Why Might You Love the Past?

Time-traveling really captures my imagination. I would really love to go back in time. Theoretically, a time-travel machine could also take me into the future, but that interests me less. Am I alone in feeling this way? It is a sentiment that has made me ponder.

You see, the certainty of history is alluring. The story has been told and going back would be akin to jumping on an amusement ride. You already see the dips and turns and where things end up. And I suppose that is why there is a certain charm in the years gone by in my own life. My past is not so bad that I’m utterly trying to escape it, though I would most definitely do some things over. Those years seem like a warm blanket in the face of an unfolding present and uncertain future.

In some ways, I begrudge change, even good change, because it is difficult to trust. I prefer the familiar. The 21st century is exhausting in this regard. Instinctually, we reach back for the warm blanket. But should we?

I don’t deny we have witnessed some terrible changes, but if you and I talked long enough you’d admit at least a few good things have happened. In truth, every day under the sun is a mixed bag. You want to grasp the best of the past, but you know the bad is there too. And some of you forward-thinking types have set your eyes on the best of the future, but you should know the bad is there too.

So where does my reflection end? Well, I think you and I are looking for eternity. We are looking for good things we can count on. But we set our eyes on so much fool’s gold. We try to resurrect “golden” eras or usher in utopias and none of it adds up.

The scary thing is that you can spend your whole life looking back, clinging, clinging, clinging to things you cannot hold. And on the other side of the coin, you can spend your whole life building, building, building towers that will never bring heaven to earth. Either way, you will waste your life.

You and I must wrap ourselves in the promises of God if we will live our days well. The Kingdom of God is coming…Christ is returning! The past, present, and the future only gain their proper context in the light of the Second Advent. Imagine if you lived your life, not yearning for past, not wringing your hands over the future, but walking with the confidence of someone who knows the end of history? You can, but do you?

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. - Romans‬ ‭13:11-12‬ ‭ESV‬‬