The Unchanging God

Is God different in the Old and New Testaments? Did He change between the two sections of the Bible? Is the Old Testament God a God of thunder and carnage while the New Testament God is a God whose only attributes are love, mercy and forgiveness?

Some people think so.

But the answer to all these questions is a loud and resounding no! God is completely unchanging and anything more than a cursory reading of the Bible makes that clear.

God says He is the same yesterday, today and forever. When God says something it's true and irrefutable, or He wouldn't be God. How could one who lacks the power to back up his own words create and control the universe?

So what about this Old Testament, New Testament thing?

God's love and redemptive power are on display throughout the Old Testament, beginning as early as creation and becoming really clear by the time of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. Even in the middle of such carnage as the destruction of Jericho, God spared the life of Rahab and her family.

Some people assert that God struck down whole peoples seemingly for the "fun" of it, or to help the Israelites steal their land and property. Nothing could be further from the truth. The Bible makes it clear that in every case God gave those peoples opportunity after opportunity to seek after Him and turn from their wickedness, and they refused until God finally brought His justice to bear against them. That is completely within God's character.

Just so, God's justice is seen in the New Testament. Jesus warned the Jews that the direction they were taking as a nation would bring retribution upon them in their lifetime, and a few years after the crucifixtion the Romans destroyed their country and scattered them over the face of Europe, Asia and Africa.

Judas lost his life and was consigned to hell because his heart was never right. The same is true of the thief on the left hand cross, the Rich Young Ruler and many others. Ananias and Sapphira lost their lives, if not their souls, for the same reason.

One of the problems with religion in our society is that many want God to conform to their will, instead of the other way around. They try to limit the attributes of God to those they prefer, such as love, mercy and forgiveness.

But justice and discipline are also among God's attributes. All these facets of God were alive and well in both testaments, and remain so today. God is a loving, forgiving, merciful God. Accept the plan of salvation He sacrificed so much to offer you, do your best to live as He directs you, and you can expect to see His mercy and forgiveness, even when you momentarily fail.

Ignore His sacrifice and shun His ways and you can expect His wrath, judgment and discipline, just as certainly as those peoples in the Old Testament.

The real question is not whether God has changed. The real question is whether you will.

Genesis 1:26-28, 3:14-15, Exodus 23:23-24, 33, Numbers 23:19, 33:50-56, Joshua 6:17, I Samuel 15:29, Psalm 33:11, 102:27, Mark10:17-22, Luke 21:5-6, Acts 1:14-20, 5:1-10, Hebrews 13:8