When God says that He does not change (Mal. 3:6), it does not mean that He decides not to change, but that by nature God is immutable—He is unchangeable. This only stands to reason, since any change whatsoever would put His deity in question. If God is perfect, then any deviation is away from perfection; conversely, if it is a change toward perfection, then it began from a position that was less than perfect.

We often quote Heraclitus who said, “Change is the only constant in life.” Whether our age, our health, or our circumstances—all is subject to change. These changes can be positive or negative, but they do not change who we truly are. Aside from God’s intervention, there is no real change in us or the world; it remains a world that wants nothing to do with God.

We can change, however, and thank God for this. As sons of Adam we are sinners, a fallen race; yet we can be transformed (cf. Rom. 12:2), we can be born again (cf. Jn. 3:3), and we can become a new creation in Christ! It is not by our own energy, but simply by accepting what Christ has done at Calvary, confessing our sins, and in so doing allowing the Spirit to work by grace.

Once we are born again, can there still be change after this? Yes, in the sense that we can gradually be more and more like Christ as we gaze on Him (2 Cor. 3:18); and yet no, in the sense that the position we are brought to cannot become any higher. We have been seated with Christ! If we fail, sin, backslide, whatever, this is letting our old man have the upper hand, but it is not an intrinsic “change.” Neither the new man nor the old man can change; the old man cannot be improved, and the new man cannot sin. May we live for Christ, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8).