“I the Lord do not change…(Malachi 3:6).”
The mirror tells me I have changed; sometimes it shouts. Time affects everything, except God. We call this attribute Immutability, and it’s linked to His revealing Himself to us in a stunning Creation (Romans 1:20), His Word (Matthew 5:18), and the Incarnation–when our Creator became flesh and blood as Jesus of Nazareth (John 1:1-4; Hebrews 13:8).
The weight of our differences from Him is not only that we change, but our opinions that are based on capricious authorities and influences fluctuate too, which affects how we see God’s truth, or even care to. When discussing spiritual things, most folks have lots of opinions, so I like to ask, “What do you base that on?” Invariably it’s, “But I think….”
We, the fallible, become the authority, but can you trust yourself? Truth varies with cultures. Ancient Rome and Greece allowed sex with children and goats, Aztecs ate their heartless human sacrifices, Canaanites burnt babies, and scientists err (Copernicus critics, bleeding as a cure, Lister and sterile surgeries, Darwin’s theory as fact, or Pluto as our ninth planet). Truth and authority are in flux because we are always changing.
So what you base your opinion on, especially in spiritual matters, matters a great deal. God (Jesus) should not be based on opinion or a mere man’s religious dogma. So God gave us an absolute true north; an immutable authority that confirms what is objective, unchanging Truth, the Bible (not a religion or sect).
John’s Gospel, chapters 18-19, discusses this truth and authority. Pontius Pilate, Rome’s authority in Jerusalem, asked Jesus, “What is truth?” Later, Jesus told Pilate, “You would have no authority over Me unless it had been given to you from above.” These were critical moments that revealed God’s absolute Truth, and the Authority behind it.
Your eternal destiny should not dangle on the thread of an opinion, but you can be sure, and have “true north” on this journey and not get lost, forever (1 John 5:13). Is the Bible supernatural, God-inspired words to know Him? Was Jesus God? Did He rise from the dead to prove these claims? Why won’t being good make you righteous (just knowing, without repentance, is not a saving faith, James 2:19)? The Bible explains all of this.
A friend told me, “My philosophy is to do good to people.” I replied, “That’s great, but what about your sins?” The Bible says that goodness won’t save you (James 2:10). For God to be unchanging, He cannot ignore sin and must stay righteous in His immutability (or He’d be like a bribed judge). So, He provided Himself, became sin to save us, and took the judgment we deserved. Love and Justice met at the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Truth came into History and conquered Death as proof of His absolute Authority. Jesus ended “but I think” opinions when He said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no man comes to the Father, but through Me (John 14:6).” Or maybe Jesus lied, but I’m human, been wrong before, so I’ll take His Immutability over what I think, every time.
YHM 