God's character does not change. Strain, or shock or a lobotomy can alter the character of a per son, but nothing can alter the character of God. In the course of a human life, tastes and outlook and temper may change radically; a kind equable person may turn bitter and crotchety; a person of good will may grow cynical and callous. But nothing of this sort happens to the Creator. He never becomes less truthful, or merciful, or just, or good than he used to be. The character of God is today, and always will be, exactly what it was in Bible times.
God's revealed name is, of course, more than a label; it is a revelation of what he is in relation to us. In Exodus 3, we read how God announced his name to Moses as "I AM WHO I AM" (v.14) a phrase of which "Yahweh" (Jehovah, "the Lord") is in effect a shortened form (v.15). This name is not a description of God, but simply a declaration of his self-existence and his eternal change-lessness; a reminder to mankind that he has life in himself, and that what he is now, he is eternally.
J.I. Packer, Knowing God, pg77-78.
No comments:
Post a Comment