I love to organize. Whether events, activities, schedules or trips it’s probably my most enjoyable thing besides teaching.
A few years ago I was the director of a Bible Institute in Russia. My main responsibility was to coordinate the different men as they traveled over to teach. I organized the teaching schedule, oversaw communications with our churches in the Northwest, managed the finances and helped with flight itineraries.
It was wonderful!
One of the things I like to do is to get into the details and try to figure out a better or less expensive way to do something.
The Bible Institute we worked with was on Sakhalin Island, just north of Japan. The flight schedule that was planned for us was to fly from the West Coast to New York, from New York to Moscow and from Moscow to Sakhalin. This would take two days travel time and have us flying about three quarters of the way around the world.
As I looked at the map it seemed to me it would make more sense to simply fly West over the Pacific to South Korea and then up to the Island. It would only be one day travel time and be less taxing for the men.
As I looked into setting up travel arrangements this way I was told by the organization we were working under it couldn’t be done. The flights wouldn’t coincide, the price would be higher and it just wouldn’t work.
After several days of frustration, closed doors and dead end leads something changed. I came across a travel agency in Seattle that was able to put flights together that met our needs at a price that was over $100 less than flying most of the way around the world.
Since I was the director of the school I used the more direct flight to see if indeed it worked. Getting to Sakhalin went off without a hitch. But when I got there I was told there had been a change and I would have to stay at least one day in San Francisco on my return flight. Fortunately when I arrived in SF I was able to take a standby seat and get home that day.
With this, as in all of life, some times when something changes it’s a good thing and sometimes it’s not.
What got me to thinking about the idea of change was hearing this week the Mormons have changed their stance on homosexuality. Officially they say they haven’t changed, but when one of their top leaders goes before the Salt Lake City Council to give their support for treating homosexual couples equal to heterosexual couples in housing laws their actions make it clear something has changed.
As I thought about it I was brought back to how great it is to know and love a God who doesn’t change. The theological term is that He is immutable.
Can you imagine serving a God who changes, who learned and grew and knew more today than yesterday? It would be hard to stake your life, and especially your eternal destiny, on someone who tells you today how to be saved or live rightly only to have him come to a better understanding later and change it.
As I contemplated this I realized how much I take God’s immutability for granted. What He said 9,000 years ago to Adam and Eve about salvation, righteous living, spiritual maturity and other crucial eternal matters is the same thing He is saying to you and me.
Down through the ages different heretical teachings have arisen to question God immutability. The most recent to ripple through our country is openness theology. This belief says that “there is no certain future knowledge, and God is learning too.”
Those who espouse this say God is learning and developing right along with us as time progresses. They do not believe God is immutable.
Throughout Scripture, however, God tells us that He does not change.
I Samuel 15:29 “And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind.”
Psalm 102:25-27 “Of old Thou didst found the earth; And the heavens are the work of Thy hands. Even they will perish, but Thou dost endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing Thou wilt change them, and they will be changed. But Thou art the same, And Thy years will not come to an end.”
Malachi 3:6 “For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.”
Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.”
James 1:17 “Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation, or shifting shadow.”
From these and many other passages the Bible emphasizes over and over again the immutable nature of God.
How comforting it is to know that what God wrote in His Word over 2,000 years ago is still true and relevant today. And the security we can have from the reality that the direction He gives today He won’t later have to say He made a mistake or realize He was in error.
That’s what’s been on my heart this week.
Mark