God Does Not Change.

Posted bySteven WalesPosted inGod Never Changes, Scarlet Thread, The Bible is ConsistentTags:, , , ,

Have you heard people say that God is full of wrath in the Old Testament but forgiving in the New?  God says He does not change:

“I am the Lord and I do not change” Malachi 3:6.  (See also Hebrews 13:8.)

If God does not change, where is the Old Testament grace? 

If you search for it, you will begin to find His grace throughout the Old Testament.  One of my favorite examples is David’s Psalm 103.

“He FORGIVES your sin. He heals all your diseases. He redeems your life from the pit … He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our offenses … As far as THE EAST IS FROM THE WEST, SO FAR HAS HE REMOVED OUR TRANSGRESSIONS FROM US.  For He is mindful that we are but dust” Psalm 103:3-4,10,12,14.

The nation of Israel peaked with King David on the throne.  They won dozens of battles, took control of more territory, and created a sophisticated government and culture.  The nation had copies of God’s law and had priests to teach it.  David knew the law and would have made his own copy by hand according to Deuteronomy 17:18-19.  If ever there was a time to believe God’s law would save you, this was that time. 

Yet David understood that only God could cleanse his sin.  Moreover, David believed by faith that God WOULD cleanse him, removing his sin as far from him as the east is from the west.

The message of the two Testaments is consistent: we fear God, we honor Him as holy and we honor His law. But we confess that we are unable to obey it perfectly, that all we like sheep have gone astray.  We are stained with sin and only God’s grace can make us holy.  By faith we believe that God will make us holy and restore our broken lives with a new purpose—serving Him.

Let me challenge you: READ THE OLD TESTAMENT LOOKING FOR GRACE ON EVERY PAGE.

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Published by Steven Wales

Dad's Daily Devotional began as text messages to my family. I wanted my teenagers to know their father was reading the Bible. But they were at school by then. Initially, I sent them a favorite verse or an insight based on what I read each day. That grew into drafting a devotional readng which I would send them via text. I work as an attorney and an adjunct professor, and recently wrote a book called HOW TO MAKE A'S.

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