Inscribe the Word . . . The Unchanging and Faithful God.
Inscribe the Word is taking a twelve-part journey through the Attributes of God, and we are excited for you to join us. This September, we begin Part Nine in our Attributes of God Series. If you have just joined us, know that you do not have to study these attributes in order. Jump in at any time. You will be blessed!
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We live in changing times, don't we? We have all heard that 2020 is an unprecedented year, one that we have never seen before. We have all wondered if the world we knew in January will ever be "normal" again. We are in the middle of significant change, and if you are anything like me, you're struggling.
I'm not too fond of change. Change can be hard to go through if we keep our focus and faith in changeable things and unfaithful people. The government, political leaders, friends, pastors, bosses, coworkers, neighbors, economies, and kingdoms all change. As well-meaning as they may be, people are unfaithful.
But, if we can keep our eyes on The Unchangeable and The Faithful in the middle of the world's changes, we find steadiness and calm in the storm.
This month, we come to Part Nine in our Attributes of God Series as we study
THE UNCHANGING and FAITHFUL GOD.
For Part Nine of our study, we will be Inscribing two of God's Attributes, His immutability, and His faithfulness. Let's take a look at each of these attributes as they are knit together like a beautiful tapestry.
THE IMMUTABILITY OF GOd.
God’s immutability means that He does not change. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Heb. 13:8) Oh, Friends, how good is it to know that we can come to The Father and fall into His unchanging arms.
Throughout Scripture, God is often compared to a rock. (Psalm 78:35, Deuteronomy 32:4, 2 Samuel 23:3, Isaiah 44:8, Psalm 62:7, Psalm 28:1Luke 20:18, 1 Peter 2:4-8, etc.) A rock is immovable, unshakable, and stable, as is our God. When everything else is swirling, He is steady. When everything else is crashing down, He remains a strong tower. When our thoughts are in a constant state of flux, He brings a knowing calm.
He is unchanging in His nature. There was never a time when He was not, and there will never be a time when He will cease to be. "I am the Lord. I change not." (Mal. 3:6)
He is unchanging in His attributes. His grace, mercy, faithfulness, love, peace, omnipotence, omniscience, wisdom, eternality, and holiness were there from the beginning and will be until the end. His Word is settled in the heavens, His love is eternal, and His mercy never ceases. "I am the Lord. I change not." (Mal. 3:6)
He is unchanging in His counsel. His will and His desire for creation have not changed since before time began. We can trust in God's Word because, in the counsel of His Word, there is no change. When people change their minds, are swayed by their feelings and emotions, change course, change laws, change politics, change relationships, change plans, careers, and paths, we can be sure that God's purpose never alters. What He said at the beginning will be until the end. "I am the Lord. I change not." (Mal. 3:6)
"God cannot change for the better. Since He is perfectly holy, He has never been less holy than He is now and can never be holier than He is and has always been. Neither can God change for the worse. Any deterioration within the unspeakably holy nature of God is impossible.
In this world where men forget us, change their attitude toward us as their private interests dictate, and revise their opinion of us for the slightest cause, is it not a source of wondrous strength to know that God changes not?
What peace it brings to the Christian's heart to realize that our Heavenly Father never differs from Himself. All that God is He has always been, and all that He has been and is He will ever be." - A.W. Tozer The Knowledge of the Holy.
The Faithfulness of God.
When we think of God's attributes, we must think of them not as separate entities but as aspects of a perfect whole. No quality of God contradicts another. No attribute comes into the spotlight while the others wait in the wings. His faithfulness and His immutability, therefore, go hand-in-hand.
"God being who He is, cannot cease to be what He is, and being what He is, He cannot act out of character with Himself. He is at once FAITHFUL and IMMUTABLE, so all His words and acts must be and must remain faithful." -- A.W. Tozer The Knowledge of the Holy.
In Hebrew, the word faithfulness carries the meaning of firmness, fidelity, steadfastness, steadiness. As we said above, like a rock, He cannot be moved. He is faithful and His promises He will keep.
Our God will not change in keeping His covenant and fulfilling His promises. He will remain faithful in executing judgment and forgiving sin. He will remain faithful to His saints in forgiveness, love, and grace.
If we are faithless, He remains faithful still,
for He cannot deny Himself. (2 Tim. 2:13)
"UNFAITHFULNESS is one of the most outstanding sins of these evil days. In the business world, a man's word is, with exceedingly rare exceptions, no longer his bond. In the social world, marital infidelity abounds on every hand, the sacred bonds of wedlock being broken with as little regard as the discarding of an old garment.
In the ecclesiastical realm, thousands who have solemnly covenanted to preach the truth make no scruple to attack and deny it. Nor can reader or writer claim complete immunity from this fearful sin: in how many ways have we been unfaithful to Christ, and to the light and privileges which God has entrusted to us!
How refreshing, then, how unspeakably blessed, to lift our eyes above this scene of ruin, and behold One who is faithful, faithful in all things, faithful at all times." - A.W. Pink The Attributes of God
Friends, what a joy it is to know that our God is faithful and changes not. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. In a continually shifting and changing world, we have a Father who invites us to come to Him. His counsel remains the same, His promises never fail, His love endures forever, and His Word will stand forever.
