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The Daily Word of Righteousness
God's Unfolding Plan
For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus 2:11-14
For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. (Malachi 3:6)
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. (Hebrews 13:8)
God never changes. The Scriptures teach and we Christians acknowledge that God never changes. But there is much pressure on us to accept that the "God of the Old Testament" was different somehow from the "God of today."
The truth is, He was not different. God does not change.
The complete satisfaction of the Divine justice executed on the cross of Calvary has made certain things possible that were not possible before Christ made the great atonement. But the goodness and severity of God were magnified, not changed, by what took place in Gethsemane and on the cross.
God's plan for man, including man's obedience to the eternal moral law, his acquiring righteousness by faith, the Divine insistence on purity of heart, meekness, and a number of other conditions and relationships, has not changed from the time of Adam and Eve and never shall change.
The saints of all ages have more in common than they have differences. This is why the Spirit of God, in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews, uses Old Testament personalities, beginning with the second son of Adam, to teach Christians the meaning of "the just shall live by faith" (Hebrews 10:38 and 11:4).
All the heroes of faith to the present hour have had and do have much in common. The meek always have inherited and always will inherit the earth (not Heaven, as our tradition mistakenly teaches).
The willing and obedient always have eaten and always will eat of the good of the land. Perfect peace always has been and always will be the possession of those who love the law of the Lord. No good thing ever has been or ever will be withheld from him who walks uprightly.
The Divine principles will always be in effect. A million years from now, when the saints of the new Jerusalem are governing the nations of saved peoples of the earth, the righteous still will be living by faith. God does not spend our lifetime teaching us His ways because He intends to abandon them in the future. The Lord God of Heaven always and forever will bless those who walk uprightly before Him, while those who refuse and rebel will find themselves in dry places indeed. Heaven and earth will pass away but the Word of God shall never be changed in any manner.
Much attention has been given by theologians to the study of the Divine "covenants," and perhaps the investigation of this scriptural concept has brought understanding to us.
In addition, some scholars have presented the concept of the "dispensation." We personally have not found this to be a helpful model, particularly since dispensationalism separates physical Israel from the Christian Church. We think the concept of the "Gentile Church" has destroyed our ability to understand the Prophets of the Old Testament. Wrong goals and an incorrect view of Christ's return have resulted.
To be continued.