When considering that God, in all three persons, doesn’t change, the Bible shares two tremendous facts:
- He feels infinitely more than we can understand: He can weep overflowing tears without ceasing (Jer 14:17) as he shares in the affliction of his people (Isaiah 63:9)
- His feelings and nature are not lessened or enhanced by any circumstance (1 Samuel 15:29) because he does not change (Malachi 3:6) or shift (James 1:17)
What a mystery! On the one hand, He is never emotionally out of control (Num 23:19); on the other, He can empathize with our weaknesses (Heb 4:15). He can rejoice with those who rejoice, as we are told to do (Rom 12:15); on the other hand, he is never swept away by any external situation.
Like a fireman who can enter the burning building when your children are still inside, God can infinitely feel your sorrow and simultaneously not be moved to change his rescue plans, no matter the situation. This fact shows that God, in his nature, is truly our unshifting anchor (Psa 18:2).