How Can I Trust God is Unchangeable?

Trust God is unchangeable
When we think of terms to describe God, many things come to mind. Big, perfect, all-powerful, all-knowing...all these things rattle around in our brains like the beans in a maraca. But what about the fact that God is unchangeable? That aspect of the character of God often plays second fiddle to some of the grander, more obtuse characteristics of God. Is it important to know that I can trust God as being unchangeable?

How can we trust God is unchangeable?
Before we talk about the importance of God's unchangeable nature, it is important to determine whether the idea that God is unchangeable is true, or if it is some conception about God that people developed through years of tradition.

Looking at James 1:17 in the NASB we get our first hint at the unchangeable nature of God:

"All generous giving and every perfect gift is form above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change."

Not only does James the half-brother of Jesus say that God doesn't change, but he says that with Him there is not even the slightest hint of change. James cuts out the possibility of change altogether.

The writer of Hebrews says a very similar thing in Hebrews 13:8 when he states that Jesus Christ is "the same yesterday and today and forever." When we look at this in conjunction with Jesus' assertions that He and the Father are one, we see that God in all His persons is unchangeable.

We Can Trust God Does Not Go Back on His Word
The prophet Malachi quotes God in giving us another very important piece in understanding what it means that God is unchangeable.

"Since I, the LORD, do not go back on my promises, you, sons of Jacob, have not perished." - Malachi 3:6

It's incredibly important to note here that as God speaks through Malachi, He is speaking to His people that He saved from countless enemies, people that He had chosen to receive countless blessings, and yet who had denied Him and rejected Him countless times. These were the chosen people of God as is shown throughout the Old Testament, and yet they had left Him to follow other gods over and over again.

What He is saying here is that, even though the people He has made agreements and covenants with continually go back on their promises to Him, He will not go back on His promises to them and get rid of them. Instead, because He is the unchangeable God, He will continue to bear with their impertinence, stay true to His word, and remain faithful to them.

We Can Trust the Comfort of an Unchangeable God
It is in this fact that we find comfort in the unchangeableness of God. Before he says that there is no hint of change with God, James says that "all generous giving and every perfect gift" is from that unchangeable Father.

The ramifications here are enormous: a God who does not change His mind and who won't even hint at being undependable is the source of all generosity and every perfect gift. This means that despite who we are, despite all our failures, the faithful, unchangeable God will continue to freely give the gifts that He gives. Salvation, provision, strength, sanctification, guidance...all of these things come from the Father of lights, who cannot and will not change His mind about us. If we are His children, He will remain faithful to us, even when we are unfaithful. We can always trust God in that.

That is the comfort of an unchangeable God.

All quotes taken from the New English Translation of the Bible. For a full online Bible, please visit www.bible.org.