Sermon # 34 - The Unchanging God Series

We read in Jonah 3:10,“God saw what they did; he saw that they had given up their wicked behavior. So he changed his mind and did not punish them as he had said he would.” (GNB)

God sent the prophet Jonah to preach against the city of Nineveh, with the message that in forty days the city would be destroyed, because of their innumerable sins and wickedness. The King of Nineveh along with all the people repented, prayed, and fasted unto the Lord. Their repentance resulted in a complete change in their lives. The people of Nineveh gave up their wicked ways, and the Lord took note of it, and He relented from punishing them as He had planned.

Prayer and fasting are good disciplines to follow, but if it does not result in change from within, they would be futile. There are some who observe a fast for forty days, making changes in some important areas of their lives, but sadly, once those days are over, they will revert back to their previous way of living. It is vital that we should walk blameless before the Lord every single day of the year with God’s grace and strength. Oftentimes, just to ease their conscience, some observe this discipline, and get back to their own sinful ways. If fasting is done this way, it becomes a meaningless ritual.

Does God change His mind?

Observe how when the people of Nineveh sincerely repented, the Lord actually had a change of mind as mentioned in the verse above.

We read in Numbers 23:19, “God is not like people, who lie; He is not a human who changes his mind. Whatever he promises, he does; He speaks, and it is done.” (GNB)

We also read in Malachi 3:6, "I am the LORD, and I do not change. And so you, the descendants of Jacob, are not yet completely lost.” (GNB)

When we look at these two verses, we understand that God is not like men, and that He does not change His mind. He is faithful to keep His promises, and His word. So, when we read in Jonah 3:10, that God changed His mind, it may cause us to wonder if these are in contradiction to each other. It is important we understand the true nature of God, so that we have a proper understanding of who God really is.

God revealed Himself to Moses

At one point Moses asked God that he should reveal His glory to him, and what happened as God passed by is recorded in the scriptures below.

We read in Deuteronomy 34:6-7, The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.” (ESV)

These are the characteristics of God that was revealed to Moses that day.

1. God who is merciful

2. God who is gracious

3. God who is slow to anger

4. God whose love is steadfast

5. God of faithfulness

All of the above mentioned are characteristics of God that are unchanging. We further go on to see in Deuteronomy 34:7, that God is also steadfast in His love, forgives our sins and transgressions, but who will also not let the guilty go unpunished. However, we notice that the mercy and grace of God are His foremost attributes.

As children of God we often do not have a clear understanding of who God really is. Whenever we read the bible we should get a proper knowledge of God, so that we can live in a way that is pleasing to Him.

It is only when we look at all of the above verses in tandem, we realize that God changed His mind in the incident of Jonah and the people of Nineveh, is simply because God is primarily a merciful and gracious God. The truth is that God is also a God of justice, and He does punish wrong doing, but His basic nature is that He is most loving and gracious God. No wonder then that when the people of Nineveh fasted, prayed and repented of all their evil ways, the Lord relented from punishing them as He had warned them through the prophet Jonah.

If anyone wants to escape the judgement of God, they must let go of those things that are displeasing to God, and must make a decision to change their ways, to be those that are acceptable to God.

We will look at some other things that we ought to do, in order to be saved from God’s anger, so that we can receive His mercy and grace instead.