Obama’s First 100 Days

The first milestone of any new President is the analyzing of the first 100 days in office. For America’s new leader, that time has arrived. The moment has come when many will pause to consider if the man who campaigned on the slogan, ‘Change You Can Believe In’, has lived up to his election promises.

When comparing Mr. Obama’s words to his actions it can be said that there have been certain changes as promised. In other spheres, like not adding to the deficit, the exact opposite has occurred. And of course, depending one one’s political views, there is either joy or frustration on whatever changes have or have not occurred.

Anyone who has spent any time on planet earth knows well that nothing much stays the same. One exception is making things ‘right’ with Uncle Sam each year on April 15th. Technology changes. People change. Laws change. Politics and politicians change. Relationships change. Values change. And of course there is the ever-consistent change in the weather. Change is obvious. It is predictable and it is unstoppable.

But in the midst of it all, there is something, actually someone, whose character, promises, and standards remain firm. He is God of the Creation and the Savior of humanity. His flawless consistency is anchored in the reality seen in the brief words seen in Hebrews 13:8. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” His love, His righteousness, and His requirement for salvation never alter nor falter.

Malachi chapter three also offers insight into His pure reliability, stating in verse 6, “For I am the LORD, I do not change.” For any seriously seeking for a changeless standard, and a lasting change they can really believe in, they need look no further than their Creator. Unlike the recent political promise that offered ‘a change you can believe in’, God’s concept of it is more: ‘a belief by which you can be changed.’

The Bible speaks clearly of the most unique, radical, and enduring of all changes. Verse 17 of 2 Corinthians chapter 5 states, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” The change itself represents life’s ultimate alteration. It changes everything in life. And it originates through a personal change of mind about one’s own lost spiritual condition and about the only one who has the capacity to fix it – Jesus Christ. The requirement is specific. “I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. (John 6:47) The Lord repeats the exclusive formula again later in the epistle when He states, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)

The Spiritual rebirth described in John 3:3 is about a change – a change you can have belief in and a belief that can change you – forever. It is also a change that will never change as described in John 10:28-29. “And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.”

The President’s next 100 days and 100 weeks will bring more change. Obviously some of it may be helpful to the nation and some will not. But the change that arises through personal faith and by God’s miraculous grace is good for any country. And it is uniquely good for those who are guaranteed to experience peace of mind, prevention of sin, and the spiritual power and perception to deal with any change in life that comes our way.

Bill Breckenridge