The God Who is Eternal

he Character of God, Part 4
I remember a man from the church I grew up in – an elderly man. He had a full head of silvery grey hair and seemed as old as time. I wasn’t surprised when my mom told me he had been just as grey ever since she could remember. As a child, you begin to wonder if this guy might not have known Moses, or at least been an infantryman in the War of 1812. Although it’s unlikely he’d been around that long (although I’m still checking war records), there is one who has existed throughout all eternity.
In fact, it was he who created time.
The Bible tells us that God is “everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2) and that “the number of his years is unsearchable” (Job 36:26).
God transcends the categories of time and space because he created them. We are bound to them because we have been created within their confines, but God stands outside them.
This characteristic of God is beautiful and is tied to his unchangeableness (immutability) in an important way. You see, not only does God remain the same, without the fickle ebbs and flows we are prone to, but he has been that way forever and ever. He will always be that way. He will always be.
That’s great news for you and me because we all need someone to be there for us. People can and do let us down, but knowing that God will never jump ship is very comforting. I don’t have to worry about him retiring, being replaced or “let go.” He does not get sick, nor his glory wane like a spent candle. He has never stopped nor ever will stop being the ruler of the universe. His eternality is why he can say he “will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).
Beyond that, we know that he’ll still be there on the day when the sun sets on this age and all his followers will be in his presence enjoying and sharing in his never-ending presence and glory.