"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way..."
So was written by Charles Dickens in his classic work, “A Tale of Two Cities”. I was, indeed, fortunate to have become well-acquainted with the classics in High School when I studied English Literature. Some of the memorable lines in these classic works have stuck in my mind all these years, and I find them bubbling up to the surface of my thinking every now and then. This morning, as I read various current news reports, these lines from Dickens came up to mind. I was immediately taken afresh with their prophetic flavour as I read my three daily staples, The Herald Sun, The Australian, and The Spectator.
I was struck by Dickens’ observations of the two great cities of the world – London and Paris – and the stark contrast between them in a time of great foment. For England, it was arguably the best of times; for France in the same period, as Dickens saw it, it was the worst of times - the French Revolution lay 60 years back in his rear vision mirror. But for many, these two views are eminently debatable. The French revolution was well and truly over at the brutal cost of almost one million people, and between thirty and forty thousand executions in a reign of terror that has been celebrated ever since on Bastille Day. At the very same time, England’s industrial revolution had begun and was gathering momentum as it was preparing to usher in one of the greatest eras of progress ever seen. This is not to say, at all, that all was perfect in old England because it wasn’t. England’s different revolution was costly too. Aristocrats lived in the lap of luxury at one end of the scale. But, at the other end, the rapid technological changes led to the maltreatment, suffering - and deaths – of hundreds of thousands of labourers who made the progress possible. Many, including children as young as six, worked 14 plus hours a day in appalling conditions.
Dickens saw the stark contrasts between these two cities as all was being played out. The biggest of these being the contrast between the extremes of great wealth and poverty, power and powerlessness, and the unique cultural settings in both nations. The best of times, in terms of opportunity and moment, and the worst of times in terms of improperly harnessing these and mass exploitation by those in power.
A blessing and a curse at the same time.
My point in all of this, without wanting or needing to provide in-depth analysis of Dickens, is that to one person an era might have been wonderful and to another it might have been dreadful. It is not so much about the era itself, but what we human beings decide and do in that era – how we use opportunities. Both nations had clear choices in the manner by which they could achieve outcomes. Both chose their own forms of brutality.
We are living in an era in our nation today where it is the best of times, and the worst of times, too, so it seems. The cost of living, the rise in lawlessness, the sheer scale of corruption and sheer lack of integrity of government that thinks only of doing whatever is necessary to hold power; the calculated distortion of information and the roll-out of misinformation by an unaccountable media; the blatant excesses of the wokeists who now openly triumph that their long march through the education systems has succeeded; the defiance of militant protest groups with dubious causes who openly intimidate governments with impunity; and the weaponisation of the law so that the process is now the punishment, all give us cause to feel that this is the worst of times. At least in living memory for most of us.
But, as depressing as all that scratching of the surface is, it is also the best of times.
I see all of the concerns, yes, and it feels so overwhelming at times, but I also see something else I have not seen before on such a large scale. I have never seen before in our country a deeper yearning for truth and spiritual substance as I am seeing right now. I have never seen such a hunger for meaning, such existential angst, such a desperation for some holy absolutes that tell the soul “this is real and enduring, you can build on this with confidence and hope!” I have not seen before in my lifetime an openness to the Gospel as I am seeing right now – it is the best of times for the church in so many ways. We are living, perhaps, in the worst of times in living memory nationally and globally, but it is the best of times for the church to shine brightly in such thick darkness. King Solomon wrote some 2400 years ago that God …
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NIV)
“… has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”
That eternity thing that God has set within the human heart has been placed under so much pressure, has been lied to and betrayed so often, has had hope stolen from it so brutally, with more and more being extracted from it every day, that it now cries out for deliverance. In Jesus’ day, too, it was the worst of times for God’s chosen people, but it was the best of times for them, too. Messiah had come to usher in a new era, and He issued one of His richest invitations when He said …
Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Jesus issues that same message today in the worst of times. The church must carry this message and share it with every heart crying out for deliverance, that they might encounter the living Christ and know the power of a very different way of living – the only way of living that answers the cry of the eternal in their souls, the only life that matters in the end - so that the worst of times bows its knee to the best of times.
This is why ReChurch exists in the worst of times, so by its agency under the leading and power of Holy Spirit, the best of times comes to be.
RESTORE!
REJOICE!
REIMAGINE!
This is our mission! Join us in Operation Mobilisation – Everyone Doing Something!
Who can you invite to worship? Your home? Your meal table?
John 10:10 (NIV)
[Jesus] “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Think on this, join me in praying for those with whom you can share the message.
Ps Milton
[History Through Fiction website; Wikipedia; “A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens (published 1859)]