God: "I looked for someone to take a stand for me, and stand in the gap" (Ezekiel 22:30)
Theologians sometimes describe this delay as the “already” and the “not yet.” God’s kingdom has already come, but it is not yet here in all its glory. Christ has already come, but He has not yet come again. The Puritans described the same truth in a different way. They made a distinction between the “kingdom of grace” and the “kingdom of glory.” These are not two different kingdoms, but one kingdom in two installments.
1. He is eternally the same (Ps. 102:25—27). 2. He is the first and the last (Isa. 41:4; 43:10; 44:6; 48:12) 3. He is what He is (Ex. 3:14). 4. He is incorruptible, alone having immortality, always remaining the same (Rom. 1:23; 1 Tim. 1:17; 6:15-16; Heb. 1:11-12). 5. His thought, purpose, will, and decrees are unchangeable: a. He executes His threats and promises (Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29). b. He does not repent of His gifts and calling (Rom. 11:29). c. He does not cast off people with whom He has made a unilateral covenant (Rom. 11:1). d. He glorifies those whom He foreknows (Rom. 8:29—30). e. He perfects what He starts (Ps. 138:8; Phil. 1:6). f. His faithfulness never lessens (Lam. 3:22—23). 6. He does not change (Mal. 3:6; James 1:17).
