INTRODUCTION
IMMUTABILITY: PHILOSOPHIC NOTIONS THAT IMPACT THEOLOGY
"How could the immutable, impassible God become incarnate
and suffer in Christ? God could not. Greek patristic theology
took over from Greek philosophy the classical divine attributes—incomprenhensibility,
impassibility, immutability, incorporeality, simplicity—and applied
them to the God incarnate in Christ..... As many contemporary
theologians have recognised, it is more sound procedure to revise
or overturn the premise of God's impassibility in the light of
the Cross, rather than to allow an axiom from Greek philosophy
to predispose the conclusions of theology." (Catherine LaCugna,
GOD FOR US, The Trinity and Christian Life; [HarperCollins;
1991]; pp 300,301). Also see Paul K. Jewett's God, Creation,
and Revelation, (Eerdmanss; 1991], p 396 for similar comments.
"For all the problems with the traditional view that the
Reformers inherited, their doctrine reflects no basic change in
the understanding of the divine immutability and impassibility.
Luther .... believed that we may say that "the right, true
God" suffered and died. Yet he also affirmed that suffering
and death are alien to the divine nature per se and cannot be
attributed directly to it. Calvin also .... assures us that
the many statements of Scripture that speak of God as sorrowing
or rejoicing are really accommodations made by the spirit to our
capacity of understanding. ....
We may, then, sum up the historical situation by saying, first
of all, that traditionally the church has affirmed the divine
immutability/impassibility almost without dissent. .... since
the turn of the century the traditional doctrine has come under
increasing attack" (Jewett, ibid., p 400).
COMMON NOTIONS ABOUT GOD AND HIS PLAN
THE UNIQUENESS OF GOD THE FATHER
There is no other like God the Father:
God the Father is also unique in that only He has inherent immortality:
The saints of God, too, "seek for .... immortality [861]"
(Ro 2:7) and "this mortal must put on immortality
[110]" (ICo 15:53).
The Perfection of the Father
The Scriptures attest to the immutability of God the Father:
How and why is God immutable?
The Omniscience of God (The God who has all knowledge)
It is interesting to note how Christ referred His followers to
the Father's omniscience:
The Foreknowledge of God
Notice the following Scripture:
Indeed, other Scriptures amplify this truth yet further:
Now most of us would readily acknowledge that Christ's sacrifice
was the essential part of the plan of God from the very start.
However, these verses are telling us far more than this: they
are saying that God always knew from the very beginning that His
Son would prevail and become our Redeemer. There was no possibility
whatsoever of failure in any way—including Christ disqualifying
Himself through succumbing to temptation and sin! Hence the question,
"Could Jesus have sinned?" inevitably becomes a futile
discussion that omits God's predictive foreknowledge. We are
even told that God had chosen beforehand the specific witnesses
who alone were to see His resurrected Son (Acts 10:41)!
Let us notice what else the immortal God has foreknown:
The Predestination of God's Elect
Individual Predestination
The Judgment of Evildoers is Predestined
The Plan of God: Foreordained and Completed
This is why the Bible describes the age to come as "the Kingdom
prepared for you [God's elect] since the foundation of the world"
(Mt 25:34) and why Christ spoke about positions in that Kingdom
which belong "to those for whom it has been prepared by my
Father"(Mt 20:23; Mk 10:40).
There is no doubt at all that the reference is to specific positions
for specific individuals having been prepared by the Father, who
alone calls and who knows the totality of the lives of these saints
of His just as He knows the life and lifespan of all human beings.
Some of these names have already been revealed to us:
"Choose Life!"
God's foreknowledge of all things and his predestination of all
of mankind does not detract from the obligation of His people
to do what is right, nor does it take away an individual's freedom
of choice. From God, as He works with His people through Jesus
Christ, there is no coercion to make a decision, good or evil.
He wants us all to make godly decisions, to "choose life"
(Dt 30:19). God's goodness "leads us to repentance"
(Ro 2:4) and the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, leads His
sheep along the road to salvation (Jn 10:3-4). For some, like
the apostle Paul, this first call to repentance can be very dramatic,
but even Paul, after he had been struck down (Acts 9:4-5), could
have chosen to defy God by refusing to choose the way of life.
There is no compulsion from God to walk in the path of righteousness
and, while He "chastises every son whom He receives" (Heb
12:6) who goes astray, He never forces His children to make right
or wrong decisions. Since every decision we will ever make is
already known to God, including those we may make that will take
us away from Him, He has already in mind what needs to be done
to bring us back, if we are indeed His elect children, without
forcing us to make the choices we need to against our will. The
decision to "choose life" will always be our own to
make.
The foreknowledge of God does not depreciate or annul the role
of faith and the importance of prayer in the lives of the saints.
The Father already knows whether we will correctly and zealously
use these tools of salvation to help win the race for us. Just
as it is known to God what each of His saints intends to pray
for (Mt 6:8), so is His response to their prayers already known
to Him: on the basis of His foreknowledge. It is for this reason
that we are instructed to ask "according to His will"
(1Jn 5:15) in prayer, and also to seek to know what His will
is (Col 1:9; Eph 5:17)—because God's will in everything is always
foreknown to Him and is inextricably linked to His acts of predestination
(Eph 1:5). This is why the will of the Father is always "perfect" (Rom
12:2) [See also Mt 26:39; Mk 14:36; 1Co 4:19; Jas 4:14-15].
This is well illustrated in the account of king Hezekiah's illness,
the announcement of his impending death, his pious pleas to God
and his miraculous healing (2Ki 20:1-11). God the Father already
knew the full lifespan of the king, just as He also knows each
of ours (Job 14:5), but Hezekiah still had some learning to do.
Let it be repeated once again: predestination is on the basis
of God's foreknowledge, not on the basis of God compelling
His people to make the choices they are foreordained to make.
Evil decisions are made by succumbing to temptation and
to sin (Jas 1:13-15) and godly decisions ensue when one follows
the dictates of a godly conscience (Ro 2:14-15) and/or the lead
of the Spirit of God (Gal 5:16-17). Implications here are quite
evident: God knows how each will sin, how he will struggle or
not struggle against sin, and also knows whether the sinner will
seek forgiveness according to the will of God. The fact that God
is Almighty, is a God of love, is merciful and gracious, is impartial,
is a God of equity, never lies, affirms the conclusions being
expressed here.
Predestined to Spiritual Blindness?
Paul then continues:
This is further clarified:
The "Son of Perdition"
Yet Christ chose Judas to be one of the twelve apostles, and even
spent a whole night in prayer to His Father before announcing
the decision (Lk 6:12-16). However, Judas was not one of those
to whom Christ was referring when He spoke to them all that night
as "I know whom I have chosen" (Jn 13:8)—those who
are the true elect of God, predestined to be "called, chosen
and faithful" (Rev 17:14), as were the rest of the apostles.
The Gospels reveal that he was a thief and an unrepentant reprobate
(Jn 12:6). Christ labelled him early for the devil that he was
(Jn 6:70-71). Judas by his own volition initiated the steps that
would lead to Christ being taken and crucified—for money (Mt
26:14-15)! Satan was able to possess him completely (Lk 22:3).
Perhaps it was even to the Devil himself that Christ addressed
the words "What you do, do quickly." (Jn 13:27).
As part of Jesus Christ's intimate circle, Judas "tasted
the heavenly gift... and the good word of God and the powers of
the age to come" (Heb 6:4-5) and, of his own choice, rejected
the working of God in his life, just as God had foreknown he would!
He was a "son of perdition" (Jn 17:12) who, through
his wicked decisions in defiance of the leading of the Spirit
of God through Jesus Christ, fulfilled what the Father had always
known about him—just like, and a type of, the coming "man
of sin", who likewise defies God (2Th 2:3), and who is
also predestined to be destroyed. God knows that this anti-christ
will willingly defy Him.
It would indeed have been better for Judas, if it were possible,
to have never been born (Mt 26:24) because God, who is perfectly
impartial (Acts 10:34) and who "desires all men to be saved"
(1Ti 2:4), foresaw that he would be a reprobate who would fall
far short of His glory in whatever age he was born into and called
by God. This is evidenced in his "repentance" (Mt
27:4), a case of human grief over plans gone awry and worldly
sorrow or remorse that brings only death (2Co 7:10) instead of
the godly sorrow that brings "repentance to salvation" (2Co
7:10-11). Everyone has a calling (Isa 45:23; Ro 14:11; Php 2:10,11),
and for Judas this was an appropriate time in accordance with
the Plan of God. God in His omniscience could have called Judas
another time but the outcome—rebellion—was predictive for
all time. Nothing would induce Judas to repent.
Notice, however, how it seems that Christ, who knew from the start
that Judas would betray Him (Jn 6:64), reached out to him to the
very end in an attempt to dissuade him from this ungodly path
which he had chosen (Jn 13:26). At the very least, He continued
to share bread with him as the traditional sign of close friendship.
This is demonstrative of the love of God who, even while knowing
people will reject His calling, still reaches out to them through
this calling and through His Son, and affords them the best opportunity
they would have had to come to salvation. It is demonstrative
also of the great patience of God towards even those who make
the decision to become the "objects of His wrath" (Ro
9:22-23; 2Ti 2:20-21).
The Testimony of Prophecy
Sometimes, however, the human tools God uses to fulfill His plan
are made aware of His intervention in their lives. Nebuchadnezzar
(605-562BC), king of ancient Babylon, was directly struck down
by God for his monumental pride and vanity (Da 4:28-37), precisely
as had been revealed to the prophet Daniel at least twelve months
prior to the actual event (Da 4:24-29). This arrogant despot's
refusal to respond to the divine warning given through Daniel
to turn from his evil ways (Da 4:27) was of course foreknown
to God, who planned to directly intervene to humble Nebuchadnezzar
until he acknowledged the sovereignty of God in all the affairs
of men (Da 4:32,35). It is important to understand that God
is never reactive, responding capriciously to the ungodliness
of men. Rather, because every one of His responses is based on
foreknowledge, His actions and reactions are always anticipative,
and the results of His intervention in the affairs of men are
likewise always foreknown—or predestined—by Him. Unlike
the example of the evil king Nebuchadnezzar, however, God's elect,
as we have shown, are predestined to glory because of God's foreknowledge
that they, with His help, would continue to make the godly
choices that lead ultimately to eternal life. Even though
from the mouth of this pagan king came words of recognition of
the absolute power of God (Da 4:35), and that all His "works
are truth, and His ways justice" (v37), he also, like
Cyrus after him, has yet to receive the call of God for salvation—and the Father already knows the choice that he will make.
Jesus Christ and Prophecy
As we know, Christ's physical birth was in fulfillment of many
Old Testament prophecies. Satan and his demons, who would thwart
God and His plan, therefore also attempt to thwart God's inspired
prophecies. Their efforts, too, are foreknown by God, as are
His interventions, as we see in the example of His intercession
to protect Christ in Mt 2:13-15, for the Scripture prophesied
that His Son would be in refuge in Egypt (Hos 11:1).
Through His life and His work on earth, Christ fulfilled numerous
prophecies about Himself, for instance:
Immortality and Eternal Life
Then, by the power of the resurrection, Christ was again proclaimed
to be the Son of God:
To be "born of God" through the resurrection is to put
on immortality—incorruptibility of character and nature. Only
then will God's elect be truly without sin (1Jn 3:9), even as
the immortal God is unable to sin (1Jn 3:5; Jas 1:13).
The Perfection of Jesus Christ and the Saints
By means of the resurrection, through which we will be "born
of God" (Jn 3:3), we, too, will put on perfection after the
image of Jesus Christ (Ro 8:29):
THE MIND OF GOD AND THE MIND OF MAN
While God understands each of us perfectly (Ps 139:1-4), even
before our existence (v16), the mind of God cannot be fathomed
through human reasoning (Isa 55:9). We must therefore be careful
not to measure God (His omniscience, His foreknowledge, and so
on) nor attempt to assess His plan of salvation (the concept of
predestination, for instance) in terms of our human thinking and
thereby limit the eternal God whom even the "highest heaven"
(1Ki 8:27) cannot contain and who "fills heaven and earth"
(Jer 23:24).
It is because of the limitations of our human thinking that the
Bible often depicts God's actions and responses in terms familiar
to us human beings and uses language with which we can more readily
identify. This is illustrated by the Bible's use of anthropomorphisms—where human forms
and attitudes are ascribed to God to help man to more easily comprehend Him and His works. Here are some
examples of anthropomorphisms:
Consider Christ's actions in John 6:5-6 as an example:
God does not change!
Further Proof
When we read in Ge 6:6-7 that "the LORD was grieved
that He had made man" and was resolved to destroy him, can
we really believe that there was a change of mind on the part
of God the Father, a deviation from His preordained plan?
God was grieved and "His heart was filled with pain"
(Ge 6:6) because of the sin of mankind and the action that He
would need to take. It was never a matter of making changes in
His preordained plan. This could also be viewed as a knockdown
to the concepts of immutability and impassibility inherited from
Plato, Philo, Plotinus, Augustine, Anselm, and others—supposedly
fathers to the faith.
God was similarly grieved at Saul's disobedience and rebellion,
because "he has turned away from Me" (1Sa 15:11), not
because He had made a mistake in selecting Saul, a mistake that
now required rectification. God makes no mistakes (Dt 32:4).
Samuel had been informed by God of Saul's disqualification in
1Sa 13:14, and David is here described as being already "appointed"
the leader of Israel, even though he was not anointed by Samuel
until 1Sa 16:13. The important role of David in the plan
of God was foretold (Ps 89:19-29). Not only was he to be the
physical ancestor of Christ (Lk 2:4; Jn 7:42; Ro 1:3), but God
also intended from the very beginning to make an everlasting covenant
with David, a promise yet to be fulfilled at the return of Christ
(see Ezk 34:23; 37:24).
Correcting Idolatrous Notions of God and His Plan
The perfect working of God will ensure that no one given to Christ
and destined for salvation will be lost (Jn 6:39; 10:28-29), for
God says that He will never leave nor forsake us (Heb 13:5).
Moreover, as the example of Hezekiah's healing illustrates, God
will not allow us to die prematurely until we have fulfilled our
calling. If God is so mightily for us, then how can we fail (Ro
8:31)?
Let us praise God who through "His divine power has given
us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge
of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness" (2Pe
1:3, NRSV) and who has "given to us exceedingly great and
precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of
the divine nature" (v4). And let us rejoice in the knowledge
of the power, majesty and wisdom of the great God who does not
change, and in His awesome plan of salvation in which we are privileged
to share, and thereby strengthen our resolve "to make our
calling and election sure (2Pe 1:10).
We read the following in 1Sa 15:29 (NRSV):
Moreover the Glory of Israel will not recant or change his mind; for he
is not a mortal, that he should change his mind.
And in Nu 23:19 (NRSV):
God is not a human being, that he should lie, or a mortal,
that he should change his mind. Has he promised, and will he not
do it? Has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?
The Almighty God declares that He does not change His mind or
"recant of "any of His decisions.
Yet other Scriptures, such as the following, appear to contradict
the understanding conveyed by these verses, namely that God's
decisions are fixed and unalterable:
Ge 6:6 And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on
the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. 7 So the LORD
said, "I will destroy man whom I have created from the face
of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of
the air, for I am sorry that I have made them."
So does God change His mind? Has He ever changed His mind? Are
His decisions subject to change?
Ex 32:14 So the LORD relented from the harm which He said
He would do to His people.
1Sa 15:11 "I greatly regret that I have set up Saul
as king, for he has turned back from following Me, and
has not performed My commandments." And it grieved Samuel,
and he cried out to the LORD all night.
1Sa 15:35 And Samuel went no more to see Saul until the
day of his death. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul, and the
LORD regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.
'Immutable' means 'unchangeable.' What does this really mean?
The following definition is fairly representative of much of the
thinking that is current on the subject of immutability:
"God in unchanging in nature, desire, and purpose.
To say that God is immutable is not to contradict the previous
truth [i.e., God is not limited by anything. He is infinite, free,
self-determined; has no beginning, period of growth, old age,
or end. God is conscious of every movement in history, which is
the product of His eternal Plan, purpose, and grace]. ... all
the uses of divine power and vitality are consistent with his
attributes such as wisdom, justice, and love. ....
Despite this definition, the ante-Nicene, post-Nicene, even Reformation
arguments for and about the nature of God and Christ were based
in Hellenistic philosophy. To say that the Church was in error
about the nature of God and His Christ from the post-apostolic
age until the twentieth century (nearly 2000 years of error)
is quite an admission.
The immutability of God's character means that God never loses
his own integrity or lets others down. With God there is no variableness
or shadow of turning (James 1:17). God's unshakable nature and
word provide the strongest ground of faith and bring strong consolation
(Heb. 6:17-18). God is not a man that he should lie (Num. 23:19)
or repent (1 Sam 15:29). The counsel of the Lord stands forever
(Ps. 33:11). Though heaven and earth pass away, God's words will
not fail (Matt. 5:18; 24:35)." (Article, God, Attributes
of, by Gordon R. Lewis; The Evangelical Dictionary
of Theology; [Walter R. Elwell, Editor; Baker; 1984];
pp 453-4).
"The other Christian doctrine (the first being 'the immortality
of the soul') whose development was significantly affected by
the continuing dominance of Greek thought was the doctrine of
God..... the Old Testament doctrine of the sovereign freedom
of God could not be synonymous with the philosophical doctrine
of divine impassibility (apatheia), which meant first of
all that God was free of the changes and sufferings that characterise
human life and feeling, although derivatively it could also mean
impassivity—that God was indifferent to the changes and sufferings
of man. It is significant that Christian theologians customarily
set down the doctrine of the impassibility of God as an axiom,
without bothering to provide very much biblical support or theological
proof. .... The doctrine of the absoluteness and impassibility
of God came to form one of the presuppositions of the trinitarian
and christological issues" (J. Pelikan, The Christian
Tradition, A History of the Development of Doctrine, 1, The
Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600); [UCP; 1971];
pp 53,54).
This paper proposes answers to these vital questions about the
nature of God, the nature of His Son, the purposes of God in His
creation by exploring the Scriptures which reveal God's views,
and the views of the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and the beliefs
of the saints (Eph 2:20).
The following are examples of some of the ideas about God and
His plan of salvation which have been and/or still are in circulation
among many so-called "Churches of God":
If any of these lines of thinking are correct, then it would seem
that God does indeed "change His mind" on occasion.
Does He?
We need to examine in some detail the divine nature and essence
of God before we can even begin to consider the above question.
Dt 4:39 Therefore know this day, and consider it in
your heart, that the LORD Himself is God in heaven above
and on the earth beneath; there is no other.
There are other gods in the heavens, but none like the true God:
Isa 40:25 "To whom then will you liken Me, or to
whom shall I be equal?" says the Holy One.
Isa 46:9 Remember the former things of old, For I am
God, and there is no other; I am God, and there
is none like Me.
Ex 15:11 Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods?
Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises,
No one has seen or heard God the Father, the one true God:
Ps 89:6 For who in the heavens can be compared to the LORD?
Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the
LORD? 7 God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of
the saints, and to be held in reverence by all those around
Him.
Jn 1:18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten
Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him
The only conclusion possible after reading these verses is that
the God (Elohim) who dealt with human beings throughout the Bible
was none other than Jesus Christ. Indeed, other Scriptures confirm
this fact:
Jn 5:37 And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified
of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen
His form.
Jn 6:46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He
who is from God; He has seen the Father.
1Ti 6:16 who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable
light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honour
and everlasting power. Amen.
1Jn 4:14 No one has seen God at any time.
1Co 10:4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they
drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock
was Christ.
Christ is the image of God the Father, the One who was sent to
do God's will, and who does the Father's will even today (2Co
4:4; Col 1:15; Jn 6:38; 8:29; 1Co 15:24,28).
Acts 7:37 This is the one (i.e., Moses; see vv35,36,39
for context) who said to the children of Israel, "The LORD
your God will raise up for you a Prophet (i.e., Jesus Christ)
like me (i.e., like Moses in that He would lead all spiritual
Israel out of the wilderness) from your brethren. Him you shall
hear." 38 This is he (i.e., Moses) who was in the
congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him
on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers (e.g., Jacob, Ge 32; Abraham,
Ge 18:22), the One who received the living oracles to give to
us (cf. Heb 1:1-3; Rev 1:1-2).
1Ti 1:17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible,
to God who alone is wise, be honour and glory forever and
ever. Amen.
Immortality
1Ti 6:16 who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable
light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honour
and everlasting power. Amen.
We, too, shall put on immortality at the resurrection:
1Co 15:53-54 For this corruptible must put on incorruption,
and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when
this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has
put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that
is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory."
Jesus Christ, as the first of the firstfruits (Acts 26:23; 1Co
15:20, 23) has made the gift of immortality available to the saints,
and was the first to be raised immortal. The saints will be resurrected
in His image:
Ro 2:7 eternal life to those who by patient continuance
in doing good seek for glory, honour, and immortality
2Ti 1:10 but has now been revealed by the appearing of
our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought
life and immortality to light through the gospel
Taken together, the words translated "immortal" and
"immortality" in the above verses have the following
meanings in the Greek:
Ro 6:5 For if we have been united together in the likeness
of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of
His resurrection
Ro 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to
be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the
firstborn among many brethren.
1Co 15:48 As was the man of dust, so also
are those who are made of dust; and as is the
heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly.
49 And as we have borne the image of the man of
dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
God the Father "alone has [true] immortality" [110]
(1Ti 6:16):
Ps 90:2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever
You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting
to everlasting, You are God.
He is also "the King eternal, immortal [862] "(1Ti 1:17)—in essence, as well as in unending continuance.
The Father is the immortal God who has no beginning. He is also
immortal—incorruptible, undecaying—in essence, in character.
We shall examine this aspect of God shortly.
For all of God's creation, the Father is imperfectibly perfect,
yet He demands perfectibility in us:
Mt 5:48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your
Father in heaven is perfect.
Only the immortal Father is perfectly and innately good—Christ
said so! The Father's goodness is inherently incorruptible. All
goodness, even that of the Son, originates from Him. The Father's
character, His nature and His attributes are absolutely perfect—eternally (Ro 1:23). This perfection is illustrated in:
Mt 19:17 So He said to him, "Why do you call Me
good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But
if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments."
Ge 18:14 Is anything too hard for the LORD?
Christ is a testimony to the power of God:
Dt 3:24 O Lord GOD, You have begun to show Your servant
Your greatness and Your mighty hand, for what god is there
in heaven or on earth who can do anything like Your
works and Your mighty deeds?
Dt 32:39 Now see that I, even I, am He,
and there is no God besides Me; I kill and I make alive;
I wound and I heal; nor is there any who can deliver from
My hand.
Job 42:2 I know that You can do everything, and that no
purpose of Yours can be withheld from You.
Isa 43:13 Indeed before the day was, I am He;
and there is no one who can deliver out of My hand; I work,
and who will reverse it?
Jer 32:17 Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens
and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There
is nothing too hard for You.
Jer 32:27 Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all
flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?
Mt 19:26 But Jesus looked at them and said to
them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things
are possible."
Mk 14:36 And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are
possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless,
not what I will, but what You will."
2Co 13:4 For though He was crucified in weakness, yet
He lives by the power of God.
Job 21:22 Can anyone teach God knowledge, since
He judges those on high?
Job 37:16 Do you know how the clouds are balanced, those
wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge?
Ps 147:5 Great is our Lord, and mighty in power;
His understanding is infinite.
Isa 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting
God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints
nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable.
Mt 10:29-30 Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?
And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father's
will. 30 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Ro 16:27 to God, alone wise, be glory through Jesus
Christ forever. Amen.
Jude 25 To God our Saviour, who alone is wise, be glory
and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.
Ps 92:15 To declare that the LORD is upright; He is
my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.
Ps 119:142 Your righteousness is an everlasting
righteousness.
Ps 145:17 The LORD is righteous in all His ways.
Isa 51:6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look on
the earth beneath. For the heavens will vanish away like smoke,
the earth will grow old like a garment, and those who dwell in
it will die in like manner; but My salvation will be forever,
and My righteousness will not be abolished.
Da 9:14 Therefore the LORD has kept the disaster in mind,
and brought it upon us; for the LORD our God is righteous
in all the works which He does, though we have not obeyed His
voice.
Ps 33:4 For the word of the LORD is right, and all
His work is done in truth.
Da 4:37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honour
the King of heaven, all of whose works are truth, and His
ways justice. And those who walk in pride He is able to put down.
Tit 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie,
promised before time began.
1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come and has
given us an understanding, that we may know Him [the Father] who
is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ.
This is the true God and eternal life.
Jn 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
Rev 15:4 Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your
name? For You alone are holy. For all nations shall
come and worship before You, For Your judgments have been manifested.
Ps 119:90 Your faithfulness endures to all generations.
Isa 25:1 O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You,
I will praise Your name, for You have done wonderful things;
Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
Zeph 3:5 The LORD is righteous in her midst, He
will do no unrighteousness. Every morning He brings His justice
to light; He never fails, but the unjust knows no shame.
Ro 2:11 For there is no partiality with God.
Ps 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting
the soul.
Jas 1:25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty
and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but
a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
Dt 32:4 He is the Rock, His work is perfect;
for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without
injustice; righteous and upright is He.
2Sa 22:31 As for God, His way is perfect.
Prov 30:5 Every word of God is pure; He is a
shield to those who put their trust in Him.
Ro 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what
is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
The Father is the True God
The Scriptures thus reveal the immortal Father to be the only
true God:
Mt 23:9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for
One is your Father, He who is in Heaven.
Through His Son Jesus Christ, the true God is:
Jn 5:44 How can you believe, who receive honour from one
another, and do not seek the honour that comes from the
only God?
Jn 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You,
the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
1Co 8:6 yet for us there is one God, the Father,
of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus
Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we
live.
Eph 4:6 one God and Father of all, who is above
all, and through all, and in you all.
1Ti 2:5 For there is one God and one Mediator between
God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.
Lk 1:47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour.
1Ti 2:3 For this is good and acceptable in the
sight of God our Saviour.
1Ti 4:10 For to this end we both labor and suffer
reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour
of all men, especially of those who believe.
Isa 63:16 Doubtless You are our Father, though Abraham
was ignorant of us, and Israel does not acknowledge us. You, O
LORD, are our Father; our Redeemer from everlasting is
Your name.
Lk 1:68 Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He
has visited and redeemed His people.
Ro 1:25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and
worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who
is blessed forever. Amen.
Rev 4:11 You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour
and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist
and were created.
Ro 2:16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of
men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.
Heb 12:23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn
who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all,
to the spirits of just men made perfect.
Da 2:34 You watched while a stone was cut out without
hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and
broke them in pieces.
All this is so because everything has come from and through the
true God:
1Co 10:4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they
drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock
was Christ (see also Gen 49:24; Isa 51:1; Ps 19:14).
Ro 11:36 For of Him [God] and through Him and to Him are
all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
THE IMMUTABILITY OF GOD
1Co 11:12 For as woman came from man, even so man
also comes through woman; but all things are from God.
The word "immutability" means "unalterableness"
or "not subject to any change whatsoever." This definition
does not take the absurd position that then leads to God being
described as impassible, i.e., without any emotions, no feelings,
a philosophic "Nothing" as in mysticism, kabbalism,
Buddhism (see references in A History of God by
Karen Armstrong).
Mal 3:6 "For I am the LORD, I do not change;
therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob."
This would seem to concur with the Scriptures we have seen which
describe God as not changing His mind. Notice further:
Jas 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from
above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there
is no variation or shadow of turning.
Heb 6:17-18 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly
to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed
it by an oath, 18 that by two immutable things,
in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have
strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the
hope set before us.
Here we are told that God's counsel, or His purpose, as
well as His promise, are immutable, or unchangeable. We
also find written:
Ro 11:29 For the gifts and the calling of God are
irrevocable.
In other words, God does not change His mind in regard to those
whom He calls, and He—not Jesus Christ (Jn 6:44)—does the
calling. Just what does this mean?
Although the apostle Peter, from his human perspective, said to
Jesus Christ "Lord, You know all things" (Jn 21:17),
a belief to which the other apostles also ascribed, (Jn 16:30),
other Scriptures indicate that this is to be understood in a qualified
sense:
Ge 22:12 And He said, "Do not lay your hand on the
lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear
God (the Father), since you have not withheld your son, your only
son, from Me."
Mt 24:36 But of that day and hour no one knows, not even
the angels of heaven, but My Father only.
Acts 1:7 And He said to them, "It is not for you to
know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority."
Rev 1:1-2 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave
Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place.
And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant
John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God, and to the
testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.
This process whereby the Father reveals His knowledge to His Son
is consistent with Christ's claims while He was on earth that
He was speaking the words which the Father had given Him:
Jn 8:28 Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up
the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that
I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak
these things."
Christ said that to see and to know Him was to see and to know
His Father:
Jn 12:49 For I have not spoken on My own authority;
but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should
say and what I should speak.
Jn 17:8 For I have given to them the words which You have
given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely
that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent
Me.
Jn 8:19 Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?"
Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father. If you
had known Me, you would have known My Father also."
Indeed, Christ is "the image of the invisible God" (Col
1:15), who was sent by His Father (Jn 17:8,25) to reveal Him (Mt
11:27)—to pass on the knowledge the Father had made available
to Him.
Jn 12:45 He who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.
Jn 14:9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so
long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me
has seen the Father; so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?"
Mt 6:8 Therefore do not be like them. For your Father
knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.
The apostles also referred to the Father's omniscience:
Acts 15:8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them
by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us.
As we have seen, the Scriptures reveal that God the Father alone
is perfectly all-knowing:
Ro 11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments
and His ways past finding out!
All our ways—without exception—are known to God the Father:
Ps 119:168 I keep Your precepts and Your testimonies,
for all my ways are before You.
So, in reality, it is God the Father who truly "knows all
things":
Ps 139:1-4 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up; You
understand my thought afar off. 3 You comprehend my path
and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. 4
For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold,
O LORD, You know it altogether.
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than
our heart, and knows all things.
Since all things are known to God, would He ever need to change
His mind?
Since God is the immortal Father "from everlasting"
(Ps 93:2) and "from everlasting to everlasting" (1Chron
16:36; Ps 90:1-2) who "inhabits eternity" (Isa 57:15),
He is able to reveal the end of all things from the very beginning:
Isa 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and
from ancient times things that are not yet done,
saying, "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure."
With God "one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand
years as one day." (Ps 90:4; 2Pe 3:8). The apostle Paul
refers to Him as "the everlasting God" (Ro 16:26).
He is "God Almighty, the One who was and is and is to come"
(Rev 4:8; 11:17), the "Ancient of Days" before whom
Christ presents Himself and to whom He has always been in subjection
(Jn 10:29; 1Co 11:3; 15:27). The Father who encompasses eternity
therefore also has foreknowledge:
Acts 2:23 "Him [Christ], being delivered by the determined
purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands,
have crucified, and put to death."
We are here told that Christ's crucifixion
was according to the "determined purpose" (We
saw previously that God's purpose is "immutable" [Heb
6:8]), and is revealed as the "foreknowledge" of God.
In other words, God saw and knew ahead of time that His Son would
be crucified, and so His purpose was "determined" (see
Acts 15:18).
1Pe 1:19-20 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of
a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 He (the Lamb
of God) was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but
was manifest in these last times for you.
Here we are told that the sacrifice of Christ through His crucifixion
was "foreordained" [Gk: "known beforehand;
foreknown; known before"] before the foundation of the world.
To God, it was as good as done from the very beginning. It was
"foreordained" or "pre-ordained" or "predestined"
because of God the Father's foreknowledge!
Rev 13:8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose
names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world.
1Pe 1:2 elect according to the foreknowledge of God the
Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling
of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
God's elect—His called and chosen ones—are also foreknown
by God. The apostle Paul adds that these saints, called and chosen
by the foreknowledge of God, have in fact been predestined to
be resurrected, just as Christ was:
Ro 8:28-30 And we know that all things work together for
good to those who love God, to those who are the called according
to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also
predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that
He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover
whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these
He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
Yet other scriptures confirm this:
Acts 13:48 Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were
glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been
appointed to eternal life believed.
Even before the creation of the world, the saints of God have
been predestined, through the foreknowledge of God, not just to
receive a calling, but also to receive the promised sonship in
His Kingdom—a literal appointment to eternal life! This is
why God "knows those who are His" (2Ti 2:19). To Him,
it is as good as done (2Ti 1:9; Ro 8:30).
Acts 13:48 (NRSV) When the Gentiles heard this, they were
glad and praised the word of the Lord; and as many as had been
destined for eternal life became believers.
Ro 1:6 (NRSV) including yourselves who are called to
belong to Jesus Christ.
Ro 11:2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew.
Gal 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify
the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand,
saying, "In you all the nations shall be blessed."
Eph 1:4-5 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation
of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before
Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons
by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of
His will.
Eph 1:5 [Jewish New Testament] He determined in advance
that through Yeshua the Messiah we would be His sons...
Eph 1:11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being
predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things
according to the counsel of His will.
1Th 5:9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to
obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
God has always foreknown and, through His foreknowledge predestined,
the lives of His servants:
Jer 1:5 Before I formed you [Jeremiah]in the womb I knew
you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet
to the nations.
David understood that, before he even existed, the totality of
his life was foreknown by God:
Ps 139:14-16 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and
wonderfully made; marvellous are Your works, and that my
soul knows very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You,
when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the
lowest parts of the earth. 16 Your eyes saw my substance,
being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the
days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
The apostle Paul also understood this:
Gal 1:15-16 (NRSV) But when God, who had set me apart before
I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased 16
to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the
Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being,
Indeed, the lives of all of God's saints and future saints are
known completely by Him:
Ps 37:18 The LORD knows the days of the upright, and their
inheritance shall be forever.
The Almighty's Foreknowledge of All Humanity
2Ti 1:9 (God) has saved us and called us with a holy calling,
not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and
grace which was given to us in Jesus Christ before time began
(cp. Jn 6:44,45 and 1:12,13).
God's Word reveals that the Father in fact foreknows the life
and lifespan of every human being, past, present and future:
Job 14:5 (NRSV) Since their [men's] days are determined,
and the number of their months is known to you, and you have appointed
the bounds that they cannot pass.
The limits of man in terms of space and time are already known
to God. The Scriptures describe this as man's times and boundaries
having been "determined" or "preappointed"—by foreknowledge:
Job 21:21 (NIV) For what does he [a man] care about the
family he leaves behind when his allotted months come to an end?
Ps 39:4 (NIV) Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the
number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life.
Job 14:5 (NRSV) Since their [men's] days are determined,
and the number of their months is known to you, and you have appointed
the bounds that they cannot pass.
The scriptural reference to "time and chance" happening
to all men (Ecc 9:11) is given from the human perspective and
refers, as a reading of the verse will prove, to the uncertainty
of success of human endeavours, for man is not in ultimate control
of the events that befall him. It in no way suggests that God
is affected by time or chance.
Acts 1:7 And He said to them, "It is not for you to
know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority."
Acts 17:26 "And He has made from one blood every nation
of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined
their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings."
Through the foreknowledge of the true God judgment of self-determinedly
evil people and their punishment is foreknown.
The precise day and time of judgment is already known to God:
Acts 17:31 He has appointed a day on which He will judge
the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He
has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.
..... as is the fate of evildoers:
2Th 2:3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that
Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and
the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition.
Judas Iscariot was also described as "the son of perdition"
(Jn 17:12), or "the one [God knew was] doomed to destruction"
(NIV). Why Christ selected Judas as one of His disciples when
He knew all along that he would be the betrayer (Jn 6:64) will
be examined shortly.
2Pe 2:3 By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive
words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their
destruction does not slumber.
Jude 4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long
ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn
the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God
and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us now consider the following Scriptures:
Lk 10:20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the
spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names
are written in heaven.
Taken together, these verses tell us the following:
Eph 1:4 (NRSV) just as he [God] chose us in Christ before
the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him
in love.
Eph 3:11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished
in Christ Jesus our Lord.
2Ti 1:9 who has saved us and called us with a holy
calling, not according to our works, but according to His own
purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before
time began.
Tit 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie,
promised before time began.
Rev 13:8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose
names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world.
We find further verification of this in the Word of God:
2Th 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always
for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning
chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and
belief in the truth.
God's people, we are here told, have
been chosen or "appointed" from the very beginning of
God's plan to attain salvation. It is as good as done in the eyes
of God the Father. Our future glory was personally planned by
God "before time began" through His wisdom and foreknowledge:
1Th 5:9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to
obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Co 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the
hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our
glory.
The "good works" done by God's elect have been "prepared
beforehand " by God—that is, He is aware of the godly lives
to be lived by all His saints in their race to glory.
Eph 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ
Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should
walk in them.
By means of the foreknowledge of God the Father, who is able to
see and declare "the end from the beginning" (Isa 46:10)—the end of any and every beginning—He is able to "predestine", to "pre-ordain" or to "foreordain"
the events yet to occur. Christ was predestined to be the perfect
sacrifice because God foresaw the success of His Beloved
Son from the very beginning of time. God's true elect, on the
basis of God the Father's foreknowledge, have already been ordained—"predestined"—to succeed—not because of
any coercion on the part of God, but because of this foreknowledge
He possesses of their lives and of their responses to His calling.
God is perfectly impartial, so why should it not follow that the
personal names of all those destined for eternal life are similarly
inscribed in His Book of Life? The reason why this must be so
is revealed by the following Scripture:
Heb 4:3 For we who have believed do enter that rest, as
He has said: "So I swore in My wrath, 'They shall not enter
My rest,'" although the works were finished from the foundation
of the world.
God the Father, through His foreknowledge of all things, had "finished"
the works of His great plan for mankind at the time the earth
was created. However, since we are also told that both the Father
and the Son still "work" (Jn 5:17), this can only mean
that the blueprint of God's great plan of salvation for
His creation has already been "finished"—mapped out—and continues to unfold just as the Father has foreknown. Christ's
crucifixion, for which He had been predestined since eternity
(Rev 13:8), and which made possible the eternal life promised
before time began (2Ti 1:9; Tit 1:2), completed the most important
phase of the plan of God (Jn 17:2). In the same way, God's saints
are, from the beginning, predestined to sonship (Eph 1:4-5). Notice
Ro 8:29,30:
Heb 4:3 (NRSV) For we who have believed enter that rest,
just as God has said, "As in my anger I swore, 'They shall
not enter my rest,'" though his works were finished at the
foundation of the world.
Heb 4:3 (Williams translation) ....although God's works
had been completed at the creation of the world.
Heb 4:3 (Amplified Bible)...He said this although [His]
works had been completed and prepared [and waiting for
all who would believe] from the foundation of the world.
Ro 8:29-30 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to
be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the
firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined,
these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified;
and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
On the basis of His foreknowledge, the Father predestines
His elect (v29); once predestined, they will ultimately be called
(v30); when called, they will be justified (v30) through
Jesus Christ (Acts 13:39; Ro 3:24) and eventually glorified
(v30) in the resurrection. In the mind of God, it is as good
as done! All this is according to the blueprint of the plan of
salvation of the immortal Father who alone truly "knows all
things" (1Jn 3:20).
As His Plan of salvation is enacted, it is not God's wish that
anyone perish (2Pe 3:9). Every human being has a "day of
salvation" (2Co 6:2), a time that God, who knows the life
of each human being long before he is born, also affords each
individual the greatest opportunity for success in his spiritual
race. God's foreknowledge of the life and destiny of all men,
including His elect, does not, however, absolve them from doing
their part to ensure that the Christian race is successfully run:
Mt 24:13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
The names of God's elect, those in the "church of the firstborn
who are registered in heaven" (Heb 12:23), are already listed
in God's Book of Life (Php 4:3), just as the names of those
individuals not in the Book of Life are also known to Him (Rev
13:8; 17:18). While the exact names of those to inherit eternal
life are known to God (Rev 21:27), and thus predestined because
of His foreknowledge, a believer may figuratively have his name
"blotted out" of this Book (Rev 3:5; 22:19) by failing
to "work out his own salvation with fear and trembling"
(Php 2:12). This is as much a warning and a call to Christian
diligence and growth as are the injunctions listed above for us
to do our part to ensure our victory. The outcome, along
with what we do or fail to do, is all foreknown by God.
1Co 9:24 Do you not know that those who run in a race
all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you
may obtain it.
Php 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed,
not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work
out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Heb 2:3 how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation,
which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed
to us by those who heard Him.
Heb 3:14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold
the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end.
Heb 6:11 (NRSV) And we want each one of you to show the
same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope to
the very end.
2Pe 1:5-8 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence,
add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge
self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness
love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, you
will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let us notice Ro 9:11:
( ....that the purpose of God according to election might stand,
not of works but of Him who calls)
God's foreordained promises to His elect saints will be fulfilled
because they are made on the basis of His immutable purpose, which
is based on His perfect foreknowledge.
(Moffat Translation) .... to confirm the divine promise in election,
which depends on the call of God, not on anything man does.
Ro 9:17-18 For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this
very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in
you, and that My Name may be declared in all the earth."
18 Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He
wills He hardens.
Contrary to the opinions of some, God does not arbitrarily harden
whomever He wills, including the heirs of salvation. The intent
of these verses is to point out the sovereignty of God and the
futility of man's attempts to defy His immutable purpose.
God is not arbitrary, nor capricious in His mercy, because we
are told that He wants to have "mercy on all" (Ro 11:32),
so neither can He be arbitrary where He is depicted as "hardening"
whomever He wills. God Himself hardens no one; it is a case of
the heart already being hardened by sin (Heb 3:13) and by the
deception of the devil (Acts 5:3). The reference to Pharaoh illustrates
this. The Scriptures describe God as hardening his heart (Ex
4:21; 9:12), but also state that Pharaoh hardened his own heart
(Ex 7:14,22; 8:15,32; 9:34). God merely attested to what He knew
would happen to Pharaoh's heart. Sin, Satan's influences, and
a rebellious heart harden a person to resist God. Similarly, when
we read that "God has confined all men in disobedience"
(Ro 11:32), or has "blinded their eyes" (Jn 12:40),
or given them "a spirit of stupor" (Ro 11:8) in respect
to His truth, it is simply a matter of God allowing the Devil
to do his customary work of blinding all men to the truth (2Co
4:4) until God opens up the eyes of those who are to believe (Acts
26:18).
Ro 9:21-23 Does not the potter have power over the clay,
from the same lump to make one vessel for honour and another for
dishonour? 22 What if God, wanting to show His
wrath and to make His power known, endured with much long-suffering
the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 and that
He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of
mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory
A comparison of these two verses tells us that it is not a matter
of God arbitrarily designating by the exercise of His power who
is destined for destruction and who is destined for glory. Rather,
it is a case of God's infinite capacity to predict what the individual
choices will be. We will be sanctified if we "choose life,"
and God always leads His elect in the direction of life (Ps 16:11;
139:24). To make the contrary choice is to harden our hearts and
to allow the Devil to blind and deceive us. This is what happened
in the case of Judas Iscariot.
2Ti 2:20-21 But in a great house there are not only vessels
of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honour
and some for dishonour. 21 Therefore if anyone cleanses
himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honour, sanctified
and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.
As shocking as it may sound to some, Judas Iscariot was predestined
to betray His Master—not by coercion, but through the foreknowledge
of God the Father. Let us allow the Scriptures to testify to this
fact. Through the foreknowledge of the Father, who had taught
His Son (Jn 8:28), Christ knew from the very beginning the names
of those with whom He was working who would not believe, as well
as the fact that Judas would betray Him:
Jn 6:64 "But there are some of you who do not believe"
(by their free choice). For Jesus knew from the beginning who
they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.
Indeed, prophecies inspired by God long before Judas was ever
on the scene predicted this betrayal and the fate of His betrayer,
among them:
Jn 13:18 I do not speak concerning all of you. I know whom
I have chosen; but that the Scripture may be fulfilled, 'He who
eats bread with Me has lifted up his heel against Me.'
Here, Christ quoted Ps 41:9 to indicate that Judas' actions against
Him were indeed the fulfillment of prophecy.
Zec 11:12-13 Then I said to them, "If it is agreeable
to you, give me my wages; and if not, refrain." So
they weighed out for my wages thirty pieces of silver.
13 And the LORD said to me, "Throw it to the potter"—that princely price they set on me. So I took the thirty pieces
of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD for the
potter.
.... which was fulfilled in
Mt 27:9-10 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah
the prophet, saying, "And they took the thirty pieces of
silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children
of Israel priced, 10 and gave them for the potter's field,
as the LORD directed me" (Apparently Zechariah was quoting
something Jeremiah prophesied but not mentioned in the text we
have).
The apostle Peter here applies two Old Testament Scriptures (Ps
69:25; 109:8) to indicate God's approval for the decision to act
to fill the apostolic vacancy left by Judas' death.
Acts 1:20-22 For it is written in the book of Psalms: 'Let
his dwelling place be desolate, and let no one live in it'; and,
'Let another take his office.' 21 Therefore, of these men
who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went
in and out among us 22 beginning from the baptism of John
to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become
a witness with us of His resurrection.
Prophecy is a testimony to the foreknowledge of the true God who,
in line with His preordained plan, is indeed able to declare "the
end from the beginning" (Isa 46:10), and is therefore also
able to announce the prophetic events before they come to pass:
Isa 41:4 Who has performed and done it, calling
the generations from the beginning? 'I, the LORD, am the first;
and with the last I am He.'
Cyrus and Nebuchadnezzar
Isa 41:26 (NRSV) Who declared it from the beginning, so
that we might know, and beforehand, so that we might say, "He
is right"? There was no one who declared it, none who proclaimed,
none who heard Your words.
Isa 42:9 Behold, the former things have come to pass, and
new things I declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them.
Isa 44:7-8 And who can proclaim as I do? Then let
him declare it and set it in order for Me, since I appointed the
ancient people. And the things that are coming and shall come,
let them show these to them. 8 Do not fear, nor be afraid;
have I not told you from that time, and declared it? You
are My witnesses. Is there a God besides Me? Indeed there
is no other Rock; I know not one.
Isa 45:21 Tell and bring forth your case; yes, let
them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient
time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I,
the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, a just
God and a Saviour; there is none besides Me.
Isa 48:3 I have declared the former things from the beginning;
they went forth from My mouth, and I caused them to hear it. Suddenly
I did them, and they came to pass.
Isa 48:5-6 Even from the beginning I have declared it
to you; before it came to pass I proclaimed it to you,
lest you should say, 'My idol has done them, and my carved image
and my molded image have commanded them.' 6 You have heard;
see all this. And will you not declare it? I have made
you hear new things from this time, even hidden things, and you
did not know them.
God can use human instruments to accomplish His purpose as predetermined
by His foreknowledge:
Acts 4:27-28 For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom
You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles
and the people of Israel, were gathered together 28 to
do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be
done.
The Persian king, Cyrus (c.559-530BC), is another example of God
using a human instrument to fulfill prophetic events foreknown
and decreed by Him. Let us consider the following verses:
Isa 44:28 Who says of Cyrus, 'He is My shepherd,
and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, "You
shall be built," and to the temple, "Your foundation
shall be laid."'
Cyrus was used by God to "carry out all my purpose"
(Isa 44:28, NRSV), primarily to bring about the prophesied demise
of Babylon (Isa 13) and to initiate the steps that would lead
to the issuing of the decree for the rebuilding of the temple
(Ezr 1:2-4; 6:3-5). God describes Himself as taking hold of
Cyrus' right hand (Isa 45:1)—as though leading him to do what
he is already ordained to do—and as going before him (Isa 45:2).
Cyrus, we are told, was summoned by name (v3), although he did
not even acknowledge the God whose purpose he was fulfilling (v4-5).
God strengthened him (v5) so that His predetermined purpose for
His elect people (v4) would be achieved. This Persian king carried
out the will of God according to plan without even knowing the
true God! (Herodotus' The Histories [Penguin; 1965;
pp 53ff] Book 1 has a remarkable account of this man's
life, trials, and triumphs, which in reading give no indication
that any of Cyrus's decisions were somehow manipulated by God).
Of course, he has yet to receive the call to salvation, where
he then will be asked to "choose life".
Isa 45:1-5 Thus says the LORD to His anointed, to Cyrus,
whose right hand I have held—to subdue nations before him and
loose the armour of kings, to open before him the double doors,
so that the gates will not be shut: 2 'I will go before
you and make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces
the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron. 3 I will
give you the treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret
places, that you may know that I, the LORD, who call you by
your name, am the God of Israel. 4 For Jacob My
servant's sake, and Israel My elect, I have even called you by
your name; I have named you, though you have not known Me. 5
I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is
no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known
Me.'
Christ stated, and others verified, that all He said, did and
taught while on earth was based on and in accordance with the
knowledge revealed and taught to Him by His Father:
Jn 3:32 And what He [Christ] has seen and heard, that He
testifies; and no one receives His testimony (because the mind
of man cannot accept the supremacy, in all categories, of the
Almighty God).
From the very beginning, Christ has always been taught by God.
Proverbs 8:22ff, esp. 27-31 is a delightful reference
to the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ learning the art of creation
from the true God, the perfect Creator (see also Prov 30:4). With
some exceptions (for instance, Mt 24:36; Acts 1:7; Rev 1:1),
Christ is therefore privy to the entire plan of salvation of the
Father and has always, as the Executor of this plan, acted in
accordance with God's instructions to fulfill His predetermined
will. It is as though He can do nothing different to what He
has seen and heard, for His purpose is in total accord with that
of His Father.
Jn 5:19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, "Most
assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but
what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also
does in like manner."
Jn 5:30 I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge;
and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will
but the will of the Father who sent Me (Co-equality within the
Godhead, with the Father, if advocated [as trinitarianism and
binitarianism insist], creates serious problems of logic, philosophy,
and scriptural exposition as evident from this verse and those
following).
Jn 8:28 Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up
the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that
I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak
these things."
Jn 8:38 I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you
do what you have seen with your father.
Jn 12:49-50 For I have not spoken on My own authority;
but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should
say and what I should speak. 50 And I know that His command
is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the
Father has told Me, so I speak.
Jn 14:24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words;
and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent
Me.
Jn 17:8 For I have given to them the words which You have
given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely
that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent
Me.
At other times, Christ acted deliberately to ensure that certain
Scriptures about Him were in fact fulfilled, for instance:
Lk 22:36-37 (NRSV) He said to them, "But now, the one
who has a purse must take it, and likewise a bag. And the one
who has no sword must sell his cloak and buy one. 37 For
I tell you, this Scripture must be fulfilled in me, 'And he was
counted among the lawless;' and indeed what is written about me
is being fulfilled" (viz., Isa 53:12).
THE PERFECTIBILITY OF PERFECTION
As we have previously seen, the immortal Father is the standard
of perfection for all His creation (Mt 5:48). He has always
been and will always be incorruptibly perfect (Ro 1:23). The
rest of God's creation must "become perfect" to share
in the plan of salvation (Ro 8:19-21; Acts 3:21).
Eternal life and immortality are not synonymous because
Jesus Christ has "brought (eternal) life and immortality
to light through the gospel" (2Ti 1:10). Beings with eternal
life alone are still corruptible:
Job 4:18 If He puts no trust in His servants, if He
charges His angels with error.
The angels have eternal life (2Co 4:18), but Satan and his demons
became corrupted in character. Angelic beings are therefore not
immortal, or incorruptible, and God can destroy them (Mk 1:24;
Lk 4:34; Heb 2:14; Ezk 28:18-19). So eternal life is no guarantee
of eternal godly character, which must also be set in immortality
(1Co 15:53-54). This is why "the dead shall be raised incorruptible"
(1Co 15:52). That which is immortal (athanasia) is incorruptible
(aphtharsia).
Job 15:15 (NRSV) God puts no (blind, or unconsidered) trust
even in his holy ones, and the heavens are not clean in his sight.
The pre-incarnate Jesus Christ was also given eternal life by
His Father:
Jn 5:26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has
granted the Son to have life in Himself.
The believer who has full communion with Christ is promised the
same eternal life granted by the Father to His Son.
Jn 6:57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because
of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.
1Jn 5:11 This is the testimony: God has given us eternal
life, and this life is in His Son.
Ro 1:4 and declared to be the Son of God
with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection
from the dead.
Christ, the first of the firstfruits (ICo 15:20, 23) and the
Author of our salvation (Heb 2:10; 5:9), had restored to Him His
previous "glory" as the Elect Son of God originally
bestowed upon Him by His Father (Isa 42:1; Jn 17:5; 24). Moreover,
as the Son of God born of the resurrection, He also put on the
immortality that the glorified saints, the rest of the firstfruits
(Ro 11:16), are also to put on. Our transformation in the resurrection
will be similar to His (Php 3:21): we, too, will be clothed with
immortality, as well as with eternal life (2Ti 1:10), thus becoming
full "partakers of the divine nature" (2Pe 1:4), through
which we will be elevated even above the angelic realm (Heb 1:14;
2:5-9). Indeed, our destiny is to be the destiny of all of God's
creatures, physical and spiritual (Ro 8:29; Col 1:15; Jas 1:18).
This is why the plan of God is marvelous and wondrous to God's
angels (1Pe 1:12) and why the entire spiritual realm is learning
from God's work of salvation through the Church (Eph 3:10-11).
During His time on earth God's Son, Jesus Christ, was sinless
(2Co 5:21; 1Pe 2:22), though He was tempted as we all are.
He thus attained a perfection in the flesh that no other human
being will attain (IJn 1:8). The Scriptures also tell us that,
although sinless, He was yet further perfected through His sufferings:
Heb 2:10 For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all
things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons
to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through
sufferings (This attacks the heart and core of pagan concepts
of divine impassibility).
Then, by means of the immortality invested in Him through the
resurrection, He "has been perfected forever" (Heb 7:28).
However, as Mt 24:36, Acts 1:7 and Rev 1:1 reveal,
even the resurrected Christ is still dependent upon His Father
for revelation and knowledge. God the Father is still the God
of the resurrected Jesus Christ (Jn 20:17; Eph 1:3; Col 1:3; Rev
1:6; 3:12, and more), to whom the Son is still in subjection (1Co
15:24,28). His immortality has not bestowed upon Christ the innate
perfection of His Father. God alone is totally Almighty.
Heb 5:8-9 though He was a [perfect] Son, yet He learned
obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having
been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all
who obey Him.
Eph 4:12-13 for the equipping of the saints for the work of
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till
we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of
the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature
of the fullness of Christ.
It is precisely when our mortal bodies put on immortality, the
very opposite of our corruptible flesh (1Co 15:52-54), that our
character will be sealed in incorruption, which is part of the
"divine nature" that enables us to escape "the
corruption that is in the world through lust"(2Pe 1:4).
As already mentioned, eternal life, which is also promised through
the resurrection from the dead (Ro 6:23), is of and by itself
not the same as the inherent perfection of character that God
desires to see in His saints. Even Lucifer himself was originally
'perfect' in his ways (Ezk 28:15)!
Heb 11:40 God having provided something better for us,
that they should not be made perfect apart from us.
Heb 12:23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn
who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all,
to the spirits of just men made perfect.
Col 1:28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching
every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect
in Christ Jesus (contrast Mal 2:1-2; 1:12-14).
The resurrected saints will bear the likeness of the character
and nature of their elder brother, Jesus Christ (1Co 15:49; Ro
8:29). Their glorified bodies are compared to and contrasted with:
We will not pursue the comparison beyond stating that the vast
spectrum of diversity inherent within these three groups that
are chosen to offer a description of the nature of the glorified
body (v35) can only lead to the conclusion that there is some
parallel between physical and the spiritual life and that there
will likewise be great diversity among the resurrected saints—in power, glory, character, wisdom, knowledge, etc—all within the mould of perfection. Immortality, then, while making us perfect,
will not afford us the innate and absolute perfection of God,
who alone has nothing to learn. He will forever remain our God,
just as He remains Jesus Christ's God (Ro 15:6; 2Co 1:3; 1Pe
1:3; Rev 1:6; 3:12). Rather, the perfection invested upon God's elect at the resurrection
will ever be further "perfectible" as they learn from
their brother Jesus Christ and from the perfection of God the
Father, the only true God, and the eternal standard of perfection
for all of His creation to work towards. This is why the saints
ruling with Christ for a thousand years after the first resurrection
are the recipients of a special holy blessing (Rev 20:6): they
have the priceless opportunity to learn directly from the Elect
Son of God for an entire millennium!
We are told in the Scriptures that no man can ever fully understand
the mind of God:
Ro 11:33-34 Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom
and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments
and His ways past finding out! 34 For who has known the
mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor?
The fullness of God's Plan is likewise too awesome for us to comprehend:
1Co 2:9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen,
nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things
which God has prepared for those who love Him."
The limits of God are not comprehensible as far we human beings
are concerned. There are "secret things" (Dt 29:29;
Prov 25:2) of the plan of God that the human mind cannot fathom:
Job 11:7 Can you search out the deep things of God? Can
you find out the limits of the Almighty?
The love, goodness, power, and the majesty of the great God are
reasons for the Son's love for the Father (Jn 14:31), who is greater
than Him (Jn 14:28) and greater than all (Jn 10:29), and also
why the spiritual realm worships and praises Him unceasingly (Rev
4:8-11).
Ecc 3:11 He has made everything beautiful in its time.
Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can
find out the work that God does from beginning to end.
1Sa 5:6 But the hand of the LORD was heavy on the people
of Ashdod, and He ravaged them and struck them with tumors, both
Ashdod and its territory.
The aspect of God's foreknowledge is generally not addressed and/or
is assumed to be understood by the reader of the Word of God.
Jeremiah 18:7-10, where God is depicted as the Potter moulding
man, the clay, is an example:
2Chron 16:9 For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout
the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those
whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done
foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.
Ps 118:16 The right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right
hand of the LORD does valiantly.
1Pe 3:12 For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous,
and His ears are open to their prayers; but the face of
the LORD is against those who do evil.
Jer 18:7-10 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning
a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it,
8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns
from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to
bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation
and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10
if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice,
then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would
benefit it.
As we have seen, the Most High God already knows the response
of every individual, and of each nation, to His warnings, and
has preplanned accordingly. Any "relenting" or "reconsidering"
or "changing of mind" that we come across in the Scriptures
in reference to God the Father is included in His foreordained
purpose. Man's responses and God's reaction to them are always
known to Him.
Jn 6:5-6 Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing
a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, "Where
shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" 6 But this
He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
Christ already knew precisely, according to the blueprint of the
plan of God preordained through the foreknowledge of the Father,
what He was going to do and that a mighty miracle was to ensue.
Just as Philip was tested, so God often similarly tests human
beings with whom He works so important lessons can be learnt.
God says that He does not change (Mal 3:6).
We have shown that God does not change in His purpose because
He, who declares the end from the beginning, through His omniscience
and His foreknowledge has already mapped out—preordained—the
entire plan of salvation! The destinies of all men are recorded
in His book and the unfolding of history and prophecy is known
to Him. Not a single sparrow ever falls to the ground on planet
earth without the knowledge—indeed, the will—of God the Father
(Mt 10:29), who has numbered even the hairs on the head of every
human being alive (Mt 10:30)! Hebrews 4:13 attests to this
eternal truth:
Heb 4:13 (NIV) Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's
sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of
him to whom we must give account.
Given this, why would God ever need to change His mind? Rather,
just as "it is impossible for God to lie" (Heb 6:18),
so it is impossible for Him to change His mind and still remain
faithful to the "unchanging nature of His purpose" (Heb
6:17, NIV; Eph 3:11) in respect to His plan for His creation.
We should now be able to see this comparison in a verse previously
quoted:
Nu 23:19 (NRSV) God is not a human being, that he should
lie, or a mortal, that he should change his mind. Has he promised,
and will he not do it? Has he spoken, and will he not fulfill
it?
Likewise, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today,
and forever" (Heb 13:8) in His purpose. In Heb 1:10-12,
Ps 102:25-27 is quoted:
Ps 102:25-27 Of old You laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of Your hands. 26 They
will perish, but You will endure; yes, they will all grow old
like a garment; like a cloak You will change them, and they will
be changed. 27 But You are the same, and Your years
will have no end.
As we have already noted, since no one has seen or heard the Father
(Jn 1:18; 5:37; 6:46; 1Ti 6:16; 1Jn 4:12), it was the pre-incarnate
Christ in Old Testament times who always worked with men in perfect
accord with His Father's plan. The patriarch Jacob called Him
"the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked"
(Ge 48:15), and also referred to Him as "the Angel who has
redeemed me from evil" (Ge 48:16). He was the "Angel
of the LORD" who learnt by Abraham's actions that he truly
feared God (Ge 22:12), who had earlier in the wilderness appeared
to Hagar, who called Him God (Ge 16:7,13). In Ex 23:20-21,
this "Angel of the LORD" described Himself as the Angel
upon whom the name of God the Father rested, the same Angel who
had introduced Himself to Moses at the burning bush as "the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob" and as the "LORD"
(Acts 7:30-33). The New Testament attests to the fact that Christ
was this "angel who spoke to him [Moses] on Mount Sinai"
(Acts 7:38). The Son's purpose does not change because He shares
in the Father's foreknowledge, as it is revealed to Him, of the
plan of salvation (Jn 8:28; 14:24)
Let us now consider three of the biblical accounts of God "changing
His mind" and allow the Scriptures to provide further validation
of what we learn about the Father's immutable purpose:
Contextually, this makes no sense, as it is inferred from verse
3 that even before the Lord's 'grief', He had limited the timespan
of that generation to one hundred and twenty years. This period
of grace was coming to an end by the time the Flood was unleashed
in Ge 7:11. In Mt 24:37-41, Christ described the generation
of Noah's day as being as much a part of the foreknown plan of
God as is the end-time generation to which it is compared and
which it parallels. The Father knows the precise time of the
judgment at the end of the age (v36)—just as He foreknew the
judgment to come by means of the Flood. Moreover, the prophecy
of Ge 3:15 foretold the death of the Messiah and His ultimate
triumph, so His physical lineage through the descendants of Noah
(Lk 3:35), and thus the preservation of Noah's family, was always
a part of God's intention.
Ex 32:14 (NRSV) And the LORD changed his mind about the
disaster that he planned to bring on his people.
Does this verse mean that God realised that He had sufficiently
punished Israel and so changed His mind about the disaster He
had previously announced He would bring upon His people (v9-10)?
In other words, did Moses' intercession (v11-13) and his appeal
to God on the basis of His reputation and His promises to the
patriarchs effect a change in God's mind and intentions? The answer
is obvious: to have destroyed Israel and to have made a great
nation out of Moses' descendants would have annulled all the prophecies
pertaining to Israel, beginning with the promise of their entry
into the promised land (Ex 15:17), and culminating in the promises
made to spiritual Israel, the Church of God (Gal 6:16; Php 3:3).
And God's purposes are always perfect and His promises sure (Nu
23:19). Moses was under no illusion that the promises made to
the patriarchs because of Abraham's obedience, and reinforced
by God with an oath (Ge 22:16), would be fulfilled as originally
intended, and not directly through his own family (Ex 32:13).
What we have in Ex 32:14, therefore, is an account of God's
actions through human eyes and for a human audience. Furthermore,
it would seem that God revealed to Moses the depth of love and
committment Moses had for the people—a love according to the
will of God.
Having considered the immutable purpose and nature of the immortal
Father of Jesus Christ, let us now turn our attention to the notions
about God and His work with His people which we presented at the
beginning of this paper, incorrect notions which still hold sway
among the "Churches of God" today and which need to
be corrected in the light of what Scripture teaches.
CONCLUSION
Since every decision of man is known to Him, the Father has accordingly
preordained His responses to the decisions of His saints so that,
through the exercise of free will, they are aided in making godly
decisions and in avoiding ungodly ones, and the righteous character
is built that will enable the Christian race to be won.
It is quite possible that Jesus Christ, who works directly with
the heirs of salvation to the end, may not always know (as the
example of Abraham in Ge 22:12 reveals) the ultimate outcome
of His work with each individual Christian in order to be a fair
and impartial High Priest in His dealings with them (Heb 2:17;
4:15), one who is able to perfectly meet our need (Heb 7:25-28).
The true God must know all things. He never chooses "not
to know":
Heb 4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His
sight, but all things are naked and open to the
eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
God always "knows everything" (1Jn 3:20)—all
the time!
Ps 33:13-15 The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons
of men. 14 From the place of His dwelling He looks On all
the inhabitants of the earth; 15 He fashions their hearts
individually; He considers all their works.
Prov 24:12 (NRSV) if you say, "Look, we did not know
this"—does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does
not he who keeps watch over your soul know it? And will he not
repay all according to their deeds?
Jer 32:19 You are great in counsel and mighty in
work, for your eyes are open to all the ways of
the sons of men, to give everyone according to his ways and according
to the fruit of his doings.
This understanding of the power of the immortal God, of His omniscience,
His immutable nature and purpose and of His preordained plan for
all creation ought to be a cause for immense joy in the lives
of His saints because of the certainty of the hope laid out before
us (Ro 5:2). This hope, stored up in heaven for God's elect
(Col 1:5), should establish us in faith and love (Col 1:4). We
have been chosen from time immemorial (Eph 1:4; 2Th 2:13) by
the foreknowledge of the true God (1Pe 1:2), according to His
purpose (Ro 8:28), and predestined for glory (Ro 8:29-30).
If we do our part and hold fast (Ro 11:22; Heb 3:6,14; Rev 3:11),
it is as good as done (Ro 8:30). We are known by God (2Ti 2:19),
who has prepared a place for us in the first resurrection (Mt
20:23; 25:34). We are indeed God's chosen people, "whom He
has prepared in advance for glory" (Ro 9:23-24, NIV). If
we are destined for this glory, we cannot fail, for God through
Jesus Christ will work in our lives, in accordance with His foreknowledge,
as long as we will to allow Him to achieve His preordained purpose
for us (Php 1:6; 2:13). This is how we are "His workmanship,
created in Jesus Christ," who works with all whom God has
called and given Him (Jn 6:44,65; 17:2).