little if any room for Jesus. So, we really don’t go asking for him on our own anymore as a people do we? Not really.

Now here is the point that I am trying to make in this blog and it’s this. We may not realize that we “want” or “need” Jesus, but when he shows up, we soon realize that he is the greatest gift that we could have ever received. And here is the funny part, that’s what Christmas is all about in the first place. It’s not about candy canes, Christmas trees, family get togethers, Christmas shopping, exchanging gifts, etc. While all those things are well and good, if they are empty of a Christian worldview then the greater meaning behind them is lost. For you see, Christmas is not about commercialism or all the “stuff” that is put out there in the world today to detract us from the real meaning of Christmas. I mean who ever heard of just saying “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” because the word Christmas has “Christ” in it and that might offend some. That’s ridiculous, yet that is the world we live in. Instead, Christmas is about God who loved his creation so much that he sent his only begotten son into the world to die for the world and that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life. That “Son” came as a babe in a manger born to a virgin and who would one day stand up and say, 

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” (John 7:37-38)

So here is the question, does your heart long for something more this Christmas? Something that can fill that hole that we all know is there. Once all the glitter and glam are gone do you still feel emptiness? Once the holly and jolly are gone and life gets back to normal do you still long for hope? Does the newness wear off in life once the gifts are opened and you are left wanting more? Here in these verses, I just referenced Jesus provides the answer using a common thing we all experience daily, but he gives it spiritual significance. He says, “if anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” Are you thirsty, we all are at one time or another; we are thirsty for something more. And Jesus says, “let him come to me and drink.” There’s the invitation and here is the spiritual meaning. “Whoever” Jesus says, “believes in me, as the Scriptures has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” The Bible always points to Jesus and what the Bible says is that if you believe, that if you repent of your sins and turn to Christ believing that he is who he says he is and that he can fix this hole in your heart then guess what? Out of what was once empty and desolate there will now flow a river. Not a stream or a little trickle of water, but a river. And not just a river of any old water but a river of living water. There is a difference because something that is dead cannot produce life, only Jesus can do that and only with Jesus in your heart can your heart finally be mended and life be found there. This life then will be so overwhelming that it will now flow outward so that others can see.

So back to my earlier question? Have you ever really wanted something for Christmas and yet you received something different? And did that still make you happy? You may not be asking for Jesus this Christmas, but if you let him into your heart, he promises that “this gift” will be the greatest gift that you could ever receive and that it will be more than sufficient; it will be life-altering.

And it all began with a small babe born to virgin and who was laid in a manger in Bethlehem.

Merry Christmas!