UNCHANGING GOD
Life can be full of changes. Sometimes it's for the better; sometimes it's not. Some surprises are joyous; some-not so much. Adjusting to life's curve balls can cause tension and anxiety. Life is unpredictable. Although it would be nice to go through life knowing what to expect it doesn't work that way; we can't get through life without dealing with changes. People go through changes too; sometimes for the better-sometimes not. Thus, people can be unpredictable. You think you know a person and then they do something to completely catch you off guard. But there's one whom we can count on to never change; one whom we never have to worry about having mood swings or changing his mind about something-God. It's good to know we have someone in our lives whom we can count on to always be the same. Let's take a look at our unchanging God.
1) God's love is unchanging.
Love can be one of those things that can be subject to change. Today it's, "I'd swim the ocean blue if it meant I would be always be with you." Tomorrow it's, "You can forget about me swimming that ocean blue because I've just found someone new; so toodle-loo."
The Supremes sang a song titled, "In and Out of Love". It has some interesting lyrics: "Keep falling in and out of love. In search for what I'm dreaming of. I long to find a love I'm sure about. That certain kind of love that moves all doubts. Just when I feel sure love's here to stay. It seems to suddenly just fade away. Can't seem to find that everlasting love. That this heart of mine needs so much of."
I wonder how many heart-broken people share that sentiment. Not that two people can't find that forever love but the perfect love that we can be 100% sure about, the kind of love that completely removes all doubts, the kind of love that's absolutely here to stay; that truly everlasting love we need so much is found in God. Speaking of songs, we sing one that states, "Your love is amazing; steady and unchanging."
David was focused on singing about God's great love in Psalm 89:1-2, "I will sing of the LORD'S great love forever; with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known through all generations. I will declare that your love stands firm forever, that you established your faithfulness in heaven itself."
Isn't that just a wonderful thought; God's love being firm and forever? We never have to worry about whether God's love is conditional or whether it's altered by feelings. We may never find that steady, unchanging love in another person but we can be confident of finding it in God. His love never changes; it is always at the full mark. He has loved us to the fullest from the moment he created us. He didn't love us less before we knew him verses after we put our faith in him. He doesn't love us more the more we love him. His love for us is not dependent on anything but his perfect nature.
That can be hard to wrap our brain around because we're humans and that's not how typical human beings operate. And because of that, Satan will try to mess with our heads. He'll try to convince us that God doesn't love us or that because of what we've done he has stopped loving us or that he loves us less. He will try to get us to look at God as if he operates like a human.
But, thankfully, as Isaiah 55:8-9 declare, his thoughts and ways are not like ours-they are much, much higher. Higher, better, purer, holier-perfect. God does not think like we do, he does not act like we do; he does not love like we do. His love makes our love look like hate. God has and always will love you 100%. So we can sing and declare along with David, "Your love stands firm forever". God's love is unchanging.
2) God's word is unchanging.
Psalm 119:89, "Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens."
If God has said it and established it there's no need for it to change-it's perfect. Theories change, philosophies change but not God's word.
Some people don't believe in absolute truth; they think truth is relative. In their minds the world is constantly changing and all the species are evolving so truth is doing the same thing. It's subjective; it's relative to the times. Progressivism-the idea that with modern times should come modern ways.
Therefore, the old things like the constitution and even the bible should be reevaluated and changed to fit with the times. These things are outdated and therefore need to be modernized in order to be truly beneficial. What might have been acceptable then isn't now. Since times and peoples and cultures change creeds and laws and standards need to change with it.
In some cases this might be true. Perhaps certain laws need to be reevaluated and can be modified or expunged altogether. But when you're talking the bible you're not talking about something that doesn't fit anymore.
Heb. 4:12 says the word of God is living and active and that it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. The bible will always be applicable; it will always be relative. Why? Because even though times and cultures change the true nature of mankind doesn't. The sins of the people in biblical times are the sins of the people in modern times. The problems can take on a new shape but the attitudes and behaviors of people remain the same.
Biblical people dealt with anger-so do we. Biblical people dealt with issues like pride and greed and so do we. There was lying, stealing and killing going on then and it's no different today. There was slander, gossip and sexual sin in biblical days and fast forward to today and you find that nothing has changed.
The bible outdated or out of touch? Uh, no. The bible irrelevant for modern society? I don't think so. The bible is timeless, it is applicable; it is perfect. Why? Because God is perfect and since he doesn't need to change neither does his word. The bible doesn't need to be reevaluated and modernized. Truth is not relative-it is absolute and God's word is absolutely true. God's word is eternal, standing firm; timeless. Everything else in this world will someday be gone-theories and philosophies alike-but not God's word.
Peter talked about this and what we should do as a response. 1st Pet 1:23-2:3, "For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you. Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."
Have you been convinced God's word is true? Have you been convinced that it's firm and forever; always relevant? Have you tasted and seen and become convinced that the Lord and his word are good? Then our response needs to be to crave it. Instead of craving the things that will last only a moment, crave what is eternal. Instead of feeding on the things that eat away at us, feed on the nourishing, life sustaining word of God which will cause us to grow up. God's word is steady and unchanging.
3) If God changed he wouldn't be God.
Numbers 23:19, "God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill."
Another wonderful thought. People lie, people change their minds; people can have a lack of integrity; prove themselves to be untrustworthy. Trust is a fragile thing. Hard to establish and easy to break. And it's so damaging when it gets broken. It can set the stage to not be willing to ever trust again.
There was a time when a handshake was all that was needed. Your word was binding. Some people might still operate under that principle but most do not. People manipulate and take advantage; they break promises and give a false sense of security. People can be fickle and indecisive. All of these issues exist in mankind but not with God. If God promised it you can believe it; if he said it you can rely on it. You never have to wonder if God will follow through on what he said. It may not be according to your timing but that doesn't change his trustworthiness. God may not be predictable regarding how he will act but he is predictable in the fact that he always keeps his word and his promises.
God said in Mal. 3:6, "I the Lord do not change." This is important to recognize because if he did change he wouldn't be God. Change is good-when it's for the better. As Christians we need to be about change-being transformed into the image of Christ. But that's just it-you don't get any higher than that. So, God has no need to change because he's already there; he's perfect, there's nothing to improve upon. So if God were to change he could only go in one direction-the wrong one! Thus if God were to change and start to become unreliable in his word or untrustworthy in his actions then he would be no better than anyone else.
For us change is inevitable because we're not perfect so therefore we need to improve-we need to change for the better. But for God it's unnecessary to change-you can't improve upon perfection. The moment God changes he ceases to be God. Therefore, God can't change because it would go against his nature.
Heb. 6:18 says it is impossible for God to lie. It is impossible for God to be anything other than what he is-perfect. So the fact that God is unchanging just simply goes with his nature.
Heb. 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Think about what you know about Jesus. Think about what you read about him doing-feeding people, healing the blind, the lame, the mute, the deaf. He raised Lazarus from the dead. He taught the truth, he showed the truth; he lived the truth-he is the truth. He walked on water and gave Peter the power to do the same.
Think about his compassion, gentleness and love. Think about his righteous anger when he turned over the tables of the money changers in the temple. Think of his rebuke of Peter when he tried to talk him out of going through with his torture and death and when he cut off Malchus' ear when Jesus was being arrested.
We need to think about all of this and understand that Jesus is no different today than he was when he was on the earth. He is the same teacher, feeder, motivator, challenger, healer, rebuker; the same Savior and Lord. He has the same power to enable us to do miraculous things in his name. Although Jesus can still heal physically, he wants to spiritually heal us. He is the one who makes the spiritually blind see and the spiritually lame walk. He is the one who causes our spiritually deaf ears to hear his beautiful voice. He is the one who spiritually feeds us. He is the one that spiritually raises us from the dead. He is still the one working miracles in our lives. He is still the one that sympathizes with our weaknesses as well as puts us in our place if we want to do things our own way.
Think of everything you admire about Jesus and if you envy those who got to be in his presence and walk alongside of him just remember that he is always right there spiritually in the very same ways he was there for people physically. He is still the same Jesus with the same message, the same mission and the same purpose. Our wonderful, unchanging God.
4) But wait! God has changed; hasn't he?
The OT God was full of wrath and the NT God is full of grace so God did change, right? No. You saw plenty of love and compassion from God in the OT towards his people. He was patient with them and forgiving of them. He blessed when they did right and punished when they rebelled. God is the same today. Likewise the NT God displays anger toward sin. Jesus took upon himself God's wrath toward sin so that's why we don't see as much fire and brimstone but that doesn't mean God has softened toward sin.
When the church was starting out, God showed that although he was full of grace and mercy, he wasn't going to let sin slide. Acts 5:1-11, "Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet. Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied to men but to God.” When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened.
Then the young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him. About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?” “Yes,” she said, “that is the price.” Peter said to her, “How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.” At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband. Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events."
God's wanted his people to understand that although it might be a new church and a new covenant it was still the same God. Jesus may have taken the punishment for our sins but that doesn't mean God's attitude has changed toward sin. Ananias and Sapphira were lying about doing a righteous thing. If they thought they could defile the church and get away with it they were wrong. Jesus overturned the tables in the temple because God's holy place was being defiled. God wants people to know that his holiness is not to be messed with.
Paul needed to get the unchanging nature of God toward sin across to the Corinthian church. 1st Cor. 10:1-12, "For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud t and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.
Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry.” We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel. These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!"
Don't think that just because God isn't striking down sinners today like he did in the OT that means God has softened his approach toward sin. So if you think God will overlook your sin you're badly mistaken. He may not cause the earth to open up and swallow you but don't mistake that for an absence of consequence; we still suffer a consequence for our sin. The God of the OT is the same God of the NT; it will do us well to remember that so we don't abuse his grace and suffer for it. God is unchanged in every way.
