Many years ago, when I was a relatively new pastor, a woman was discussing with me the wickedness she saw in the world. She made the statement, “My god would not allow such things to happen.” What she did not comprehend is that the god of her belief was not the God of the Bible. Many in the Christian world today are much like that woman. They have a concept of God based on their understanding, but that understanding is not based on God’s revelation of Himself in holy Scripture.

Virtually all biblical Christians understand that Scripture teaches God is Omnipotent (all-powerful), Omnipresent (fully present everywhere), and Omniscient (all-knowing). Yet, in practice, many Christians behave or speak as if God is limited in His presence, in His ability, and in His understanding of the circumstances in His creation.

The Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF), Chapter II, Of God, and of the Holy Trinity, states in paragraph 1, “There is but one only, living, and true God, who is infinite in being and perfection, a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions; immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of His own immutable and most righteous will, for His own glory;”

While many would acknowledge that God is “a most pure” Spirit, they fail to understand much of the rest of what Scripture teaches about the characteristics and nature of God. They have a vague notion that God is much like a man, only with powers much greater than our own.

Let me ask some simple questions.

Does your god change His mind in response to your prayers?

Does your god love you more when you try hard to do what He commands?

Does your god get angry when you do not follow His will?

Does your behavior disappoint your god?

Does your god wait anxiously for you to make a decision to follow him?

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may need to rethink what the God of the Bible is really like.

While there are verses that seem to teach that God becomes angry; or that God (the Holy Spirit) can be grieved; or that God relents in His decisions, we should understand these verses are letting us know that an infinite, Creator God relates to us in a way that we as finite creatures can understand. Since the Bible is truth, biblical verses that seem to teach one thing cannot be in conflict with others that teach something different.

First, we must understand the God of the Bible does not change His mind. As the WCF states, God is “immutable.” The definition of immutable is “not capable of or, susceptible to change.” That attribute of God is stated in several Bible verses among which are:

James 1:17: “¹⁷ Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.”

Malachi 3:6: “⁶ For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.”

Psalm 33:11: “¹¹ The counsel of the Lord stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation.”

In Malachi, God states that He does not change, and other verses state His plans do not change from generation to generation. If God were capable of change, He would not be immutable. If God could change His mind, He would not be “…infinite in being and perfection…” The fact that God is infinite in being means that He is “…subject to no limitation or external determination” which is one definition of infinite. Since there is no limit to God, He cannot be changed by any external determination, including any of our actions. Since God is infinitely perfect, nothing in Him or about Him can be changed. If anything in God could be changed or if God could change His mind or His plan, He would not be infinitely perfect.

The WCF, Chapter II, paragraph 2 states, “…His knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent (of) the creature, so as nothing is to Him contingent, or uncertain.”

Scripture teaches that the knowledge of the True God is infinite and is therefore “without limits.” He knows everything that ever was or ever possibly could be. His knowledge is not only inerrant (without error) it is infallible or not capable of error; He can never be wrong. His knowledge is independent of the creature and therefore cannot be changed by anything the creature does. If His knowledge were dependent on what we as His creatures do, He would not be perfect and therefore would not be the True God.

So, does God change His mind in response to your prayers? No, He knew from all eternity what you were going to pray for, and He had already determined how He would answer those prayers. Why then does Scripture command us to pray? If God already knows when, where, and what we are going to pray, why command those prayers? Because prayer is not for the benefit of God. Prayer is for our benefit. As we pray and see those prayers answered in accordance with His will, we come to understand the love of God for us and His tender mercies for the care of His people.

Does God love you more when you try to do what He commands? Absolutely not! He perfectly loved those whom He would save, and He chose them in Christ from before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4-5). Again, if God loved you more because of your actions, He would be changing in response to your behavior and therefore, He would not be perfect.

Does God get angry when you disobey Him? Absolutely not! God is perfectly angry against all sin (disobedience against His perfect righteousness), yet, in His infinitely perfect love, He sent His Son to pay the penalty for our disobedience. God is perfect in His justice and the penalty He requires for sin must be paid. Yet, because of His infinitely great mercy, God, the Son, Jesus Christ paid the penalty for the sins of those whom God chose in love before the foundation of the world, that we might have His righteousness.

Does your behavior disappoint God? Certainly not! God knows from all eternity how you will behave in every circumstance throughout every moment of your life. If there was any moment in your life that He was not aware of how you would act, He would not be omniscient and infinitely perfect and would, therefore, not be the True God.

How does your god line up with the True God of the Bible?