September 21/22, 2002

WHO IS GOD?-He is the Creator.

Genesis 1:1

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."

If you do not believe in Jesus Christ or even in God, you should take a better look at the creation. It is a daily reminder of His presence. The only way you can stay in your unbelief is by ignoring the witness that surrounds you every day.

On three separate occasions the Apostle Paul pointed to the creation as a witness to God. He believed that the witness of creation is so powerful that, if people have nothing but the creation on which to go, they should still know enough about God to know God.

The first of these occasions that we will examine is found in-

1. Acts 14:17 tells us that the creation reveals the goodness of God.

The Apostle wrote-

"'Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.'" [NIV]

Paul was speaking to people who had no knowledge of Jesus Christ or of the God of the Bible. Paul pointed them to the creation and said that the goodness of the creation bears witness to its Creator.

Scientists today recognize this principle at a deeper level than the Apostle Paul could ever have imagined. They recognize that the creation is friendly to humans. The creation shows an almost uncanny desire to allow humans to exist. Literally thousands of things in the creation have to be exactly as they are for life as we know it to exist on this earth. John Polkinghorne, in his book, The Faith of a Physicist (Princeton University Press, 1994), quotes approvingly the words of a fellow scientist who wrote: "'The more I examine the universe and the details of its architecture, the more evidence I find that the universe in some sense must have known we were coming.'" Polkinghorne added, "I cannot see what sense that could be other than the will of a Creator" (p. 76).

Many scientists today believe that an unseen hand has guided the creation to the incredible balance that allows life on earth to exist. A recent discovery is the role the planet Jupiter plays in protecting the earth. Jupiter's enormous size and weight act like a vacuum cleaner sucking up the loose pieces of rock and debris that are flying around our solar system. We watched in awe in 1994 as comet Shoemaker-Levy broke into pieces and slammed into Jupiter. Any one of those pieces would have wrecked unimaginable havoc on the earth. That comet and probably thousands of others like it are drawn into the orbit of Jupiter and slam into that planet rather than hitting the earth. If Jupiter did not exist and did not act as a vacuum cleaner sucking in the loose rocks flying around the solar system, the earth would be pulverized by meteorites and comets. This relatively constant bombardment of the earth would prevent human life from existing on this planet.

Everywhere one looks, one sees this incredible balance that makes our lives on this planet possible. The good creation gives witness to its Creator by favoring life on this planet.

The second occasion on which the Apostle Paul pointed to the creation as a witness to God is found in-

2. Acts 17:24 tells us that God is personal.

"'The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.'" [NIV]

God is not a power or a force, but a person. The old Deists used to hold that there is a power called God, but that that power is totally impersonal. They said that God made the creation much like a watchmaker makes a clock. Then the Divine watchmaker wound up the creation and set it running and went off and left it to run on the laws and principles built into it. Many scientists today speak of God in much the same way. They do not completely rule out that there may be some celestial power behind the creation, but they are convinced that the power is not personal.

In this I believe that the old timey preachers who used to visit our town and preach revivals in our churches were nearer to the truth than the scientists are. Back in those days we did not have television, so the annual revival was a community event. Everyone in town came to the revival services. We didn't have air conditioning, either, and we opened the windows to let in the air. We had never heard of padded pews. We sat on old wooden varnished pews that our shirts stuck to when we stood to sing a hymn.

The visiting evangelist followed an unwritten script. He began the week preaching on the love of God and the joy of salvation. He explained how a sinner could get saved. And somewhere during the week, he always had a sermon devoted to describing the glories of heaven. But as the week wore on, things got more serious. The revival was winding down and some of the hardened sinners in the community were still not saved. So, perhaps on Friday night or Saturday evening, the sermon turned ugly. The visiting evangelist described the awful wrath of Almighty God and the horribleness of hell. He took off his suit coat and hung it on the back of the pulpit chair. He then took out his handkerchief and wiped the perspiration from his face and neck. He paced back and forth on the pulpit platform and raved and ranted like a wild man. His brow furrowed. His face contorted into a scowl. He pointed his finger at the congregation and promised us that we were all going to hell if we did not "get saved" and we had better do it that night, because we probably would not have a tomorrow. It was frightening and it was awful and people flocked down to the front to grab the preacher's hand during the invitation and to beg God to forgive them for their sins.

We thought this was as good as preaching could get. People would yell, "Amen, brother!" and "Tell it like it is preacher!" Then we would sing twenty-five verses of "Just As I Am."

Many of us got "saved" in those old timey revivals. Not everybody, of course, who went forward got saved, but a lot of people did. Somewhere in the chemistry of that event a personal and living God spoke to us of love and salvation. We asked forgiveness of our sin and entered into a personal relationship with Him that entirely changed our lives.

God is not an impersonal power or an invisible force. He is the Living God. He is the Heavenly Father. He is our Savior and Redeemer and Master and Friend. He has a personal relationship with us and we have a personal relationship with Him.

Paul said that the creation bears witness to the goodness of God and to the personal nature of God's being. He also wrote in Romans chapter one, verse 20-

3. Romans 1:20 tells us that the creation reveals the glory of God.

"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse." [NIV]

Paul said that the power of God and the glory of God are so obvious that everyone should see them.

My wife and I love to walk on the beach. Our favorite time to do this is early in the morning. We like to start out in gray light and watch the sun come up over the ocean. It is a spectacle to behold. The first evidence of the sunrise is that the stars disappear and the features of the landscape begin to take shape. Then the tops of the clouds begin to glow with a rosy pink while their underbellies remain dark and gray. After awhile streams of light rays may shine out from behind the clouds. Then a big orange ball of a sun pops above the horizon. It is full daylight now. Seagulls are circling overhead while Sandpipers are scampering along the beach. Strings of Brown Pelicans sail silently pass just above the tops of the waves. It is glorious to be alive. The world is awake and pulsing with life.

The Apostle Paul would say that what we witness in the sunrise is equivalent to God writing His name in large neon letters and flashing it on and off. How can a person not see it and give God the glory?

Of course, we are so accustomed to seeing the sunrise that we take it for granted and hardly even notice it. While the sky is turning its myriad of colors, we are busy feeding our faces or watching the troubles of the world on television. God's signature is all around us like neon lights blinking on and off and we do not even see it.

CONCLUSION:

No one wants to say that the creation alone is sufficient for salvation. But it certainly should give us reason to pause and to think about God. And, if we do that, then we will recognize that God is good, that God is personal and that God is a glorious God.

If you are a Christian, you should see the creation through eyes of faith. Everything you see should remind you of your Creator and cause you to give Him the glory.

If you are not a Christian, you need to know that God's witness is all around you. Everywhere you look, you see the handiwork of God.