The Journey: God Is In The Details 2-3-2020

By Dean Foster

The Journey: God is in the details

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  ²He was with God in the beginning.  ³Through him all things were made: without him nothing was made that has been made.                 John 1:1-3

            Today on the Journey we see that God is in the details.  Everyone can see Him there.  When God invades your life, eyes are opened wide and you see there is but One Way to the Father.  Men of God remember, some insist on searching for another way.  For those who do, men of God remember, He lets them.

            George was the church board chair and I'd picked up on the fact that he ran a "tight ship."  So, when I arrived early for my first board meeting as pastor, I wasn't surprised to see he was already there with his Bible and three-ring binder out on the table and ready to go.  We greeted each other as I walked into the room and before I could sit down, he slid his large, black, gilded, King James Bible across the table toward me saying, "O.K. pastor, now show me in there where it says something that proves God is real!"

            George was a bold, faithful man who obviously wasn't afraid to ask a question when he had one, I like that.  He would tell you if he didn't like your answer too, I like that also.  Both of which are why I believe the Holy Spirit brought George along in my life and ministry when He did. Because George brought with him those, "O.K. go ahead, it's all yours," situations the Spirit gives us as reminders that we can't and are not meant to do ministry on our own. George was a strong reminder that Jesus sent the Spirit to help us and instructed us to wait for every whisper of that help (Acts 1:4, 8).

            In addition to the blustery, intelligent, retired electrician George was, he was also a "fisher of men," in his own way.  He read a lot and in addition to Bible study, he liked books that were faith building through scientific, archaeological or historical discovery.  He would use the factual information he learned to evangelize to people he worked with and others he met outside the church.  He was challenging to talk to sometimes, but he knew some pretty cool stuff.  Rather than trying to build up his faith with secular information though, it was obvious his faith caused him to search a little deeper than the surface type answers the world wants people to settle for in place of the truth and reality.   

            For instance, George would have encouraged people with a book by Patrick Glynn titled, God the Evidence. Among other things Glynn writes about the "Anthropic principle," which has shown that we don't live in a random "Big Bang" universe after all.  Not only that, this discovery shows the birth and expansion of the universe must have been completely planned and intelligently designed with life in mind from the start.    

            In God The Evidence Glynn writes, "…in essence the anthropic principle came down to the observation that all the various laws of physics were fine-tuned from the very beginning of the universe for the creation of man—that the universe we inhabit appeared to be expressly designed for the emergence of human beings."

            "It was back in the 1960s, scientists began to notice a strange connection among otherwise unexplained coincidences in physics."  Glynn writes, "It turns out that many mysterious values and relationships in physics could be explained by one overriding fact: such values had been necessary for the creation of life. “

            Therefore, the Anthropic principle apparently offers an explanation for one of the most basic mysteries of physics—the values of the fundamental constants.  Glynn explains that physicists had never been able to explain why the values of the so-called fundamental constants—were as they were.  They were just constants.  Yet, scientists could see that these precise values for the constants are related to each other and the long running, unfolding of the universe.  A planned part of which was always the creation of humans.    

            For example, the very nature of water—so vital to life—is something of a mystery.  Unique among the molecules, water is lighter in its solid form than liquid form: Ice floats.  If it didn't, the oceans would freeze from the bottom up and the earth would now be covered with solid ice.  This property is traceable to the unique properties of the hydrogen atom.  Yet, change the constants just a little and all hydrogen would be helium.  No water, no oxygen, no life, no one to talk in high pitch voices.

            There is a long list of similar details about gravity, nuclear forces, millions of interrelated details that had to be planned "just right." Mr. Glynn writes that astronomer Fred Hoyle who coined the term "Big Bang" is just one of many scientists who now believe that the universe has been unfolding or expanding with a plan rather than the result of an explosion.  From the very first second until right now the universe has had to know what it is going to be in the next minute so it can do what is needed right now to achieve whatever it will be.  Talk about knowing where you're going! 

            To sum this up let me quote physicist Hoyle who questioned his explosive Big Bang metaphor:  "An explosion in a junkyard does not lead to various items being assembled into a useful working machine."

            There I was, maybe four weeks into my part time local pastor position, at the quaint little church, the ink on my license for ministry still wet, trying to look like I knew what I was doing and this guy I hardly know asks me for the final answer to a question men and women have been asking about God for centuries. 

            I think I said something about having faith and John 3:16.

            I remember George just laughed because it was a test and said, "Good answer."    

References
Glynn, Patrick (1997) God The Evidence