The Theology of Change: Living Faithfully in an Age of Uncertainty

By Michael Forney

We live in an age when the ground never stops shifting. Culture changes faster than we can respond. Technology rewires our daily rhythms. Institutions once considered immovable now tremble under new pressures. Even within the church, the pace of change can feel dizzying.

People everywhere are navigating what some in academia describe as an age of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. In such an age, the question is no longer, “How do we keep things the same?” but rather, “How do we remain faithful and adaptive when everything around us keeps changing?” Our theology should shape our practice and help us respond faithfully in our context. So, what can we learn from the Scripture to help us formulate a healthy theology of change?

God’s Nature and Character Are Unchanging

The unchanging nature of God stands as one of the most stabilizing doctrines of the Christian faith. It is a truth providing a holy constancy that has anchored the people of God in every age and can provide a certainty to anchor us in this age. Scripture declares plainly that God does not shift with circumstance or evolve according to human whim. In Malachi 3:6–7, God assures His people that “I the Lord do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” In the midst of the tempest, we find safety in the constancy of God’s nature and character — a faithfulness we can return to again and again.

“For while our world is changing faster than ever, our God has never changed.”

In the New Testament, the author of Hebrews tells us that — despite the ambiguity and weirdness around us — we can find an anchor in the truth that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).

James, the brother of Jesus, affirms this truth instructing us that in the midst of trial and temptation we can rely on a God “in whom there is no variation [no rising or setting] or shadow cast by His turning [for He is perfect and never changes]” (James 1:17 AMP). He reminds us that divine goodness does not flicker with the seasons of human history. Another translation of this verse provides a succinct description of God as a God “in whose character there is no change at all” (James 1:17 CEB).

This immutability is not a cold, static abstraction but the steady character of a God whose love, mercy, and justice remain forever true. In a world marked by volatility, the people of God cling to this truth: God is eternally faithful, unwavering in purpose, constant in His love, and forever worthy of our trust. For while our world is changing faster than ever, our God has never changed. The changeless nature and character of God anchor us in a constantly changing world.

The God Who Changes Everything (Without Changing at All)

While God’s character and nature remain eternally constant, His methods in engaging, guiding, and redeeming humanity are remarkably dynamic — flexible expressions of an unchanging heart. Scripture shows a God whose nature never shifts, yet who works in diverse ways across generations: the God who parted the Red Sea (Exodus 14:21) later empowered a young shepherd with a sling (1 Samuel 17:45–50), Jeremiah the prophet tells us of a God whose love and mercies are “new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22–23), and who ultimately accomplished salvation not through the use of coercive power but through the humility of the cross (Philippians 2:5–8).

The same Spirit who spoke through prophets in ancient Israel now gifts the church with varied graces (1 Corinthians 12:4–7) and leads God’s people in fresh expressions of mission (Acts 1:8; 13:2–3). John Wesley recognized this tension beautifully, affirming that while the fullness of God’s love is unchangeable, the ways God adapts His work to human need are infinitely various.

God’s character and nature is constant, but His methods are dynamic. Scripture tells us, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). Yet the same God who declared that eternal constancy also said, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 43:19).

“The God who does not change is the God who insists on change.”

From the beginning, the story of God’s people is one of movement, growth, and transformation. Abraham left his homeland. Israel journeyed through the wilderness. The early church scattered under persecution and in that scattering, the gospel spread to the ends of the earth. Change is not a failure of faithfulness; it is the fruit of faithfulness.

Flowing from God’s unchanging character and His dynamic work in the world is His unwavering commitment to the transformation of His people — personally, collectively, and cosmically. Scripture reveals a God who not only redeems but refashions, shaping believers into the likeness of Christ: “We all … are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18), and “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” (Philippians 1:6).

He never changes in His nature and character but transforms the nature and character of His people. This transformation extends beyond individuals to the whole people of God, called to embody a new creation ethic marked by holiness, justice, and love (1 Peter 2:9; Ephesians 4:22–24).

Yet God’s restorative work does not stop with humanity; His redeeming purpose embraces all creation. Paul writes that “the whole creation has been groaning” for liberation and that creation itself will be “set free from its bondage to decay” (Romans 8:19–22 NRSV). Paul tells us we are invited by God into this ministry of reconciliation and are compelled by His love to live for others to experience this same transformation (2 Corinthians 5:11–15).

B.T. Roberts likewise taught that true holiness always looks outward, anticipating the healing of society and the renewal of the world under the reign of Christ. The God who does not change is the God who insists on change — transforming sinners into saints, shaping communities into signs of the kingdom, and laboring toward the ultimate restoration of all things.

The Eagle’s Nest and the Pain of Transformation

We struggle with transformation and change, because we value our comfort and see comfort as the sign of security and that all is right in the world. However, change is necessary for us to become who we are created to be, and comfort can become the barrier to our God-given destiny.

Deuteronomy 32:11–12 offers a vivid illustration of God’s transforming leadership: “like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft. The Lord alone led him.”

The eagle’s stirring is both disruption and mercy. With intention, the parent eagle dismantles the comfort her young once depended on, stick by stick, until remaining becomes more painful than launching into the unknown. The eaglets find relief from the poking sticks on the ledge of the nest. The parent eagle then knocks them off the nest into the air. Only then do the eaglets discover the wings they were created to use. And when they falter, the parent swoops beneath them, catching them on her wings and returning them to the nest’s edge, again and again, until they learn to soar.

God leads His people with the same faithful, transformative care. He unsettles what is familiar not to harm us but to release us into the freedom and maturity for which we were made. Change may be uncomfortable, but under God’s unchanging love, it becomes the very means by which we are formed and set free.

The Unshakeable Kingdom

In like manner, the kingdom of God is unshakable. His kingdom is a reality grounded not in human power but in the sovereign reign of the eternal God. Scripture declares that while earthly kingdoms rise and fall, God’s kingdom will never be destroyed but will endure forever (Daniel 2:44). Jesus proclaimed this enduring reign when He announced, “The kingdom of God has come near” (Mark 1:15), revealing a kingdom rooted in God’s unchanging character rather than the shifting forces of history.

“We represent a kingdom that is unshakeable, even when the world around us trembles.”

The writer of Hebrews affirms that God’s people receive “a kingdom that cannot be shaken” (Hebrews 12:28), even as everything else around them trembles. This unshakable kingdom is marked by righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17), and God promises that its increase shall know no end (Isaiah 9:7). For the people of God, whether we are in seasons of stability or volatility, this kingdom stands as our secure foundation and our hopeful horizon, a reminder that God’s reign is enduring, victorious, and eternally trustworthy.

Living Into a Theology of Change

God has given us a rich theology of change. One that allows us to press on while the world around is disrupted by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. We hold fast to the identity that Christ has secured for us as beloved, redeemed, made new, people of God. This identity we have received as the people of God does not waver with circumstance, because it is rooted in the God who does not change.

We represent a kingdom that is unshakeable, even when the world around us trembles; a kingdom marked not by fear, but by righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. And as ambassadors of that kingdom, we embody the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18–20), compelled not by duty but by the relentless love of God that sustains and sends us.

Paul’s words still ring true: “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). The people of God who press on, embody both courage and humility. God is stirring the nest again. He is calling His church to fly — to risk, to grow, to adapt, and to trust. The world may be volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous — but God is faithful, present, and unchanging. He is doing a new thing, and He is not finished with us yet.

As the eaglet must leave the comfort of the nest and adapt to a dynamic environment in order to discover the fullness of what it was created to be, so we too must be transformed and respond faithfully to the demands of our moment — knowing we were created “for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14) and trusting the promise that “those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles” (Isaiah 40:31).

B.T. Roberts reminded us that holiness requires attentiveness to the Spirit’s voice in every age, not rigid loyalty to past forms. Thus, grounded in God’s unchanging character and guided by His ever-creative Spirit, we adapt our methods as often as necessary to fulfill our mission. And so, with confidence, courage, and humble dependence on the Spirit, we press on and live into the hope for which we have been called.

Michael Forney serves the Free Methodist Church USA as chief operating officer. He is an ordained elder who has previously served as the superintendent of the Pacific Northwest Conference and as the assistant superintendent of the Southern Michigan Conference, focusing on church revitalization, leadership development, and growth. He has a diverse background in both business and ministry. His educational experiences include currently pursuing concurrent degrees — an M.A. in applied leadership theory and a Ph.D. in organizational leadership with a focus on business and ecclesial leadership at Northwest University. He holds a graduate degree from Regent University and completed graduate studies at Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, and he has a bachelor’s degree from Northwest Bible College. He is married to Cate, and they have four daughters, a son, and several grandchildren.