There is much societal pressure these days for Christianity to conform to today’s culture. That the Bible is outdated and written for a different time. People have trouble reconciling the God who is revealed in the Old Testament with Christ’s revelation in the New Testament. Popular Christian messages today emphatically teach love and seldom speak of judgement, repentance and obedience.
Many congregations would rather be coddled and fed a sugar coated gospel than to listen to messages about a just and holy God who is sovereign and has mercy upon whom He has mercy and compassion on whom He has compassion (Romans 9:15-16). This notion is not new.
The prophets of ancient Israel were not welcomed by society. Their messages of judgement, repentance and obedience did not go over well with their audiences. They were persecuted and killed when they spoke the word of the Lord. John the Baptist met the same fate and so did Jesus. Christ never shied away from difficult conversations. He preached repentance from sin and submission to God. He said, “Yet not my will, but Yours be done.” (Luke 22:42). He preached obedience.
There is no disparity between the God of the old and new testaments. God does not change. Malachi 3:6 informs us, “I the Lord do not change.” Some would have you believe that since Christ conquered sin once for all that there is no sin today. They say that people are free to live however they choose, and because of Christ’s atonement, God is fine with it. That since we are under grace and not under the law, there is no need for repentance. Don’t be deceived! God has never condoned sin!
Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” (John 14:15), and “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.” (John 14:21). Christians are called to holiness. 1 Peter 1:15-16 instructs, “But just as the One who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”
God Does Not Change
The nature of God never changes. The Bible says, “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change His mind.” (Numbers 23:19), and “The plans of the Lord stand firm forever,” (Psalm 33:11). James, the brother of Jesus wrote, “Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (James 1:16-17).
God is just and He is unchanging in his judgement. We will all face judgement. Some will be declared guilty of their sins and condemned while others will be pardoned for theirs. Hebrews 9:27 says, “Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgement, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him.” Are you waiting for Him?
The word of God does not change. Isaiah 40:8 tells us, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of God stands forever.” God’s word is eternal. The psalmist wrote, “Your word O Lord is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; You established the earth, and it endures.” It transcends time, knowledge, culture and space.
God’s love never changes. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). He did that for you. God loves you. Paul wrote in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
A.W. Tozer wrote, “God never changes moods or cools off in His affections or loses enthusiasm. His attitude toward sin is now the same as it was when He drove sinful man from the garden, and His attitude toward the sinner is the same as when He stretched forth His hand and cried, ‘Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’”
God Is Longsuffering
We ought to be thankful that the Lord is longsuffering and patient, holding off his inevitable judgement of mankind until the full number of faithful has been reached. 2 Peter 3:9 tells us, The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
The path to salvation has not changed. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6). And Peter proclaimed in Acts 4:12, “Salvation is found in no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
If you aren’t on the narrow path that is Jesus, then you are lost. There is no other way. It has been said that Jesus is the only path to heaven because God is the only way to God. Jesus is God incarnate. He said to Philip, “Don’t you know mw Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9).
Jesus Christ does not change. The writer of Hebrews informs his readers, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8).
Humanity Is Drifting Further Away From God
When Christians consistently flock to hear motivational speeches in place of expository sermons they are showing their love for worldly values rather than the truth of God’s word. They gather around them teachers who will preach what their itching ears want to hear. The world has exchanged the truth of God for lies. Mankind desires sin more than the truth and furthermore, it seeks approval for its behavior. This is the society we live in.
“Tolerance is the last virtue of a depraved society. When you have an immoral society that has blatantly, proudly, violated all of the commandments of God, there is one last virtue they insist upon: tolerance for their immorality.” D. James Kennedy.
Generation after generation has drifted successively further from the truth of God, deceived by the master of deception. While post modernism rejected absolute truth, our post truth culture dictates that personal preferences take precedence over the values of others regardless of truth. Confusion is treasured and clarity is despised. Christianity is viewed as intolerant and restricting.
As society becomes more fluid in its perception of reality, it sacrifices truth. The Bible that set the moral standard for civilization for thousands of years is now considered outdated and allegoric, or it is even being completely disregarded as fiction. In order to accept truth one must be open to the truth that exists. Jesus is the beacon that leads to the narrow gate. He is the landmark that never moves, never wavers and never changes.
Picture yourself in a life raft on the open ocean. As you scan the horizon, there is nothing but water and waves as far as you can see in every direction. With no point of reference, you are oblivious to speed, your direction of travel and whether you are getting closer or further away from where you thought you desired to be. Or even worse, your apathetic perspective is only concerned with yourself, and the misguided notion that you are the landmark you seek. You are truly lost at sea.
Joni Eareckson Tada once said, “And gradually, though no one remembers exactly how it happened the unthinkable becomes tolerable. And then acceptable. And then legal. And then applaudable.” The pride movement is a case in point. Dictionary.com defines applaudable as worthy of praise or applause; estimable; admirable. Society want us to accept sin as being admirable.
Isaiah 5:20 reveals God’s warning to this logic. “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” Words directed at a sinful generation.
Yet there are people who identify as Christians who have fallen for the subterfuge of tolerance and inclusion and sadly they are following a false gospel. God didn’t change His mindset regarding sin. He hasn’t rewritten the moral code to be more inclusive. His truth is absolute. His precepts are non-negotiable. His holiness is exclusive.
While it remains true that God’s mercy and forgiveness exceeds humanity’s sins, He reserves the right to dispense His free gift to those who believe. He hasn’t softened His stance toward sin, He has provided an avenue whereby those who believe in Jesus Christ can be accredited as righteous through faith just as Abraham was. God’s methodologies are consistent throughout history.
When we re-examine the context of the renowned bible verse John 3:16 by including verses 17 and 18 we can fully appreciate that God has certainly not changed.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:16-18).
