Immutability of God

[David]

Hi everyone,

   

   I was hoping that someone here might be able to direct me to some detailed reading on the immutability of God. Specifically what that doctrine means for us today (ie. prayers) and also how it relates to scripture when we come across passages that talk about how God's mind or heart is changed.

   

   I have been looking for a source that talks in detail about this, but so far have only been able to find it talked about briefly in books discussing the attributes of God.

   

   Thanks in advance

[pacifist]

I can't direct you to any literature, I'm afraid, but i've been thinking of this. The fruit of my thoughts is that God the Transcendent Father must necessarily be changeless, inasmuch as he is outside of time, and that the Immanent Son of God, inside and within creation need not be, as he's 'in time'. It is 'timelessness' that requires God be changeless, I think, and if there is a portion of God begotten, in time, then such rules don't apply.

   

   Ergo, this actually sort of demonstrates the need for a father and son, immanent and transcendent! And this Immanent God- the light, the word made flesh, can serve as our intercessor, an intermediary between God the Father in Heaven (outside of time) and answer prayers and all of that. In fact, he would actually be well suited for this purpose!

   

   I hope this helps on your quest.

[Craig]

Google search William Hasker and Gregory Boyd. Both have written great books, articles and blogs about this issue. They are open theists.

[Carlo Maria]

A very good book on the immutability of God is:
Pace C. M. "L'immutabilità e l'impassibilità di Dio e le loro conseguenze sulla prescienza divina e sulla libertà creata in San Tommaso d'Aquino e in William Lane Craig: Una nuova proposta teologica" (in English: "The immutability and the impassibility of God and their consequences on divine foreknowledge and created freedom in Saint Thomas Aquinas and in William Lane Craig: A new theological proposal"), Youcanprint, Tricase (LE) - Italy 2016.

[jayceeii]

The world has been missing a God-concept as someone greater than man. The extant God-concept, not only in Christianity but in any other religion that mentions God, is like a man but more powerful. The notion of prayer depends on God’s intelligence being commensurate with human intelligence. If instead God’s intelligence is not commensurate with human intelligence, prayer is found to be foolhardy and prideful.

Religion could only go forward among humans if God was presented as someone who could be swayed or manipulated. Men pride themselves that their powers extend even to invisible regions, through prayer and psychic mechanisms. If God becomes someone you cannot reach you stop caring about God, because you can’t think of one much greater than yourself. To put this another way, the God who would listen to your prayers couldn’t be a very great God. You’d have to try to understand that the knowledge to run a world, including overseeing your individual life, is wiser than anything you could ask or know.

To give an example to help make this more comprehensible, suppose a race car driver brought a toddler along with him in the car. You know that up, down, left or right, anything that child says that driver is going to ignore, as he drives the race he knows he must. Similarly God sees human problems and works to unwind them, to the degree His powers and situation allow. Asking or pleading does not add to His knowledge of the situation or His dispensation to deal with it, particularly if you ask out of a selfish desire.

God may favor some, but we know even the Lord faces suffering occasionally. In general God could be expected to favor those who agree with and support His purposes. Then there isn’t an attempt at an intellectual connection, and it isn’t manipulation, instead it is service. However I find no one involved in direct or even useful God-service today. Going forward there isn’t prayer, only service, as a right idea about the Deity sees Him reigning supreme not only in power, but in knowledge, not commensurate with creatures.