God Revealed in the Functions of the Universe

“For by Him were all things created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions or principalities or power:  all things were created by Him and of Him” (KJ21).

 

There are certain laws of nature that make the universe function so that it is suitable for mankind to live and enjoy.  These laws are invisible in themselves, but their effects are certainly visible in our daily lives.  They affect us every day of our lives, and God created them as surely as He created the sun, the earth, and all its environment.  We are told in Amos 5:8:  ”Seek Him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night, who calleth forth the waters of the sea and poureth them out upon the face of the earth.  The Lord is His name” (KJ21).  The portion of this verse that reads; “…and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night” speaks of day and night, the process whereby everything on earth has time to rest between times of action, and He made this day/night cycle to pass across the face of the planet so that there is always someplace where it is day and someplace where it is night.  There is always daylight somewhere, and there is always dark of night somewhere.  That means that sunrises and sunsets are constantly occurring.

Further in the same verse, “…who calleth forth the waters of the sea and poureth them out upon the face of the earth” describes what we call the water cycle.  Rain or snow falls, flows toward the oceans, and evaporates, only to be carried over the land and water the crops again.  This is the water cycle by which plants and animals are provided with needed water.

Water, itself, has a unique property.   Everything contracts--gets smaller as it cools.  Water does the same until just above freezing, when it expands and continues to expand for a few degrees below freezing.  This causes ice cubes to float.  It also causes rivers to freeze over because this frozen water stays above the flowing water and insulates it so rivers don’t freeze solid to the bottom and kill all the fish.  It also provides a method whereby arctic villages can be provisioned by trucks driving over the tops of frozen rivers and lakes during the winter.  It also allows water to flow year round to turn the turbines of dams to produce electricity.  God had all of this in mind when He created.

Water is an interesting compound.  It is made up of hydrogen, a very explosive gas, and oxygen, whose presence is necessary for any fire to burn.  When God put these two fiery elements together in a special combination—two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen—a substance is formed which puts out fires.  God is amazing.  Table salt is made up of sodium and chlorine, two poisonous substances when ingested alone, but when God put them together in His special compound, sodium chloride--one atom of sodium with one atom one chlorine—table salt is formed, and our steaks taste better.   Without sodium chloride we could not live.  Again, God was thinking ahead.

Much of God’s creative action is visible in land forms. water features, plants and animals, but just as important are the innumerable physical and chemical processes that He put in place.  When we consider all these processes, we are doubly amazed at the creative aptitude and power of our great God.