A man I used to work
with couldn’t comprehend how the God of the New Testament was the same God of
the Old Testament. He said, “Look at how
He treated people before Jesus came. He
killed two guys because of the fire they used.
He zapped another because he touched something while trying to keep it
from falling. He wiped out whole cities
and told His people to kill everybody - including women, children and animals! This can’t be the same God in the New
Testament who calls for love and forgiveness and mercy and peace and kindness
and patience. It’s as if He had an evil
twin brother.”
It does appear on a
human level that God changed between the testaments. The explanation I was taught while growing up
was “a change of covenants requires a change of actions.” I don’t see it that way. Hebrews 13:8, Revelation 1:8
and 4:8 clearly state that God hasn’t, nor will He ever change. The difference, as I see it, is not in how
God reacted, but in how He related with His people.
For example, when my
children were infants, I had to do a lot of telling and commanding. When they resisted, I disciplined accordingly
and often. As they grew and learned how
to behave, I was able to allow them extra freedoms. I guided them as they acquired more skills
and didn’t need to correct them as often.
Have I changed from being their father? Am I a different father? No, I’m the same dad. But I have changed the way I relate with them
as we grow up together. This explains
the apparent difference between the God of the Old and New Testaments. He hasn’t changed. He’s just been able to relate differently
with His people as they grow in faith.
But remember: While
the New Testament describes Him as a God of patience and mercy, it also says
that He is just and will deal with sin and evil the same way He did in the Old
Testament. His desire is for everyone to
repent, be baptized into Jesus and return to Him or else He will punish sin in
the sinner.
Change what you need
to right now so that He can save you like He wants to.
Doug
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