Title: Pith Helmets Are Optional
Text: Psalm 104
Thesis: Every day is a new chance for God to surprise us.
Introduction
Human discovery¡K On February 7, 2006, National Geographic News reported a team of conservationists had spent nearly a month in the Foja Mountains on the western side of New Guinea, the part belonging to Indonesia. They found a lost world¡K a world of nearly 2 million acres of old growth tropical forest. There was not a single trail, no sign of civilization, no sign of any local communities ever having been there. One scientist is quoted by MSNBC to have said, ¡§It¡¦s as close to the Garden of Eden as you¡¦re going to find on Earth.¡¨ Bruce Beeler said, ¡§It really was like crossing some sort of time warp into a place where people haven¡¦t been¡Kwe were like kids in a candy store. Everywhere we looked we saw amazing things we had never seen before.¡¨ They saw a trove of animals never before documented, from a new species of honeyeater bird to more than 20 new species of frogs. One of the most amazing discoveries was the Golden-mantled Tree Kangaroo, which was previously thought hunted to extinction.
It is a place described as virgin territory. It is a place that has not been impacted by humans, so plant and animal species are at natural population levels. The implication is that when humans leave a footprint¡K all of that changes.
Transition: ¡K all of that changes.
Human discovery is not necessarily a good thing¡K
¡¨God blessed Adam and Eve and told them, ¡¥Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it¡K¡¨ Genesis 1:28
The first question is, have we multiplied and filled the earth?
There are now 6 billion people inhabiting earth. 1.2 billion live in China, 960 million people live in India¡K we learned last week that there are now 300 million people living in the United States.
Illustration: The population of the United States of America had grown from 200 million to 300 million people in the last 39 years. We are now the third country in the world to top 300 million people, joining China and India. Steven Turner, professor of agricultural economics from Mississippi State University cites that as a good thing because retiring Americans need more people to support the workforce and to sustain the Social Security System.
The U.S. Census Bureau reported this week that no other country is expected to reach 300,000 people in the next 30 years; however, they estimate that the United States will reach 400 million by 2043.
The driving force of the population is the birth of a baby every 14 seconds and surging immigration.
However¡K at the other end of the spectrum, The Christian Science Monitor reported on April 18, 2002, that Russia¡¦s population of 144 million is expected to shrink by one half in the next 50 years. The average Russian male can expect to live to the ripe old age of 59 years. This pending crisis is purportedly due to a combination of factors including infertility, poverty, substance abuse, disease, stress and a zero immigration policy.
Non-the-less¡K worldwide population census numbers continue to escalate.
The second question is, have we subdued the earth?
There is much good news. We enjoy some of it every day. Here on the Front Range we get to enjoy the best of the best in agricultural production. We enjoy cantaloupe from Rocky Ford and peaches from the western slope and import Olathe sweet corn from Kansas.
After a rather rocky time in the 30s we finally learned the lessons of conservation and land management, we are capable of producing more than we can consume and enough to feed much of the world.
We have learned that if we do not protect and manage the land, the water, and the air¡K we humans have a way of abusing our God-given trust..
Illustration: ABC News reported on October 20, 2006 that scientists were surprised when they measured the size of the hole in the ozone layer, which filters the ultra-violet rays of the sun and slows global warming. They had estimated it would be 8.9 million square miles but it was in fact, the area of the hole in the ozone layer was 10.6 million square miles.
Illustration: Denver Post staff writer, Kim McGuire reported on October 19, 2006 that an estimated 118,000 new oil and gas wells will be drilled on public lands in Utah, Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado and Montana by 2026. 22,830 of those wells will be drilled in Colorado.
The United States currently produces 8 million barrels of oil each day but we consume 19,993 million barrels of oil every day¡K Japan follows consuming 5.4 million barrels a day and China consumes 4.8 million barrels each day. The rest of the countries in the world consumes between 1 and 2 million barrels a day.
What did God mean when he blessed Adam and Eve and told them to multiply and fill the earth and subdue it?
It is important that we remember that multiplying and subduing were stated in the context of God¡¦s blessing Adam and Eve. They were not commanded to get out there procreate day and night until every patch of dry ground on the planet was covered by urban sprawl and every highway bumper to bumper and every walkway was elbow to elbow. God was simply giving his blessing to the multiplication of the human race.
It is also important to remember that subduing the earth was also stated in the context of God¡¦s blessing. They were not commanded to get out there and turn every square inch of sod, dig up, pump out or cut down and consume every natural resource on the planet.
God¡¦s blessing was that we can enjoy and use the resources around us, as those entrusted with the job of being executors of God¡¦s place. We are to take care of creation as God himself would take care of it.
Illustration: Last week when Bonnie and I drove up to Estes, I noticed the stark contrast between the landscapes of the north and south sides of highway 36 between here and Boulder¡K and particularly around Flat Irons Mall. On the north side was the semi-arid and stark landscape that is eastern Colorado. On the south side was a lush green lawn and landscaping that is not natural to Colorado. On the south side was a landscape that requires huge amounts of a natural resources that is being seriously diminished every year. I always wonder if radically depleting the water table is what God had in mind when he said instructed Adam and Eve to subdue the earth.
It is a good thing for us to be reminded that this place and all that is in this place, is special to God. ¡§The earth is the Lord¡¦s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to God.¡¨ Psalm 24:1 It is this God made place that is entrusted to us and is intended to amaze us and remind us of God¡¦s activity and love for his creation.
Transition: We live in a universe that declares the glory of God¡K
I. We live in a universe that declares the glory of God 24/7/365.
¡§The heavens tell of the glory of God. The skies display his marvelous craftsmanship. Day after day and night after night they make him known. Without making a sound or saying a word; their voice is silent in the skies, yet their message has gone out to all the earth¡K¡¨ Psalm 19:1-4
Transition: The universe and the world we live is glorifying to God because God made it¡K
II. We live in a world that was created and formed by God.
¡§O Lord, what a variety of things you have made! In wisdom you have made them all. The earth is full of your creatures.¡¨ Psalm 104:24
Illustration: If you stand on the southern rim of the Grand Canyon and gaze into the expanse of that place you will see granite that is 2 billion years old, limestone that is 500 million years old, sandstone that is 300 million years old¡K it is an extraordinary place of enormous scale and beauty.
Illustration: If you stand in any mountain meadow or Midwestern farm pasture, in season you will see wild flowers that exceed the beauty of garments worn by kings and hear beautiful birds sing and see them feed as though from the very hand of God.
Illustration: If to any ocean on either of the hemispheres you can see a mammal that is longer than three dump trucks (75 ¡V 80 feet in the northern hemisphere and around 90 ¡V 100 feet in the southern hemisphere), heavier than one hundred ten Honda Civics (100 tons / females can reach 150 tons), and has a heart the size of a Volkswagen Beetle¡K You can see the blue whale feed on 4 tons of krill a day ¡V that¡¦s three million calories. You can see a baby blue whale put away one hundred gallons of milk every twenty-four hours. When a blue whale surfaces, you can see it take in the largest breath of air of any living thing on the planet. Its spray shoots higher into the air than the height of a telephone pole.
¡§Oh Lord, what a variety of things you have made!¡¨
Transition: We live in a world that has been arranged and ordered by God.
III. We live in a universe that has been arranged and ordered by God.
¡§You made the moon to mark the seasons and the sun that knows when to set.¡¨ Psalm 104:19
¡§Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out one after another, calling each by its name. And he counts them to see that none are lost or have strayed away.¡¨ Isaiah 40:26
¡§There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven¡K¡¨ Ecclesiastes 3
Illustration: We often step back from something we are working on and remark, ¡§Well, it¡¦s good enough for a government job.¡¨ Or, we might remark, ¡§Well, it¡¦s nothing anyone would notice riding by on a galloping horse.¡¨
We live in a universe that has been arranged and ordered by God¡K years ago, Dr. Lewis Foster remarked, ¡§The closer one gets to something man has made, the more its imperfections are obvious. However, the more we magnify something God has created, the more we see its perfection.¡¨
Transition: And finally, we live in a universe that is sustained and preserved by God.
IV. We live in a universe that is sustained and preserved by God.
¡§Every one of these depends on you to give to give them their food as they need it. You supply it, they gather it. You open your hand to feed them and they are satisfied.¡¨ Psalm 104:27
If you take a moment to read Psalm 104, you will have the sense of God¡¦s ongoing activity in providing for all of his creation and his creatures. God sends rain to grow grass to feed cattle and food from the earth and wine to gladden our hearts and bread to give us strength. Psalm 104:13-15
In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul wrote, ¡§Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and on earth. Everything has been created through him and for him¡K and he holds [sustains] all creation together.¡¨ Colossians 1:15-17
Conclusion
Transition: We do not have to go far or think long to experience the wonder of God and God¡¦s creative activity.
You do not need to trek into the deep, dark topical forest of the Foja Mountains in New Guinea; safari under the high arc of the African sky over the Serengeti; or hack your way through the primal rainforest of the Amazon Jungle to come under the spell of the majesty of God and the miracle of his creation. A pith helmet is not required attire for journeying into the wonder and marvel and perfection of God¡¦s activity.
Transition: The bible says,¡K
The bible says, ¡§From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and the sky and all that God has made. They can clearly see his invisible qualities and his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse whatsoever for not knowing God.¡¨ Romans 1:20
Transition: I urge you to do three things this morning:
ƒæ I urge you to open your eyes and ears to see and hear the glory of God¡¦s activity in the universe in which we live.
ľ I urge you to open your life and invite Jesus Christ the creator and sustainer of the universe into your life.
ľ I urge you to leave this place with a renewed reverence for our Creator and his Creation. Amen.
