Why We Should Be Encouraged That Jesus Is the Same Yesterday, Today and Forever
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The world can feel so fluid and ever-changing, a whirlwind of ups and downs and constantly shifting patterns and trends. Sometimes, you might feel like you’re caught in a hurricane, clinging to a solitary tree in the midst of the winds and rain. Other times you feel like you’re in a boat in the midst of a massive whirlpool, or like you’re standing atop a seesaw on a playground, one foot planted on either side, desperate to keep your balance so you don’t tumble down.
One of the most comforting things for many Christians is the understanding that Jesus is always steady and never-changing in a world of uncertainty. Things may swing and sway, but Jesus remains the same: almighty, most high, supreme, and timeless. But what does that really mean, and is this mentioned in the Bible as truth? How is Jesus the same yesterday, today, and forever?
Where Does the Bible Talk about 'Jesus Christ the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever'?
The Bible does indeed talk about Jesus in this way: unchanging, constant, a fixed point in a sea of chaos. The phrase comes from the final chapter of the Book of Hebrews, as the writer wraps up his letter to the Jewish Christians who would be reading it. He offers reminders and exhortations to continue loving each other, to be loyal in marriage, to visit those in prison, to show hospitality to strangers, and to imitate the faith of their leaders and teachers.
Then, the author reminds us, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8 NIV).
The original Greek in which this book was written uses the word autos, which is used for “self,” for he/she/it, all the same, much like the ultimate definition of one’s personal state of being or essence. When the author used Jesus and autos in conjunction with the rest of the verse—echthes (yesterday), then sémeron (today, now) and aión (an age or space of time stretching as far into eternity)—he was essentially saying Jesus’ full state of being applies to always. He is unchanging and endless, beyond time.
What Is Significant about 'Jesus Christ the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever'?
Consider first that the audience of Hebrews was primarily Jewish Christians, who were steeped in their ancient, cultural, God-centered Jewish faith and now believed their promised Messiah had finally come in the form of Jesus. Faith leaders of that day often taught about the “God of Abraham,” emphasizing the rules and covenants made in the old days and how they were tasked to follow these requirements completely, including sacrifices and elaborate cleansing rituals. But as Jesus said during the Last Supper with His disciples, offering them bread and wine, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20). The apostle Paul refers to this “new covenant: in his second letter to the early church in Corinth, when he reminds them they are “a letter from Christ” (2 Corinthians 3:3) not written with ink and representing the past, old, or temporary, but rather written with the Spirit of the living God and lasting forever.
As Paul wrote, they are “ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6). The message of the Gospel is that Jesus came once for all, and His sacrifice lasts now and forever. It’s a constant state of grace rooted in faith and belief, not something we can earn or work hard to achieve, but a gift from God that goes far beyond the Law the Jewish teachers of old emphasized.
As Jesus said in Matthew 5:17, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” He’s the God not only of the Law but of grace, not only of the Jews but of Gentiles, not only of yesterday but of today and forevermore.
What Does the Bible Say about God's Unchanging Character?
The concept of Jesus being the same yesterday, today, and forever echoes other Scriptures about God’s timelessness and infinite power and authority. God encompasses three in one—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In Genesis, God uses the word “us,” as in, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness…” (Genesis 1:26). God is, as we know, beyond gender, beyond time, and beyond full comprehension.
John 1 says this rather poetically: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (v. 1-5). A few lines later, he explains, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (v. 14)—that is, the Word is Jesus, who is part of God.
In a sense, this echoes what is mentioned in three instances in the Book of Revelation: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13). The Word, God, was there in the beginning, is here now, and will be always, far into the future and forever. As “Alpha and Omega,” God transcends time. God created time and stands outside it. He has His own time and timeline, and this is not for us humans to fully comprehend. But that timeless, constant nature is something we can count on, unchanging and steady and secure.
The psalmist reflects on this in Psalm 102, praising the Lord: “In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands,” he writes. “They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded. But you remain the same, and your years will never end. The children of your servants will live in your presence; their descendants will be established before you” (Psalm 102:25-28).
Why Should We Be Encouraged by 'Jesus Christ the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever'?
That God can be trusted and counted on is a comfort to His people. Knowing He is “the same yesterday and today and forever” reminds us that God was reliable in the past, we can trust Him today, and we can hold fast to the hope that is tomorrow. God has always existed, and He wants us to be part of His kingdom. And as we’re told in Colossians 3:4, He will return one day in full glory to take us to our heavenly home.
If you’re feeling vulnerable and rootless today because of the ever-changing tides of culture and the sweep of violence and sometimes evil that often clutches onto this world, take heart. He was, He is, and He will always be. Hold tight to Him, and everything will be as it should: good, right, and part of God’s ultimate purpose.
Further Reading
How Is God the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever?
How Is Jesus the Same Yesterday, Today, and Forever?
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