Sermon Central
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Our Unchanging God Series
Contributed by Brian Bill on May 13, 2003 (message contributor)
Summary: The moment we are born, we begin to age. We grow, develop, and then deteriorate and our memory is one of the first things to go. Our only hope in life is this: God never changes. He is the one constant we can count on while everything around us ra
I see four truths in this passage related to our topic this morning.
1. God’s Promises Never Change. Verses 13-15: “When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, ‘I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.’ And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.”
Abraham was given a promise in Genesis 15 that his descendants would outnumber the stars in the sky. Genesis 15:6 tells us that, “Abraham believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.” Now, why did Abraham believe God’s promise? It certainly wasn’t because it was fulfilled right away!
Romans 4 tells us that Abraham believed against all hope. He knew the odds were against him he was almost 100 years old! I love Romans 4:21: “Being fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised.” Abraham dialed in to God’s promise He knew that God would never change what He had promised to accomplish. You and I break our promises all the time and let each other down. God can always be counted on to keep His promises because He is our unchanging God.
2. God’s Purposes Never Change. We see this in verse 17: “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath.”
God wants us to understand that His purposes are never subject to change. When Abraham was asked to sacrifice Isaac in Genesis 22, Abraham obeyed and was about to slay his son when the Lord stopped him. After Abraham is found to be obedient, God took an oath. Listen to what Genesis 22:16-17 says: “…I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you…”
Why does God need to take an oath to show that His purposes never change? Isn’t His word enough? Yes, it is enough. Actually, that is in fact, what an oath is. It’s a confirmation of the integrity of God’s Word. God’s purpose will never change you have His word on it.
You and I change our plans all the time. You might start your day with a plan in mind but it often goes haywire when a child gets sick, you receive a phone call, or you suddenly turn 40 and spin out of control for a few days! God’s purposes never change. Isaiah 14:24: “The Lord Almighty has sworn, ‘Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed, so it will stand.”
3. God’s Personality Never Changes. Take a look at the first part of verse 18: “God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie…” Abraham’s faith rested on the unchanging character of God. You and I can count on God’s personality to be the same today as it was yesterday and what it will be like tomorrow. He does not change who He is.
Abraham believed that God told the truth about Himself, and God was true to His personality, which he expressed in two unchangeable ways one was the original promise, the other was the oath He took to fulfill that promise. Without a baby in the crib for 25 years, Abraham hung on to the character of God. Since it is impossible for God to lie, His promise and His oath are secure.