Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:18
My grandmother, Elizabeth Van Zante, taught this verse to me when I was a child just old enough to read. We used a little spiral-bound book published by a Bible Society as our guide for memorization. In this guide were twenty-six verses, one for each letter of the alphabet. This verse from Hebrews was the choice for the letter J since, of course, Jesus starts with the letter J.
My childish mind enjoyed the picture of Jesus with the children as the accompanying illustration. Buy my heart dreaded the words. I wasn’t sure I wanted Jesus to always be the same. There seemed to me no hope of change, of improvement in the world’s condition, or of an escape from the problems that create stumbling blocks generation after generation.
For Grandma, however, this verse brought great consolation. I heard it in the tone of her voice as she said these words to me. I saw it in her face as the truth of Scripture made her eyes light up.
Grandma, born during World War I, financing a college education during the Great Depression of the 1930’s, and watching the boys she’d grown up with go off to war in the 1940’s, knew better than I did what it means for Jesus Christ to stay the same.
The writer of Hebrews isn’t telling us that Jesus Christ is the reason for our problems. Far from it. He is the rock, the fortress, the mighty refuge in the midst of those problems. He never changes, never moves, and cannot be toppled. If he held you secure through a hardship in the past, you can believe that he will do it again. Today. Tomorrow. He’ll never grow tired or lose ground, all the way into eternity.
Cling to him. Anchor yourself to him. Listen to him. What he says is true, and where he stands is solid ground.
Sing, praise, and believe. God is our loving and faithful heavenly father. When pain blinds you or the conflict and darkness of the world confuse you, know that the Lord is still in the same place sheltering, guiding, and protecting.
He never changes.
He’s seen it all.
He sees you even when you can’t see him.
May the same strength that holds us on the outside penetrate our hearts and hold us steady on the inside.
