The God of the Universe
March 4, 2024 | By Maddie Bartels TC ‘24
image description: star cluster in a galaxy
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows his handiwork.
One day tells its tale to another, and one night imparts knowledge to another.
Although they have no words or language, and their voices are not heard,
Their sound has gone out into all lands, and their message to the ends of the world. [1]
If we humans are able to find joy by being a witness to and participant in creation, how much more so is God? How wonderful it is that the God of the heavens and the earth has imparted some of his own sensibilities unto us—a serenity in order, a soul-soothing in the natural world, and a joy in beautiful things.
One of my favorite things as of late is to picture God, as Jesus, frolicking among the planets in the solar system and the galaxies in the universe. These images capture what I love about God. In his sinlessness and omnipotence, he is able to experience dimensions of creation that we are blind to. He is playful and joyous, wanting creation to be enjoyed to the full rather than seen from a distance or perceived as a symbol but not experienced. He is mysterious and unsearchable, just as the universe is to our feeble minds and meager technologies. God, in his realm of perfect clarity, knows of a joy we cannot comprehend but still eagerly extends to us a joy obtainable in the mysteries of human existence.
Even disregarding God’s active relationship to them, nature and stars and galaxies are a testament themselves, a foundational reality of God’s promises to uphold the universe in good order for generations upon generations. What a comfort it is to know that the God whose laws of physics have remained unchanged for billions of years, despite countless iterations of space, time, and celestial formation, is the God whose word for us is unshakeable and unchangeable.
The law of the Lord is perfect and revives the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure and gives wisdom to the innocent.
The statutes of the Lord are just and rejoice the heart; the commandment of the Lord is clear and gives light to the eyes. [2]
I am amazed to know that just as the universe has been held up by the laws of physics for billions of years, so too has my life been held up by the statutes and promises of the Lord since the creation of the world. In our uncertainty and doubt, in the seeming chaos and frustration, God’s laws are still true and sure and steadfast. Let us place our hope in the God of the universe who has hung the stars in their place and gives light to our blind eyes.
References:
[1] Psalm 19: 1-2
[2] Psalm 19: 7-8