None of us foresaw the changes that 2020 would bring when we welcomed in the New Year. None of us would have ever thought that churches would close their doors for a time, that neighborhood stores and restaurants would go out of business, that professional sports would be cancelled, or that laws would be passed that mandated social change. Sure, we’ve seen how certain events had brought about some changes in the past, things like war, desegregation and banning God from public schools, but none of us had seen changes like this before. These changes are challenging the fabric of our nation and even the core of our faith. They are challenging us to rethink our priorities and allegiances.
Lest we forget amid all these changes, one thing has always been and will always be a rock-solid constant: our God is an unchanging God in a constantly changing world. The Bible is consistently clear: God never changes.
• “For, I the Lord do not change” (Malachi 3:6).
• “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).
• “God is not man, that He should lie, or a son of man, that He should change His mind. Has he said, and will He not do it?” (Numbers 23:19).
• “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with Whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17).
• “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end” (Lamentations 3:22).
• “In the beginning You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing You will change them and they will be discarded. But You remain the same, and Your years will never end” (Psalm 102:25-27).
• “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary” (Isaiah 40:28).
There is comfort, security and hope in the fact that our God is an unchanging God. Our God is not affected by governments, riots or diseases. That year 2020, that brought unexpected changes, did not and does not affect our God. In a world that is constantly challenging us to make social and even religious changes, this gives us comfort. He is our Rock in a turbulent world (Psalm 18:2). In a time of doubts and uncertainty about how Christians should respond to new laws and expectations, we find security in that God and His Word never changes (Isaiah 40:8). In a world where confusion clouds our futures, God’s unchangeable nature offers us hope, both now and forever: “Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God…The Lord reigns forever!” (Psalm 146:5-10).
None of us anticipated those changes. Even so, there’s no need for despair. Our God is an unchanging God in a constantly changing world. You can trust Him!
Joe Chesser, Fruitland Church of Christ, via Jackson (MO) church of Christ
Highland Lakes church of Christ 