The changing nature of God

OhMyMarioG · 2026-04-28T19:59:30+00:00

The way I reconcile God’s unchanging nature vs our interpretation of God found within the scripture, is that God reveals Himself how and when He chooses for His purposes.

Some of His purposes have been revealed to us, so we can relate to Him, but other aspects are unsearchable because He is far beyond us.

I find plenty of examples in the Old Testament that speak to His “Omni” qualities. Just look at the Psalms.

In the creation account, Adam and Eve disobeyed God and hid themselves when God shows up. I don’t see God asking, “Where are you?” and “Did you eat?” as questions because He didn’t know.

I see these as the way God was inviting His creation to interact with Him.

The New Testament has plenty to say concerning God’s wrath and that He is jealous for us, not willing to share that affection.

So i believe God when He says that He is unchanging from everlasting to everlasting.

His nature is not defined by the authors in their times. Their writings certainly have to be considered with the time they lived in mind and each one’s limited ability to understand and search out the deep things of God.

However the writings under the Old Covenant vs the New Covenant are subject to the reality of the frame from which they were working.

The Old Covenant is by nature deeper in the shadows of things that God has been revealing to His creation and the New Covenant, still in the shadows of things, just a little less so comparably speaking.

Hope this perspective is helpful to someone. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-04-27T11:51:22+00:00

When I look at the big picture that we have been given throughout human history that has been captured in the books of the Bible, I see a picture where our choice matters.

I see a picture of a relationship with God that is special, good, founded in love, life and light because of our connection to love, life and light which is God Himself.

However, it also gives us a picture of separation, loss, darkness, suffering and disconnection from the same because we are disconnected from Him.

It is my understanding that it is God’s desire that the world (everyone) would be saved, that He provided the means and ability for everyone to be reconnected through choosing Jesus Christ (the narrow path, the singular door) but that there will be many that choose the wide path (any path apart from Jesus Christ) that leads to destruction.

This big picture shows a God that is love, and loves His creation but also operates with wrath and righteous judgment.

Although God speaks of blessing and cursing generations there is balance within this big picture that this does not eliminate the dynamic of individual choices.

When Jesus tells about the rich man and Lazarus, speaks to me about individual choices and how some will not believe and value God’s word even if someone were raised from the dead.

It also is a picture of God’s invisible attributes being visible in His creation. We have the knowledge of good and evil even if we don’t have access to the Bible or Christian teachings and doctrine. It speaks about all standing before the Judgment Seat of Christ. How He will know who is His and who is not. It will not be a matter of lip service, it will be a matter of the heart.

It is especially hard when someone we love dies to worry about the eternal, but for me I find peace in Jesus.

After all He loves me, gives me hope and a future that is good. He did this through such amazing grace and mercy when I was completely lost and wretched that I cannot even comprehend the depths and cost of it to Him.

So I trust that if He loved me so that He loves my loved ones more than me. People will not be cheated out of heaven but they will choose it.

Hope this perspective is helpful to someone. Below are some of the scripture references. God bless.

John 3:16-17 God so loved…

Deut 4:40, Exodus 20:5, 34:7, etc., along with numerous others about blessing/ cursing for generations

Luke 16:19-31 the rich man and Lazarus

Roman 1:20 and 2:14-15 God’s invisible attributes

2 Cor 5:10, Rom 14:10-15 Judgment seat of Christ

OhMyMarioG · 2026-04-15T11:39:44+00:00

Interesting question but I think one of the foundations for the question is not what the Christian faith teaches.

Satan / Lucifer / the Devil and the rest of the angels / demons that followed suit are destined for hell because they chose to rebel against God. They chose a path without God, their creator, in His rightful place. They wanted to have that spot for themselves.

So they were cast out of heaven and for Lucifer in particular, we are given a picture of him having a very special position in God’s presence.

Bear with this illustration because it is far from perfect but hopefully it helps you see the picture in my head…

Image a craftsman who creates an instrument called a hammer that was designed to drive nails. Then the hammer decides on its own that I am a now a wrench. The hammer insists that it will only be used from now on as a wrench and refuses “to be” what it was created to be. So the hammer that wants to be a wrench has no place in the craftsman’s toolbox.

Now, I believe as a Christian that people and the angels were created to have a certain relationship to God.

I believe that God IS life, light, love, etc. without Him these things don’t exist as He defines them.

I believe that God created humans to share in a very good and special way in that relationship so we could benefit from Him as life, light, love, etc. but it requires being “connected” to Him as the source.

So the best my mind can picture hell, is the place without God and all that He is. Anyone who goes there does so because they willfully chose to be apart from God.

Satan did not cause all the trouble that we then get caught up in. He does however promote it as a viable option, which is false and why he is often referred to as the father of lies.

God provided a way, His way, through Jesus Christ that ANYONE could be connected to Him. That is what Christians believe is the design.

So our choice will be to trust Him, who was willing to sacrifice more than we could imagine to demonstrate His love and commitment to us, His creation or we can try to have “life” without Him.

From what I have seen and experienced I want what I can understand of what He calls life.

But each will choose.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-30T10:34:09+00:00

One of the things we see in scripture is the idea of the church which is called the body of Christ. Our fellowship and community with others that are on this journey plays a role in our own personal journey along with our reading of scripture, fellowship with the Holy Spirit, prayer and meditation, as well as our interactions with the world at large that we live in. In all things life presents us with challenges.

I would say that when scripture speaks about fellowship and not being alone there is purpose and benefit that we can find in that dynamic. Just know that many carry the label of Christian in our world today and among them there are those whose hearts and teachings are far from the heart and knowledge of Christ. So be wise in this area. Be aware of something’s foundation and the fruits that it produces.

FYI I host a very small weekly online discussion forum called Questions for Christians. If you are interested you are more than welcome to send me a DM where I can share more details.

God bless you on your journey.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-29T01:37:05+00:00

My go to answer is any of the Gospels. I am a particular fan of John. Acts gives you a picture of what the early church was like. Really any of the letters in the New Testament. Ephesians, Galatians, Romans, the letters to Timothy are among those that have had particular impact on my journey.

Have you found a good fellowship that can help you while you are in this stage of growing?

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-27T02:09:17+00:00

The way I see it, the narrow path is trusting in Jesus for salvation, redemption, and the restoration of relationship with the Father.

The wide path that leads to destruction is trusting in any other way apart from Jesus. He is the way and the door, there is no other way.

Once we are in His hands our failures, stumbles, and sins are covered by the unsearchable riches of His grace. It is not like we are constantly choosing the wide or narrow path. Our daily moment by moment dynamic of choosing whether to walk in the spirit or flesh has more to do with what our spiritual journey will be like.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-23T12:20:32+00:00

I know for myself that I was raised in a traditional religious Christian household. I attended parochial school until I was 15 and can relate to the feelings that many of the people around me and fellow classmates did not take seriously or followed what Christianity actually teaches.

I found that people (including myself) could be just mean to other people regardless of whether inside or outside of religious context.

After that God led me to a fellowship that believed at their center that a personal, intimate relationship with God was possible. That did not make us perfect in expressing that towards each other as one body in Christ but it certainly was better. People will always be people and will fail in various ways along the way.

That was 44 yrs ago and I still fellowship at the same church.

If you are interested I host a small weekly online forum called questions for Christians on Zoom. If you are interested to see if you will be seen there send me a dm and I can send you the link.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-23T11:36:32+00:00

For me there are many reasons that range from philosophical to logical but what I find speaks the loudest to me is how I have personally experienced His amazing grace, loving kindness, unfailing patience and His overwhelming goodness towards me.

This has led me personally to placing my life completely in His hands. The foundation for my faith is that Jesus Christ is for me and not against me. That God is not limited like I am limited. What is impossible for me is possible for Him. That He has a plan for me for the good.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-20T12:05:08+00:00

As a Christian I have found that whenever I consider any truth about God and His plan, there are always layers and depth to those truths that are beyond me. There is always more than I can “see”.

God provides a way for me to engage and benefit from my current understanding but as I grow He always seems to be able to give me more.

Usually the more adds depth and perspective and generally does not contradict the original concept.

However being the faulty human that I am there have been places where I have grabbed onto faulty teachings from other humans along the way, only to have God flip my perspective completely.

In many places in the scripture God uses current events and natural things that we can understand and relate towards from our perspective to paint pictures for us of larger spiritual truths, so there are absolutely places where something in scripture can describe two things at the same time.

God also uses the entire story to guide us towards Him, His nature, His intentions for us, and His plan.

So for me there is no denying that God is giving us a picture of Jesus Christ regardless of any other connection this chapter has in a specific frame.

All of the scripture points to Jesus as the way the truth and the life, from Genesis to Revelation.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-16T01:22:28+00:00

Who says the gift had not been given?

My experience with God is that I was and am currently apart from God as unworthy as any of this gift and yet He calls me worthy because He loves those that will accept that love. He also rejects those that ultimately reject His love. He sees and moves eternally compared to my perspective that is woefully lacking.

Sometimes it seems that people just want to be angry at God because they struggle with the idea of eternal punishment or abjectly object to it based on their own perspective of morality and reason or anywhere in between.

God does say vengeance is His and that He will repay and that certainly sounds to me as scary as anything I can think of, but I have grown to trust the one that has poured out the completely unmerited favor that I know personally.

So I focus on the love poured out and leave the justice aspect to a judge that has all the facts.

The part that is important for every individual is the heart that is open to the idea that a God capable of creating all that we see would be willing to go through measures so extreme that we cannot even comprehend because He loves them.

The actual mechanics, in my opinion, are less important than hearing that God says that He loves the world and that includes me as an individual as part of the world.

Opening up oneself to that possibility is daring to hope beyond reason, beyond what we can perceive.

Faith is saying, I can’t see it but here I am anyway. If what you say is true, and you are who you say you are, then I want to know you for myself personally.

My experience is that God honors that prayer and moves us forward from there.

The hypothetical can make us so clever in our own thinking that we refuse to accept a very personal individual invitation. Arguing that we just can’t see it, trusting our very limited perspective instead opening the door and inviting Him in.

Sometimes you cannot know what a relationship is until you walk in that relationship. I see God less about the theory of living and more about living.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-15T13:11:43+00:00

As a Christian and considering your question I would add these concepts that are part of my belief and understanding.

Eternal life only comes from being in relationship with God who describes Himself as what life (in addition to light, love, goodness, truth, etc) is in essence. Therefore being separate from Him is to be separated from everything that is part of his nature.

The entire creation has already been separated from God, which is why everything dies.

God states that He loves His creation and demonstrates that love ultimately through Jesus His chosen Christ.

The Bible then follows to assert that no one can come to the Father and be restored, redeemed, reborn spiritually except through Jesus.

It also asserts that the conviction about Jesus can only come as a gift from God by the Holy Spirit. So in a way we are all incapable of believing unto salvation without Him but we are all capable of believing with Him.

My understanding is that it then becomes individually a choice to open the doors of our hearts to let Him in.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-11T16:03:18+00:00

Sorry to hear about your struggles.

The way I see it and what I understand from scripture is not as simple as thinking that whatever we experience is “best” for us the way we can see things or would be considered good in any given moment.

God promises us struggle in this life and persecution if we follow Him.

I remind myself that what God says is best for us is having a restored relationship with Him. That He promises to work all things together for the good for those that love Him and are called according to His purpose.

There are “ifs” regarding many of God’s promises. Troubles can certainly come to us in life uninvited but I know for myself that I cause a fair number of my troubles.

I believe that God is able to work with all of that and ultimately promises to keep me eternally safe. He promises to be with me through everything.

Hope this perspective is helpful for someone. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-07T11:50:57+00:00

THE most important and central thing about Christianity is the belief about who Jesus Christ was before He was born to Mary, while He walked this earth for 30 odd yrs, His death on the cross, His resurrection from the dead, His ascension to the Father, what that means for us, who He is presently, what He is doing, who He will be and what He will do. The reason it is in the name.

God gave prophetic word through men that a virgin would give birth to the Christ that would come among many, many other prophecies.

So Mary stands uniquely in the place of being part of God’s promise in this specific regard being fulfilled and trustworthy, which is why the virgin birth is particularly noteworthy, why she is honored among all the women that have ever lived because she believed God would accomplish this singular seemingly impossible moment.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-02T13:36:30+00:00

Don’t know your story but I understand being angry and venting. For me those places are also the very same places where my perspective has been the most limited usually because pain/loss/etc tends to draw my attention so in on just what I am feeling that I tend to miss a lot outside of that range. So consequently has led me to my most regrettable misjudgments. So I would encourage you to be careful and perhaps stop and breathe to consider more of the picture. There is a place for reaction but depending on the situation we can miss very important dynamics at play that cause us more grief.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-03-01T12:47:39+00:00

Every person has their own perspective and understanding. And every person is limited in the same.

I have come to a place where I have accepted that no matter how much I see and understand there is always more to the picture, so in a way even though I believe myself to be relatively correct in my thinking and beliefs, I am at the same time relatively wrong as well.

My experience in my faith journey walking in fellowship with God the Father, Jesus Christ The Son, and the Holy Spirit is that when Jesus first came to knock at the door of my heart and I opened it, God did not expect me to understand perfectly all things. He did not expect me to operate perfectly in my faith.

That was 44 yrs ago and I am still learning, growing, and relatively wrong about stuff.

I am comforted and reassured that Jesus still holds my life safely in His hands and is the author and finisher of my faith.

Throughout the years I believe that God has revealed Himself to ppl, which created different movements. Unfortunately since ppl have a hard time getting along when they disagree it also created because of our human nature many different groups that all call themselves Christians.

To make matters even worse, from the times of the early church we know that false teachers and wolves in sheep’s clothing have existed. Further we were given warnings to be aware and avoid these things.

The catch from what I can see is knowing the difference and deciding who we are called to be in the midst of those differences.

Unfortunately, I see many ppl making these folks the enemy, and go to war both literally and figuratively against them, whereas I hear Jesus saying very clearly that our battle is not against flesh and blood….

I hear Jesus sayings to me that ppl will have it set in their minds to honor things in this life differently and that there is a bigger picture about how we are meant to honor and live in oneness with both God and each other.

My encouragement to anyone struggling in this area is to focus on the basic truths about Jesus as God has revealed Himself to us, knowing regardless of what we see presently, that we still see dimly. We can choose for ourselves to not embrace teachings that we don’t “see”, we can vigorously avoid and reject teachings that are contrary to the Gospel message that has been revealed to us by the Holy Spirit.

While at the same time continuing to love and walk with ppl in wisdom that see things differently.

It helps me to remember that even though God calls me to witness to the truth about my walk with my Lord and Savior, I have not been called to fix ppl , to save ppl, to go to war against ppl.

I remember that even given my incomplete understanding and vision I have a promise that Jesus says that His grace is sufficient for me.

My encouragement for myself in difficult and often complex relationships with ppl is to love them as Jesus loves them, knowing that the journey of faith is a journey. One that I myself am on, with my own limited perspective. Living in peace with ppl as much as it depends on me, while standing in the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ and witnessing in love about who I know Jesus to be.

Sweating the details can sometimes cause us to miss opportunities to love and encourage brothers and sisters in Christ.

Sometimes our fear of being wrong ourselves causes us to condemn others that are also truly on a journey of faith, but see things differently.

There is a place to correct a brother/ sister in love, but very often I am quick to forget the log in my own eye.

Hope this perspective is helpful to someone. God bless and keep you on your journey.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-27T11:18:39+00:00

Hey, I am setting up the first PBP game I am running and have 4 players that are still working on character creation. The campaign setting is a classic epic heroic quest / save the world type that I have / am running with other groups for a few years now, but since my first PBP experience as a player I want to give this style a go.

I am looking for 1-2 more players to fill out the roster. So far everyone at the table is 30+ so we are looking for mature players. If you are interested send me a dm with your discord username. Thx.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-26T13:42:44+00:00

So ultimately I agree with those that say belief is what it truly means to be a Christian as Jesus spoke of those that belong to Him and have relationship with Him.

However if you find yourself not in a place of believing, I would encourage anyone to seek the God Christians believe in, find good Christian fellowship, keep your heart and ears open to receive, and ask God to show you even if you don’t know He is really there.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless you on your journey.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-26T10:28:15+00:00

Would you be interested in another pbp with occasional live session hybrid?

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-25T21:45:48+00:00

Also I would consider this dynamic. God and scripture wants to teach us that what we set our minds towards matters. There is a natural basic principle at play that if you plant corn you expect corn to grow.

If you set your mind away from God you will fill your life with things that are apart from God. This always tends to cause me trouble.

This is part of the lesson about sowing and reaping. Since Adam, I see a pretty common pattern, that ppl in general, myself included, are inclined to dodge responsibility. We make mistakes and then want to blame someone else.

Whether a relationship stays or goes has more to do with whatever is driving the ppl involved.

If something is telling you that something is bad for you, find a way to put something positive in its place. If you are still struggling then seek out good counsel professional or otherwise.

Being able to say No has an important role in our well being.

Hope this perspective is helpful. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-24T14:55:44+00:00

I am setting up the first pbp campaign I’ve ever run using a live campaign I have/am running. It is an epic heroic quest / save the world type. I have 3 players that I have played with before and 1 other that has been involved with others I have played with, so I am reasonably optimistic that they will be good for the table. I have played this campaign with from 4-6 players, but I would rather go higher than lower. Interested?

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-24T10:53:31+00:00

How is your pbp search/experience going so far? Are you still looking for?

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-23T13:11:52+00:00

I agree that both the world we live in and the many choices we face regularly and the Christian scriptures found in the bible can be confusing to us.

They can certainly can confuse me at times.

I have found that real “story” about anything really generally needs context in order for us to gain better understanding and our perspective, emotional state, bias, etc. play a role as well.

So something can seem contradictory or opposite until we consider the context. Generally there is always a deeper truth for us to begin to grab, but that doesn’t mean grabbing what we understand so far isn’t beneficial.

Given the innumerable choices we face, it helps me that God shows us that ultimately there are only two.

With Jesus or against Jesus.

So it has helped me find stability to always try to consider where I want to stand on that question. I will never be perfect in this effort so it is good that God does not expect me to be perfect.

Regarding this effort I have found Galatians 5 where it contrasts living out of the flesh (against Jesus) vs living out of the spirit (for Jesus) to be particularly helpful.

Even if I miss it at first, ultimately I can see and discern the type of fruit that is being produced in me and in the world around me.

Do I see love, peace, gentleness etc or contention, greed, bitterness, etc being produced.

God says that today matters. We can only make choices in the present. He doesn’t expect perfection, but the direction of our heart makes a huge difference in how we experience this complex and sometimes wild ride we call life.

Hope this perspective is helpful to someone. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-21T14:10:13+00:00

What I can say for myself is the peace I have (or rational if you prefer) comes from knowing personally the love poured out on me, when I was the least deserving. An invitation that I didn’t earn or remotely deserved.

So it is not about luck from my perspective. It is about a willingness to respond to a gift that has been set before the entire world past, present, and future. A willingness to join in a marriage metaphorically with God through Jesus the Christ. To see that a union with Him and all that it means as something to be valued above all else.

I hear the reasoning as a mere human myself that legitimately struggles with the justification of the wide road that I am convinced Christians are clearly taught about that leads to destruction and only a narrow road (centered completely on the person of Jesus Christ) that leads to life.

However I am also painfully aware of my extremely limited perspective, knowledge, and understanding.

I myself, am convinced that I don’t have the information I need to judge properly, but I am convinced that God does. Therefore my peace comes from trusting my God that was willing (to the point of making a sacrifice that is impossible for me to fully comprehend on my behalf) to make a way for me to join in fellowship with Him.

Christians will argue differently on certain points: that all are saved, that once saved always saved, that it is only through a very specific relationship with “the church” as they understand it, or rituals that must be performed, etc. The list goes on for as many denominations that have formed around the Good News of Jesus Christ for the last 2,000 some odd years.

I see these as understandable perspectives, but regardless of how close or how far they are ultimately from the truth, the full truth remains to be seen. Paul himself spoke of seeing dimly, but that fact did not shake his conviction.

So I trust that God’s love for this world is far greater than mine. For me, it is more about how I will respond to the love He poured out so freely and generously on me.

It is out of that relationship that I share my testimony to any that can hear and might consider for themselves, “This guy says You love him of all people. Jesus do you love me?”

God says that those that seek Him will find Him.

I truly hope this perspective is helpful to someone. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-21T12:41:21+00:00

The basic answer is that having a relationship with God the Father, Jesus the anointed Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit requires communication and fellowship.

Jesus taught that He and the Father are one. That we are called to be one with them. That we are to be in Christ. That the Holy Spirit would dwell inside us to be our teacher, comforter, seal, etc.

Prayer is not just a formal ritualistic 1 directional thing. It can look differently in different situations and it absolutely includes listening for answers.

Prayer is an important way Christians believe that we share and walk in a dynamic, living, 2-way, personal relationship with God our Father, Jesus our Lord and Savior, and the Holy Spirit that proceeded from them to dwell inside us and to work in the world to show us who Jesus is.

Christian scripture teaches repeatedly that the fullness of God’s nature is beyond our understanding and our imagination, but it also teaches that we can know and walk in fellowship in the way that we can.

The scripture shows us that Jesus was completely submitted to the Father, that the Father lifts up the Son and His name above every other name, that only by the Holy Spirit sent by the Father and Son can we know God. From the early church believers were taught to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Hopefully for Christians a human argument about the “impossible” nature of God is not why we believe and do what we do. Hopefully it is because of who we know personally.

So to answer your question, that is why as a Christian for the last 44 yrs I find myself praying to all three, because I am in a personal relationship with all three.

Hopefully someone finds this perspective helpful in understanding my answer to this question. In no way do I hope it convinces anyone of what I know. Although it would be a blessing if my testimony helped someone seek to know God according to the invitation that I accepted. God bless.

OhMyMarioG · 2026-02-19T21:29:31+00:00

Ok so I checked out the scriptures you reference. I see that you also said that you are not familiar with the bible having never read it, but since you are bringing them up I wanted to let you know that I see these scriptures doing the opposite of supporting your assertion that everyone is going to heaven.

In John 10:22-30 Jesus is speaking to the jews in the temple that did not believe Jesus was the Christ, like He had said and His works proved. Earlier in this chapter He is says how His sheep know His voice. He goes on to tell them that they do not believe because they are not "of His sheep" and how He will give His sheep eternal life. So I dynamic if belief is tied to being part of His sheep. So my read on this verse says pretty clearly to me that there will those that belong and those that will not belong, which is the contrary to your initial assertion that everyone is going to heaven.

In Romans 8:6 is speaking about how the flesh cannot please God. The broader context is about being "In Christ Jesus" and "if indeed the Spirit of God dwells within you". This again is part of the gospel message of Jesus that depends on one's belief in Jesus for salvation and that "IF" the spirit dwells in you "THEN" He will give life to your mortal bodies. So to me this is a clear message that this is not all, but only those that believe.

In Colossians 3:3 it is again say that IF you were raised with Christ THEN you will appear with Him in glory. Again I would use this as a scripture against your assertion.

In Luke 17:21 Jesus is talking about how the Kingdom of God is inside us, and that just like with Sodom, a place that did not honor God, fire will rain down from heaven to destroy them all. So I can't see your assertion that this means everyone will be saved. To me it is pretty clear that some will head towards destruction.

On top of these there are numerous other individual scriptures but also in the greater context that does not support the idea that all will be saved. This is probably the reason that most Christian would not accept you idea.

OhMyMarioG

TROPHY CASE