God is in Control
Psalm 33
Let the godly sing with joy to the LORD, for it is fitting to praise him.
2 Praise the LORD with melodies on the lyre; make music for him on the ten-stringed harp.
3 Sing new songs of praise to him; play skillfully on the harp and sing with joy.
4 For the word of the LORD holds true, and everything he does is worthy of our trust.
5 He loves whatever is just and good, and his unfailing love fills the earth.
6 The LORD merely spoke, and the heavens were created.
He breathed the word, and all the stars were born.
7 He gave the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.
8 Let everyone in the world fear the LORD, and let everyone stand in awe of him.
9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command.
10 The LORD shatters the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes.
11 But the LORD’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.
12 What joy for the nation whose God is the LORD, whose people he has chosen for his own.
13 The LORD looks down from heaven and sees the whole human race.
14 From his throne he observes all who live on the earth.
15 He made their hearts, so he understands everything they do.
16 The best-equipped army cannot save a king, nor is great strength enough to save a warrior.
17 Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory— for all its strength, it cannot save you.
18 But the LORD watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love.
19 He rescues them from death and keeps them alive in times of famine.
20 We depend on the LORD alone to save us. Only he can help us, protecting us like a shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice, for we are trusting in his holy name.
22 Let your unfailing love surround us, LORD, for our hope is in you alone.
The Testimony of God’s Power
The Testimony of Physics
Our universe is precisely ordered to support out life here on earth. Everything about the cosmos is finely tuned. For example:
The energy density of space
Something I have never thought of before is the energy density of empty space. Astronomers have found that the energy density of empty space must be precisely balanced to support the solar system as we know it. In fact the fine tuning necessary to keep the energy density of empty space at a constant so that we can live and breathe is represented by one part in a hundred million billion billion billion billion billion. That would be ten followed by 53 zeros. If the energy density of space was off by even that miniscule of an amount, life would cease to exist as we know it.
This is only one example of the multitude of individual physical and cosmological factors that all must work together to sustain life on earth. In fact the precision with which these factors must work together is one part in ten billion multiplied by itself one hundred and twenty three times. Experts say that you can’t even write that number down, since it would require more zeros than the number of elementary particles in the entire universe!
And it’s not just that God did the math. He is not just a supernatural genius. He made it look easy. The Psalms say that breathed and the stars were created. Do you get that? Something so precise that we cannot even calculate it was as easy as breathing to Him. In another Psalm, it says that He knows each star by name.
David said “The LORD merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born.” Another Psalm says that God laughs with joy every time the sun travels across the sky. Please don’t get a picture of God being so powerful that He worked out the complexity of the universe. It was a game to Him! Something so precise that we can’t even write a number to describe it was easy for Him. It was like child’s play.
That’s how awesome God is.
The Apostle Paul wrote: “From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature.”
The Testimony of Terra
Gravity
The earth’s gravity is so finely tuned by a variety of factors that if one of those factors changed even a fraction of an amount, then we would either be instantaneously crushed or fly off into space. This tuning is so fine that it can be represented by a factor of one part in ten thousand billion billion billion. That’s ten with 30 zeros after it.
Location
Earth’s location, it’s size, its composition, it’s structure, its atmosphere, it’s temperature, its internal dynamics, and its many intricate cycles that are essential to live – the carbon cycle, the calcium cycle, the nitrogen cycle, the phosphorous cycle, the sulfur cycle, that calcium cycle and so on – testify to the degree to which our planet is exquisitely and precariously balanced.
We are told by the experts that similar to the fine tuning of physics in the universe, earth’s position in the universe and its intricately choreographed geological and chemical systems work together to provide an utterly unique place for us to live.
In addition to the earth’s atmosphere, the conditions that make earth livable also position the earth in a way that makes it well suited for viewing and analyzing the universe and our environment. It’s as if God planned for us to be able to explore the cosmos.
Astronomer John A. O’Keefe describes our world in this way:
We are, by astronomical standards, a pampered, [sheltered], cherished group of creatures; our Darwinian claim to have done it all ourselves is a ridiculous and as charming as a baby’s brave efforts to stand on its own feet and refuse his mother’s hand. If the universe had not been made with the most exacting precision we could never have come into existence. It is my view that these circumstances indicate the universe was created for man to live in.
The Psalmist tells us “The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship.” (Psalm 19:1)
Hebrews 1:3 - He sustains the universe by the mighty power of his command.
The Testimony of Biology
Within each of our body’s one hundred trillion cells is six feet of tightly coiled DNA. This double helix of deoxyribonucleic acid contains the genetic information necessary to create all of the proteins out of which our bodies are made.
In a PBS documentary, Unlocking the Mystery of Life, the process is described in this way:
In a process know as transcription, a molecular machine first unwinds a section of the DNA helix to expose the genetic instructions needed to assemble a specific protein molecule. Another machine then copies these instructions to form a molecule known as messenger RNA. When transcription is complete, the slender RNA strand carries the genetic information…out of the cell nucleus. The messenger RNA strand is directed to a two-part molecular factory called a ribosome…Inside the ribosome, a molecular assembly line builds a specifically sequenced chain of amino acids. These amino acids are transported from other parts of the cell and then linked into chains often hundreds of units long. Their sequential arrangement determines the type of protein manufactured. When the chain is finished, it is moved from the ribosome to a barrel-shaped machine that helps fold it into the precise shape critical to its function. After the chain is folded into a protein, it is then released and shepherded by another molecular machine to the exact location where it is needed.
We truly are fearfully and wonderfully made.
This makes the statement “He’s got the whole world in His hands” seem trite.
How should this testimony of God’s Power motivate us?
1. We must come to God in awe and reverence
If God is all powerful then He deserves my worship
Let the godly sing with joy to the LORD, for it is fitting to praise him.
2 Praise the LORD with melodies on the lyre; make music for him on the ten-stringed harp.
3 Sing new songs of praise to him; play skillfully on the harp and sing with joy.
4 For the word of the LORD holds true, and everything he does is worthy of our trust.
5 He loves whatever is just and good, and his unfailing love fills the earth.
6 The LORD merely spoke, and the heavens were created.
He breathed the word, and all the stars were born.
7 He gave the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.
8 Let everyone in the world fear the LORD, and let everyone stand in awe of him.
9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command.
We can’t just refuse a God this powerful…we must respond to Him
25 See to it that you obey God, the one who is speaking to you. For if the people of Israel did not escape when they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, how terrible our danger if we reject the One who speaks to us from heaven! 26 When God spoke from Mount Sinai his voice shook the earth, but now he makes another promise: “Once again I will shake not only the earth but the heavens also.” 27 This means that the things on earth will be shaken, so that only eternal things will be left.
28 Since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be destroyed, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. 29 For our God is a consuming fire. (Heb 12:25-29)
The LORD shatters the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes.
11 But the LORD’s plans stand firm forever; his intentions can never be shaken.
12 What joy for the nation whose God is the LORD, whose people he has chosen for his own.
13 The LORD looks down from heaven and sees the whole human race.
14 From his throne he observes all who live on the earth.
15 He made their hearts, so he understands everything they do.
2. No matter how tired or overcome or beat up you are, God’s incalculable power is always available to those who look to Him.
If God is all powerful then He can handle my problems better than me
The best-equipped army cannot save a king, nor is great strength enough to save a warrior.
17 Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory— for all its strength, it cannot save you.
Luke 1:37 - For nothing is impossible with God.
But the LORD watches over those who fear him, those who rely on his unfailing love.
19 He rescues them from death and keeps them alive in times of famine.
20 We depend on the LORD alone to save us. Only he can help us, protecting us like a shield.
21 In him our hearts rejoice, for we are trusting in his holy name.
22 Let your unfailing love surround us, LORD, for our hope is in you alone.
Ephesians 3:20 - Now glory be to God! By his mighty power at work within us, he is able to accomplish infinitely more than we would ever dare to ask or hope.
3. We can expect that God will be powerfully at work in our lives not only in the ordinary events of life but also in the performing of the miraculous.
Luke 24:49 - I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.
Acts 4:29, 30 - Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.
The Conclusion
Our all powerful, all knowing God is our Lord and King
1 Chronicles 29:10-13 - “Praise be to you, O LORD, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.
11 Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.
Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
12 Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things.
In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.
13 Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.
