Bruce Malone
[Originally published as the devotional section of Mission Trip Testimonies]
The Light
In Romans 1:20, we are told that we can know the very “eternal power and Godhead” — the divine character or nature — of our Creator by understanding “the things that are made.” Thus science (the observation of creation) and faith (the belief in God) are intimately connected. Jesus stated that he is “the light of the world” (John 8:12) and “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). In Colossians 1:17, Jesus is described as the one who “is before all things, and by him all things consist.”
Let’s take a closer look at each part of these statements.
Darkness and light are often contrasted as opposites, but only light actually exists as something tangible. You can’t make darkness; you can only remove, dim, or hide the light. Light is simultaneously a particle (photon) and a wave (energy in motion). One is touchable and tangible, while the other is only observed by its effects. Scientists can mathematically describe what light does and how it behaves, but they really have no comprehension of what a “photon” actually IS. As soon as it stops moving, it ceases to exist.
Our Creator is the source of light, both physically and spiritually. The farther we are removed from Him, the darker our perception of reality becomes. The farther we move from either God or his moral principles (the Law), the more difficulty we have in discerning the truth. In addition, Jesus is simultaneously both physically real and spiritual. In choosing light as an analogy for his nature, we are taught much about the characteristics of God and the importance of staying close to the Light.
The Way
Theologians describe God as omniscient (all-knowing) and omnipresent (everywhere at once). One would think this was just based on religious faith, yet the observation of science demonstrates that these characteristics are woven into the very fabric of our space-time universe. Almost 100 years ago, physicists claimed that “quantum entanglement” was a property of our physical universe, and it was experimentally confirmed in a Nobel Prize-winning experiment by John Clauser and Stuart Freedman in 1972.
Fox News reported in an editorial, “Two objects — for example, subatomic particles — that are intimately related and then widely separated, somehow maintain an invisible, intimate and unbreakable connection. One object might be in a lab on Earth, and the other might be clear across the universe, billions of light-years away, yet whatever happens to one is known and felt by the other instantaneously, without any delay whatsoever. Indeed, one would be justified in calling the connection between widely separated, entangled objects ‘otherworldly.’ I say that because quantum entanglement clearly offers us a stunning scientific explication of the age-old belief in an omniscient God.”
The Truth & the Life
Theologians also describe God as omnipotent (all-powerful) and eternal (living in the past, present, and future all at once). Throughout the Bible, God describes things in the future as if they have already happened. That is because we now know that time is a part of our physical universe, and because God created the universe, he is literally outside of time. Thus, He inhabits the future as if it has already happened and speaks of it in those terms.
God also holds the universe together and supernaturally created life.
The nucleus of every atom in the universe is made of neutrons (having a neutral charge) and protons (having a positive charge). Positive charges strongly repel each other, so every atom in the universe should instantly fly apart in a fervent heat. Yet they do not. Scientists have measured the energy required to hold a nucleus together and called it the “strong nuclear force.” The amount of energy needed to hold every atom in the entire universe together is measurable (yet unimaginably enormous), and although we have given it a name, no one has any idea what this mysterious force is or how it is maintained.
In addition, negatively charged electrons are spinning at the speed of light around every atom in the universe, and if they stop (or even slow down), they would immediately fly into the positively charged nucleus and the entire universe would collapse in a fervent heat. No one can explain what keeps these electrons moving.
Lastly, every form of life is made from thousands of complex parts, and each part must be the correct shape (like the parts of any machine must be shaped and placed correctly). Any system requires many specifically designed parts that never arise by chance because all the parts are needed at once for the machine to operate. Neither the existence of these parts, nor their placement to form the complex systems needed within even a single living cell, has ever been explained by any natural process.
Thus, Jesus literally is the Author, Maintainer, and ultimately the Perfector of life…and the entire universe. Furthermore, He is “Truth,” and told us how we can live for eternity with our Creator. Note that the last part of John 14:6 adds: “no man cometh unto the father, but by me.” It is only by admitting that we are in rebellion (too sinful to live forever with our Creator), turning from our sin (by seeking His forgiveness), and accepting His payment in our place (by believing in who He is and that He died in our place and rose from the dead), that we will truly find the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
Can you think of a time in your life when you have done these things?
