Heb. 13:8 JESUS CHRIST: FOREVER THE SAME
Intro: This precious verse showcases the often neglected, but very vital
doctrine of the "immutability" of God. In simple terms, the doctrine of
immutability means that God Almighty has never, can never and will never change. He is, by
His very nature, unchangeable! This means that He is as powerful as ever. He is as loving,
as merciful, as full of grace, as holy and as much in control as He has ever been. He is
still God and He will always be God. He is absolutely unchangeable. This is one of the
essential doctrines of Christianity! Why is the immutability so important? Because change
implies imperfection and God is absolutely perfect. Therefore, He cannot change, ever!
This truth is borne out in several Scripture passages,
- •Ps 90:2, "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever
thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art
God."
- •Mal 3:6, "For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye
sons of Jacob are not consumed."
- •James 1:17, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is
from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning."
- •Rev 1:8, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the
ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."
This evening, I would like to take this passage, which reveals the same
immutability in the Lord Jesus and share with you a few areas where Jesus is absolutely
unchangeable.
Jesus will never change in regard to:
I. (Matt. 28:18) HIS POWER
(Ill. The verse tells us that Jesus has been given power. Just what does
this mean? The word power comes from the Greek word exousia, (Ill. We get our word Exude
from this word.) This word literally means; 1) power of choice, liberty of doing as one
pleases 1a) leave or permission 2) physical and mental power 2a) the ability or strength
with which one is endued, which he either possesses or exercises 3) the power of authority
(influence) and of right (privilege) 4) the power of rule or government (the power of him
whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed) 4a) universally 4a1)
authority over mankind. Simply stated, Jesus is the All-powerful Lord
this evening. Also, notice that Jesus said that this power had been "given" unto
Him. This word is in the Aorist, Passive, Indicative. This simply means that at some time
in the past, God the Father gave Jesus His power and authority and that this gift has
ongoing power into the future, In other words, it is God's will that Jesus possess all
power in Heaven and earth and nothing can change this fact.)
A. His Creative Power - (Ill. Jesus was the
agent of Creation - John 1:3; Col. 1:16-17.) This is the same power that is working in and
around us - Eph. 3:20. That is why we can say with all assurance of heart, that Jesus is
"Able!" (Ill. This is the power that makes prayer such an effective tool in the
hand of the believer - Matt. 21:21.
B. His Redemptive Power - Ill. Jesus is the
Author and the Finisher of our faith, Heb. 12:2. That is, He paid the price and He is the
only One in whom salvation can be found, Acts 4:12. He will never lose His saving power!
(Ill. Heb. 7:25)
C. His Protective Power - Ill. Jesus is still
the Good Shepherd, John 10:11 and He will care for the sheep until they all arrive safely
home, Heb. 13:5. (Ill. In Psalm 23, The Lord promises to care for His sheep in ever
conceivable manner. Ill. If He will do it for others, He will do it for you, Rom. 2:11. He
will see you safely to Heaven!)
I. His Power
II. Rom. 4:21 HIS PROMISES
(Ill. In this verse, the word "Promised" is in
the perfect tense in the Greek. This corresponds to the perfect tense in English, and
describes an action which is viewed as having been completed in the past, once and for
all, not needing to be repeated. To put it very simply, when God makes a promise, He has
no need to repeat Himself, but His promises are good forever.) (Ill. There are some
precious promises that you and I have from the Godhead. These are things about which the
Lord will not change His mind!)
A. He Has Promised To Save Us - The
promise is clear, Rom. 10:13. When a lost sinner comes to Jesus by faith, he is saved by
grace and prepared for Heaven. This a promise that will never change! (Ill. Therefore, do
not let the devil play mind games with you. If you have trusted Jesus Christ for
salvation, as the Bible teaches, then you are saved and going to Heaven. If not, then you
need to be saved, and please understand that Jesus will save your soul, John 6:37.)
B. He Has Promised To Supply Us -
Again, the promise is clear, Phil. 4:19. God will take care of you! He may not maintain
your standard of living, but He will meet your needs, Matt. 6:25-34. When you have
finished your journey, you will never be able to honestly say that the Lord ever let you
down!
C. He Has Promised To Satisfy Us -
When Jesus met the woman at the well in John 4, He promised her a drink of living water
that would eternally satisfy, John 4:13-14. He also promised to satisfy the hungry soul,
Psa. 107:9.
(Ill. Why does it seem, then, that most Christians are
unsatisfied? Why are they always looking for something else? Many have never learned the
secret to genuine contentment. Most Christians think that they have to have things to
satisfy them. They have never learned to be happy with Jesus and what He can give, 1 Tim.
6:8; Heb. 13:5. It would do us all well to remember that in Jesus we find all we need. He
knows our needs and will take care of the things which we lack.)
D. He Has Promised To Secure Us -
There is no doctrine more precious to the saints of God than the doctrine of our eternal
security in the Lord Jesus Christ. Simply stated, if you have ever been saved, then you
will ever be saved! Jesus didn't save you to abandon you along the way. He saved you to
take you to Heaven as a trophy of grace and as a part of His body. He will ever keep His
saints until they arrive safely home in glory, 1 Pet. 1:5; John 10:28. (Ill. I wonder how
people believe that a God who can't keep them can save them? It takes more power to save
to begin with than it does to keep one saved. Because, in salvation, God justifies the
sinner. He declares us righteous, putting away all our sins, past, present and future!)
E. He Has Promised To Sustain Us -
By this, I mean is that God has promised to give us grace along the way. (Ill. The trial
endured by the Apostle Paul - 2 Cor. 12:7-9. God did not remove the burden borne by the
Apostle, but, instead, He gave him grace to bear the burden!) Please know that no matter
what you are called upon to face in life, you can face it with the assurance that Jesus
will always be there, Matt. 28:20. That He will give grace, 2 Cor. 12:9. That He will keep
things under control, 1 Cor. 10:13. That He will use every trial and valley for your good,
Rom. 8:28.
I. His Power
II. His Promises
III. Heb. 1:12 HIS PERSONALITY
(Ill. This verse simply reaffirms the truth of our text.
Jesus Christ will never change! Therefore, any attributes which He possessed in the
beginning, He still possesses today, and He will possess them into eternity future. That
which He was, He is and He ever will be! Therefore, His personality will never change!)
A. He Is Love - (I John 4:8)
According to this verse, God is love! That is, in His very nature God is a God of love.
Everything He does is an expression and an outgrowth of His love and He will never change.
If God is love, and He is, then there will never be a time when you will not be loved by
God, Jer. 31:3; Rom. 8:38-39. God loved you before He saved you, He loves you now and He
will love you forever! He is love and you are the object of His love!
B. He Is Light - (John 8:12) By His
very nature, Jesus is Light. His very purpose in coming into the world was to bring the
light of God to those drowning in a sea of darkness. He came to manifest the Father to
fallen men, John 14:9. He is still in that business tonight and He ever will be. He is the
Light and He will ever be the Light! He offers hope to those in darkness this evening. He
can and will bring them out and into the Light of God.
C. He is Life - (John 14:6; John
1:4) Jesus is not just another life, He is the Life! It is in Him and in Him alone that
dead sinners can live, Eph. 2:1, 5. To know Jesus is to know life, to be without Him is to
abide in death, 1 John 5:12. He is Life and He will ever be Life. All the life on this
planet sprang from Him, Gen. 1-2. Even man was created by Jesus and has life today because
the Creator breathed the breath of life into man, Gen. 2:7. He is the Creator of life and
He is the sustainer of life. This will never change! For a man to truly live, he must know
Jesus - John 1:12; 3:36.
D. He Is Lord - (Acts 2:36) As I
have shared with you in the past, no one "makes" Jesus the Lord of their life.
He is already Lord whether you and I acknowledge it or not! This world certainly does not
live like Jesus is Lord, but that changes nothing! Many churches and Christians do not
live like He is Lord, but that too changes nothing! Jesus is Lord! He will ever be Lord!
He is Lord! One day, His power and position as Lord of all will be revealed to everyone,
(Ill. Rev.19:11-21; Rev. 20:11-15). He is Lord and the best you and I can do is live like
we know it and honor it!
Conc: This world around us, even our very lives are in a
constant state of flux. Things are always changing for you and me. I find it very
refreshing and comforting to know that the God I serve and the Lord I have received as my
Savior will never change. Perhaps there are needs tonight in your life. Perhaps you need
to come to Him and share you burdens and find help from an immutable, unchangeable Lord.
He loves you and is here tonight to help you if you will come to Him and call on His name.
Will you come to the Lord this evening?
