We’ve been talking about new versus old, and here’s an example where the old is fine.

It’s a small thing, but I have cable television, and one of the features is voice control. I can hold down a button on the remote and say something like, “Rockies Baseball,” and it will bring up the appropriate channel for me to select.

However, sometimes I know what channel I want. I just punched in “733” to go to ESPN to watch a particular game. What’s somewhere between funny and irritating is that when I do that, a message comes on the screen saying, “To change the channel faster, say ‘ESPN'”

How is that faster or better than punching in a known channel number? And what difference does it make to the cable company whether or not I use their voice remote feature?

Bob, is there a point? I think so…

When something new comes along, are we obligated to use it? Sometimes the old is fine, and sometimes the old is right, and it’s the new that’s wrong. The Apostle Paul certainly experienced this with his churches.

I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. (2 Corinthians 11.1 – 4, ESV)

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1.6 – 9, ESV)