Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. | James 1.17
I was tutoring someone in math last week and I was reminded of some of the principles of word problems, specifically: you need to know what the givens are and what you are looking for. In science, these pieces are referred to as the constants and the variables. When you do an experiment, you can only come to a conclusion if you know which things stay the same (constants) and measure for the things that change (variables). As we live out our lives we have these same aspects acting on us. We have things that we expect to be the same and things that change and how we make decisions will be based on which things we feel are constant.
For many the constant is SELF. As Descartes so eloquently put it: I think therefore I am. If the only thing I can be truly sure of (my only constant) is that I am, than me is what I will base my choices on. Everything else will change, but commitment to self will be the driving force. The burden is on self for meaning.
For others the constant is SCIENCE. The laws and order of nature are the rational constant by which we can determine truth. All other aspects of life are variables ordered around a fixed universe. The burden is on this world for meaning.
For others the constant is CHANGE (which is a bit confusing). Change is seen as the only thing that is assured and so life is organized around the fact that there is no constant. If all is variable, than choices and consequences are inconsequential; the best you can do is just be. The burden is on experience for meaning.
What happens when we get our constant wrong is not just that we build our house on a foundation of sand (though that is a problem), but that we turn God into a variable. He becomes either an aloof diety who is always doing His own thing apart from us OR a hostile God who is against us. We cannot, therefore, trust Him or depend on Him. He is doing His own thing and we must, in turn, do our own thing. The Bible tells us that not only is God constant, but that our place in this world is fixed by His sovereignty.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. | Ephesians 2.8-10
What this means is that our identity, purpose, and our place are all fixed by a constant. We no longer have to worry if we belong, or if we are good enough, or if we measure up. THESE ARE NOT WHAT MATTERS. What is important is: our good God has it all under control. He wants what is best for us and He has worked His plan out to give it to us. If that is our constant, there is no variable in this life that can change it.