The title of my message this
evening is Not Even a Shadow. I will be working my way to James
chapter 1 and verse 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. Three
times in the book of God, we are given specific declarations
of the immutability of our God. The absolute, unchangeable character
of God. God, our God, does not change. He cannot change, and He cannot
be changed. It's almost impossible for us
with our puny brains to get any sense of what this declaration
is. God is immutable. God is immutable. Nothing changes Him. Nothing alters Him at all to
any degree. God is immutable. Let's begin
in Malachi chapter 3. Malachi chapter 3. Now God's immutability is taught
throughout the book of God. It is stated in many, many ways.
But here are three distinct declarations of immutability in God. Here
in Malachi chapter 3, the Lord God Himself, speaking by His
prophet Malachi, asserts His own immutability. His immutability
as God, the triune God, the triune Jehovah, Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost. For I am the Lord. The word there,
Lord, is capitalized, all four letters capitalized, an indication
to you that the translators are saying this is Jehovah. The word
Lord here is Jehovah. It refers to the three persons
of the triune God He had by the name with which the Lord God
made himself known to Moses in the burning bush. I am Jehovah, Father, Son, and
Holy Ghost. I change not. Therefore, ye sons
of Jacob are not consumed. The Lord Jehovah, our great God,
here encourages faith in him, peace before him, assurance from
him faith peace and assurance if you read the context in which
in which this statement is given when God is bringing horrible
judgment upon the land because of their sin when God is bringing horrible
judgment upon the land because of their sin yet God here speaks
a word to give his people faith and Peace and assurance. And here is his word. I am the Lord. I change not. Therefore, you
sons of Jacob are not consumed. Lord, why have you done this
to our land? You've said, Jacob, I have loved thee, so I have
hated. But how is it? It doesn't look much like it
does. How is it you've loved us? How is it you've done things
special for us? How is it you've chosen us and
set us aside? Look what you've done to us in
your judgment upon the nation and the pain and heartache we
feel. I am the Lord. I change not. Therefore, you
sons of Jacob are not consumed. The Lord Jehovah, our great God,
encourages faith, peace, and assurance with this description
of himself by which he declares his absolute immutability. You see, faith, real faith, if
we really believe God, cannot rest upon any object except the
unchangeable God. One who is absolutely immutable. One who does not change, is not
changed, and cannot be changed. Only one who stands as the solid
pillar of immutability can be believed and trusted absolutely. No man can have such faith. No imaginary deity can be given
such faith. This faith, the faith God gives
us in himself, is faith in God who changes not. And the foundation
of all peace, assurance, and security is in the fact of our
God's immutability. Now here's the claim of one who
is sovereign. I am the Lord. There is but one
true God. but one true and living God. He who is God sits upon the lofty
throne of the universe, Lord over all. Jehovah our God, Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit, claims eternal greatness as the sovereign
God of the universe. He's the holy, infinite, all-knowing,
all-seeing, almighty, universally present, sovereign God. Because
He is God, Jehovah demands, deserves, and shall absolutely have, one
way or another, our reverence before Him as God. I am the Lord. When He says that, God reveals
Himself and demands that we bow to Him as Lord. It's God's character
that demands and calls his faith. We trust him because he is God,
the Lord, the sovereign, unchanging one. We trust him because he,
our God, changes not. God reaches everything. Nothing reaches God. God changes
everything. Nothing changes God. God affects
everything. Nothing affects God. God moves
all things. Nothing moves God. God touches
everything. Everything. Nothing touches God. Nothing. Sitting on his high
glorious throne in the ease and serenity of absolute sovereignty,
he says, I am Jehovah, I change not. And then this great unchanging
God speaks of a people, a chosen people, an elect favored people,
a people whom he's called for himself, the objects of his grace,
people redeemed by his own sacrifice. Ye sons of Jacob. These are God's
people. The people of God's choice. The
people of God because God made them His. We who believe are
God's people. God's choice. The objects of
God's love. Those whom God's called. Those
separated by God from my mother's womb. Called by His grace to
be His sons and daughters. And to these favored, beloved,
chosen, redeemed, blood-bought covenant people, God makes a
promise. Therefore ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. Turn back to the 89th Psalm,
Psalm 89. Were it not for the fact that
God never changes, we would have been consumed long ago. But God doesn't change. God doesn't
change at all, not by anything, not for any reason. Here in Psalm
89, his chosen, redeemed, believing people are described. Verse 29,
his seed, his seed. Now obviously this is not talking
about just David. David is here given as a representative
and a picture and a type of our Redeemer. Christ's seed also
will I make to endure forever and his throne as the days of
heaven. If his children forsake my law
and walk not in my judgments, if they break my statutes and
keep not my commandments. And you can write the if as small
as you want to. Read it in huge capital letters.
Read it as when. For this is a matter of certainty.
This is a matter of certainty. When my children forsake my law
and walk not in my judgments, when they break my statutes and
keep not my commandments, then will I visit their transgressions
with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. Now hold your hands
right here and turn over to Isaiah chapter 53. Isaiah chapter 53. Now I know the Lord chastens
His people. I know the Lord corrects His
people. But don't ever get the idea that God punishes His people
for their sins. He punished our sins in our substitute. Look here in Isaiah 53 verse
4. He hath borne our griefs and
carried our sorrows. Yet we did esteem him stricken,
smitten of God and afflicted. He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him. And with his stripes, we are
healed. Back here in Psalm 89. Then will I visit their transgressions
with a rod and their iniquities with stripes. Nevertheless, that's
one of the most wonderful words in the English language. Nevertheless,
my loving kindness will I not utterly take. You see what it
says? From Him. From Him. I won't take my loving kindness
from my servant David, my servant the Lord Jesus, nor suffer my
faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break,
nor alter the thing that's gone out of my lips. And yet there's
more. Because our God changes not,
not one of those chosen sons of Jacob. shall ever be consumed. This one Bill who is our God,
who says I change not, therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed,
said this to you too, I give unto them eternal life and they
shall never perish. This is the assurance we have
from the fact that our God does not change, cannot change, and
cannot be changed. Now, turn to Hebrews chapter
13. Hebrews chapter 13. Here's the second text, which
describes the immutability of our God. But here in Hebrews
13, the Spirit of God is teaching us to love one another. He's
teaching us to live uprightly in this present evil world, being
content with God's grace, His provision and His providence.
For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Now let's pick up reading in
verse six. So that we may boldly say, the Lord is my helper, and
I will not fear what man shall do unto me. Remember them which
have the rule over you, who have spoken to you the word of God,
whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.
Now here is the reason. the basis for these admonitions.
Here's the end of our conversation, the end of our lives. Jesus Christ,
the same yesterday and today and forever. Jesus Christ, the
same yesterday and today and forever. That's true of no man
except him who is the God man. Jesus Christ the same yesterday
and today and forever. Nothing remains the same. Everything changes. Sometimes
the changes are painful. Sometimes they're delightful.
Sometimes they're pleasant. Sometimes they're unbearable.
But change is inevitable. How our families change. How they change. The states change, sometimes
overnight. The nation changes. Oh, how different things are
now than they were 10 years ago. How different than they were
20 years ago. How different than they were 30 years ago. Oh, my. How things have changed. How
things have changed. And in my lifetime, how things have changed.
We have changes in our health. A man's strong one day, so strong
that just you look at him and think he's invincible. And the
next day, be broken and weak and thank God for changes in
our hearts. Changes that grace alone makes.
Changes that teach us something of humility before his throne,
real humility. Something of contrition before
him, not a put on show for men, but real contrition before God. Something of satisfaction with
his providence and faith in him. What changes? Winter turns to
spring, spring to summer, summer to fall, and fall to winter again. Everything changes. Nothing in
this world stays the same. Nothing solid, nothing substantial,
nothing lasting. Reach out and get all you can.
Everything you can get, Mark, is just air. Just grab your handful of it.
Try to hang on to it. of Benedictus, all is Benedictus. Oh, what men and women sacrifice
for a fistful of air. When the wise men cried, Benedictus,
Benedictus, all is Benedictus, that wasn't an expression of
hopeless despair. That was a declaration of fact
written by inspiration of God. Is there anything solid? Anything
that you can look at and say, this is invincible. This stands. This is firm. This won't shake. This won't
rock to and fro. This won't reel back and forth.
Anything? Oh, yes. Jesus Christ the same
yesterday and today and forever. You won't find that Lindsay in
me and I won't find it in you. No, you find that only in him
who is God who changes not. The Lord Jesus, he upon whom
we have set our hearts by the grace of God, he who is the object
of our faith, is Christ our God sitting on the throne of the
universe and he never changes. He cannot change. He cannot be
changed. He's always the same. What does
that mean? Let me suggest a few things. All that he was yesterday, he
is today. And all that he was yesterday
of eternity, past, he is today. So that he who was from everlasting,
the object of his father's delight. He who was from everlasting,
that one in whom God put all things. He who was from everlasting,
the dispenser of all things, of all grace, of all mercy, he
who holds all and dispenses all, is Jesus Christ himself, the
same. Yesterday, today, and forever. All that he was yesterday, while
he walked upon this earth, I don't know that I can say this
like it ought to be said, and I know we can't begin to grasp
it like we ought to grasp it. All that he was yesterday while
he walked on this earth in human flesh, just like we have right
now, just like you walk on this earth with right now, that he
is today as he sits on the throne of the universe. Was he tender,
full of compassion? That he is now. That he is now. I often discuss with friends,
I had a call just the other day with Todd and I were chatting
about our Lord looking over Jerusalem, moved with compassion. How do
you explain that? I don't know. I sure would hate
to explain it away. Moved with compassion. Was he
moved with compassion yesterday toward the souls of needy men?
So he is today. Is he tender of heart? he was
when he said suffer the little children to come to me and forbid
them not is he Approachable today as he was in that day when men
could walk up to him and touch him even when forbidden He's
away away leave him alone leave him alone. Let him cry to me
I like to hear that voice Jesus thou son of David have mercy
on me leave that leave that woman alone. Who was that that touched
me? So he is today full of compassion tender and accessible as he was
yesterday. All that he was in the yesterdays
of these past 2,000 years, since he ascended up to glory, he is
today. He took the reins of the universe. And he's never turned loose and
never will. He poured out his spirit upon
his church, and he's never taken it back. He breathed on his disciples
and said, receive ye the Holy Ghost. As my Father sent me,
so have I sent you into the world. And he's never retracted the
statement. Since he ascended into glory, he has added to the
church daily such as should be said. And he still adds to the
church daily such as should be said. Second, this means that
because he is the same yesterday, today and forever, all that Christ
is and has been, he will forever be. And all that he will be forever,
he is right now for all his people. All that Christ will be to my
soul, in the full gift of His glory. When I sit with Him in Heaven's
glory, all that He will be to me then, that He is to me now. Oh, that I had faith to walk
in such light. He said, Father, the glory Thou
hast given me, I have given them. this glory that I had with you
before the world was, this glory that now you have manifestly
given me, that glory I've given to them, all my people, all my
disciples. So that amid the changes that
take place in this world, amid the changes that take place in
our hearts, there's a message from God containing joy, and
strength which nothing can take away. Jesus Christ, our God and
Savior, is to say, yesterday and today and forever. Here's
the third thing. Today. Oh, I like that term. Today. Right now. Today. We have a terrible tendency
to want to live just for today. Well grab hold of today for just
a minute, will you? Jesus Christ is the same today,
right now. Today, if you will hear his voice,
harden not your hearts. Trust him who changes not. Look not to yourself, your fickle
feelings, or your fickle ways. but to him who is faithful and
true. Look at verse 7 in Hebrews 13. Remember them which have the
rule over you, who have spoken to you the word of God, whose
faith follow, considering the end of their conversation. Paul admonishes us to remember
those men who have preached the gospel to us, who have served
our souls, to follow their examples of faith and faithfulness, keeping
our hearts and our minds fixed on Christ. Consider Him. Always consider Him who endured
such contradiction for sinners, such contradiction against Himself,
who endured such suffering, such pain, such agony, such woe in
order to redeem us. Consider Him who set His face
like a flame and would not be turned back. considering the
end of your faith, Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today
and forever. Now, look at verse 9 in Hebrews
13, the text that follows verse 8. Be not carried about with
divers winds or divers in strange doctrine, for it is a good thing
that the heart be established with grace and not with meats
which have not profited them which have been occupied therein. The admonition here is the doctrinal
steadfastness. If you would have your heart
established, have your heart fixed on Christ, have your heart
set on the... Ask God to set your heart on
his son. When you open this book, ask
God to set your heart on his son. Quit looking for something nobody
else has ever said. Quit looking for mysteries to
unravel. Just quit that. Just quit that.
Look for Christ. Look for Christ. I have in my
mind a picture. I have it on my computer back
here under an office. And it's a picture that sat on my desk
every day, every day, 24 hours a day, when I was separated from
my fiancee, this lady here. for a year. And I like a picture. I like the picture. And I have
a pretty good, pretty good remembrance of what she was wearing when
the picture was taken. I took it and had the picture made.
And I've looked at it a lot. I looked at it a lot. I even
remember the pin that she was wearing on the blouse she had
on, actually she had on a sweater. I remember it well. I remember
it well. I would almost be offended if
anybody came and looked at the picture and asked me about the
pen. I'd almost be offended if they
said, whoa, isn't that a pretty sweater she's got on. What? That's all you saw? Something's
wrong with you. Something's wrong with you. Quit looking for the brand of
the pen. cost of the sweater and look
to the Redeemer. And this book will mean something
to you. This book will mean something to you. Jesus Christ the same
yesterday, today, and forever. Everything is built on Him. Everything
is in Him. Everything flows from Him. Everything
points to Him. All right now let's look at James,
James chapter 1. James chapter 1, verse 17. Every good gift and every perfect
gift. Christ is God's good and perfect
gift, certainly that's so. But here he uses the words every
good and every perfect gift, making us to understand that
all the gifts of God are good and perfect gifts to His people.
All the gifts of His grace, all the gifts of His salvation, all
the gift of eternal life, all the gifts of creation, all the
gifts of providence, these are, for God's elect, good and perfect
gifts. Whatever God brings to pass,
He brings to pass for our benefit, and everything is beautiful in
its own time. every good and every perfect
gift is from above and cometh down constantly coming down from
above cometh down from above they come down from above from
the father of lights what a name for our God God is light and
in him is no darkness at all He who is the creator of light
is the father of lights. He who is our God is the God
and father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the light of the world.
He's the father and the giver of all light in the world. So if we have light, God gives
it. Doesn't matter what kind of light
you talk about. Carnal light, spiritual light. Moral light,
rational light. Whatever light we have, God gives
it. With whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning. What a declaration of God's immutability. Writing by inspiration of the
Holy Ghost, James tells us that unlike the Son that God made,
God who made the Son has no variableness. No phase. No transmutation. No orbit. No fickleness. No change. No explosiveness. No variableness. Neither a shadow of turning. Not even a hint of change. Not even a hint of change. How great that God must be with
whom there is not even a shadow of turning. Not even a shadow
of turning. Behold God in his eternal, ineffable,
glorious being. He says, I am God. Beside me
there is none else. I am the Lord thy God, and I
will be thy God, and they shall be my people. I'll forgive their
iniquity, their transgressions, and their sins. Now watch how
he works through the ages. Oh, my. How many rising and setting
suns? How many dark pillars of clouds? How many bright pillars of fire?
How many nights, dark, dark nights? How many of those nights like
you read about in Solomon's story? Dark nights spiritually in our
soul. Dark, dark nights. All God's
working. And he's never batted his eyes. He's never turned his eyes. There's
not a hint anywhere in history or a hint anywhere in time or
a hint anywhere in this book that God ever changed his mind
about anything. His purpose stands sure. His
purpose stands fast. Job, my, what a life he had. What a life he had. What difficulties? What ups and downs? What rejoicings
and weepings? What sorrows and delights? His
son's born to him, his daughter's born to him, his health strong,
his family increasing, and his riches increasing, and his lands
increasing, and then everything gone. Everything gone. Gone, just like that, gone, everything. And Job's in misery. And his
friends are accusing him of evil. And Job behaves like he ought
not to behave. But in all the darkness, in all
the darkness, in all the trouble, in all the heartache, you know
what Job said? performeth the thing appointed
for me. This is God's purpose. This is
God's will. This is God's delight. This is
God's design for me. And God's going to perform what
he appointed for me. Nothing changes him. Satan led
a revolt in heaven. The angels, many of them joined
him. One-third of them joined him.
Nothing changed. Adam fell in the garden, nothing
changed. We came forth from our mother's
womb, speaking the lie, and lived in rebellion to God all the days
of our lives, nothing changed. Having loved his own, he loved
them to the end. And at the appointed time of
love, called us by his grace, and so it shall be with every
sinner chosen of God from eternity, redeemed by Christ at Calvary,
They shall, at God's appointed time, be called by His grace,
because this is our God, the Father of lights, with whom is
no variableness. No variableness. When I was a
strong young man, I could hold my hand out there with a good
bit of weight in it and never shake. I can't hardly hold that
shit without it shaking now. But you can't see it, not where
you're sitting. That's nothing. That's nothing. That's nothing. Nothing about
God ever even appears to shake. Nothing. Nothing. His purpose stands. May God give
us grace to commit ourselves to him. who changes not. That one who is God, our Savior,
with whom there is not even so much as a shadow of turning. Oh, how we ought to trust Him.
How faithfully we ought to serve Him. How implicitly we ought
to believe Him. How peacefully we ought to walk
before Him. How delightfully We ought to
anticipate the finishing of His will in all things. Amen.