“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.”
(Revelation 4:11)
Years ago I became fascinated with early church history, in particular, the Antenicene period, the period extending from New Testament times to AD 325. Two things surprised me about Christian writings from that time. First, I found an enormous emphasis on the Old Testament. This is very unlike many North American churches today, which seem to focus their attention almost exclusively on the New Testament. Secondly, I found that most of the theologians and apologists of that period placed heavy emphasis on the doctrine of creation. Unlike the gods of the nations, the Judeo-Christian God of the Bible is the Creator of the world. He didn’t just bring order to eternally preexisting matter, He brought everything into being out of literally nothing. “Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear,” declares the holy Scripture(Hebrews 11:3). This emphasis on God as Creator serves two main purposes. First, it reinforces the fact that God is in charge; the Creator is, in the nature of the case, the ultimate authority; His word is the final court of appeal. Secondly, it causes us to interpret our world correctly. When we see the amazing array of body plans and colors displayed by the living creatures that share our world with us, we ought to recognize God as their brilliant Designer. It is just like fallen, unregenerate man, however, to copy what he sees in nature and then pat himself on the back as though he thought of it first. For instance, God’s flying machines, the birds, are equipped with bones that appear somewhat corrugated inside. This makes their bones both strong and light. Aerospace engineers use the same design principles and patterns in their own flying machines. Similarly, designers of solar panels have incorporated the same corrugation patterns seen on a fly’s eye in order to reduce light reflection. Engineers have been studying the design of the whale’s tail in order to create airplane wings for more agile flight, and in order to regulate temperature, humidity, and airflow in buildings, architects have been studying and incorporating the same design principles seen in termite mounds. By using hypodermic needles edged with tiny serrations, like those on a mosquito’s proboscis, medical researchers have found a way to reduce the pain of injections. How strange it is that otherwise intelligent people could believe that the amazing design patterns and principles on display in living things, found to be so useful in our own creations, could have evolved through natural process alone. As born-again children of God we know better. May the Creator Himself open our eyes to behold even more wondrous things in the world He has created, and in the infallible book He has written as well (Psalm 119:118).
God bless,
pastor john
English