Has God changed? The answer is emphatically "NO"!!!! But, how He feels about things can change, that being a part of His being. How He relates to man may change, hence the various covenants in the Bible including this "new" and better one we are in. Most importantly, how He relates to us, in this covenant versus the old covenant has changed and if you do not know the difference, you are, right now, being robbed. The unchangeable God has within Himself the ability to be righteously angry. Being a just God He had within Him a demand for justice for the sin of a perfect man, Adam. When Adam sinned, God was made angry. That wrath stayed in Him until the cross. When precious Jesus blood was shed on the cross, that anger, that wrath was propitiated. Propitiation is a wonderful word which means an act that turns wrath to mercy. By precious blood we have been redeemed from the wrath of God. A price we could not pay was paid by one who could. God did not change, but his wrath was propitiated when a sufficient price was paid. The capability of wrath is still in Him should there be, or had there been, another perfect man who could and did sin original sin as did Adam. However, thank you Jesus, that is over and done with.
When you read the Old Testament, and you see what you consider the most wonderful picture of the goodness of God, it is exciting to know, that the best He was then, He is better now. As good as He is seen there, He is more "gooder" now. There was a shadow over God then. Justice had not been met, wrath was in Him. Now, halelujah, glory to God, the best promise you see in the old covenant, is better now. Has He changed? No, but his wrath has been turned to mercy. The shadow of His wrath is gone. All the good promises you see in the Old Testament, were promises made with a cloud of wrath over God. They were made without the demanded penalty of sin being paid. Reading this, you might not fully understand if you do not know how great was the wrath of God about the sin of a perfect man that roped all man-kind into one doomed family. His wrath was fierce beyond words. As good as God was, all through the Old Testament, He wanted to be better and is better now. No, He has not changed, but his unchangeable demand for payment of the sin of Adam, has been met. Now, glory to God, we have a new and better covenant that our unchangeable God wanted to have with us all along.
The amazing thing to know, once you know we are in a new and better covenant, is how good God was, in the old covenant, even though His wrath was unrequited. Those promises of His love and goodness found there, were made by God, still unsatisfied over the fall of man, yet so willing to be merciful, even in His wrath. For Adam's sin, God cursed all man-kind, yet showed love, mercy and goodness to the very people He had cursed. How could He? I don't know. I know at times He was on the brink of starting all over, He was so exasperated. He told Moses that at one juncture. But, He didn't. Whew!
Maybe it is a stretch to compare anything about us with God, but have you ever carried a grudge, an anger or sense of injustice in your heart for a long, long time with it getting heavier and heavier with each passing day? Maybe not, but if you did and then one day, justice transpired, the anger lifted, the burden passed. "Glory to God" you shouted with great relief. This was God's life until Jesus paid it all. When Jesus paid the price, a burden was lifted in the realms of glory. When Jesus whispered from the cross "it is finished", I don't think He was thinking of us. He was thinking of His Father, carrying a burden we can only imagine, suddenly made free. The price had been paid! All of heaven must have echoed "it is finished..it is finished...it is finished!. Now, and only now, God could sweep the ugliest among us imperfect beings, descendants one and all of Adam, into His arms and say "Welcome". Now, and only now, God without wrath could say to us frail, imperfect beings "Oh yes, I forgive".
Has God changed? No! If He could be loving and forgiving then, without the cross, with unsatisfied wrath in His being, how much more can He be loving and forgiving now. He always wanted to be this way, that was His unchangeable self, but He couldn't until the cross. But, but, but HE CAN NOW! Now, to whosoever will, He says "I love you" and He started the conversation while we were yet sinners. Before we even cleaned up one stain, He commended His love toward us (Ro. 5 :8)
The amazing thing to know, once you know we are in a new and better covenant, is how good God was, in the old covenant, even though His wrath was unrequited. Those promises of His love and goodness found there, were made by God, still unsatisfied over the fall of man, yet so willing to be merciful, even in His wrath. For Adam's sin, God cursed all man-kind, yet showed love, mercy and goodness to the very people He had cursed. How could He? I don't know. I know at times He was on the brink of starting all over, He was so exasperated. He told Moses that at one juncture. But, He didn't. Whew!
Maybe it is a stretch to compare anything about us with God, but have you ever carried a grudge, an anger or sense of injustice in your heart for a long, long time with it getting heavier and heavier with each passing day? Maybe not, but if you did and then one day, justice transpired, the anger lifted, the burden passed. "Glory to God" you shouted with great relief. This was God's life until Jesus paid it all. When Jesus paid the price, a burden was lifted in the realms of glory. When Jesus whispered from the cross "it is finished", I don't think He was thinking of us. He was thinking of His Father, carrying a burden we can only imagine, suddenly made free. The price had been paid! All of heaven must have echoed "it is finished..it is finished...it is finished!. Now, and only now, God could sweep the ugliest among us imperfect beings, descendants one and all of Adam, into His arms and say "Welcome". Now, and only now, God without wrath could say to us frail, imperfect beings "Oh yes, I forgive".
Has God changed? No! If He could be loving and forgiving then, without the cross, with unsatisfied wrath in His being, how much more can He be loving and forgiving now. He always wanted to be this way, that was His unchangeable self, but He couldn't until the cross. But, but, but HE CAN NOW! Now, to whosoever will, He says "I love you" and He started the conversation while we were yet sinners. Before we even cleaned up one stain, He commended His love toward us (Ro. 5 :8)
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