Lured by Infinity

Lately, I’ve had the thought of what makes me (or us) shudder. I’ve stood at the rim of the Grand Canyon and felt goose bumps come over my body as I was looked in awe. Another example that makes me fear is the enormity of huge ships and deep bodies of water. I become weak in the knees and tremble inside when I stand on a large boat or ship. Likewise, I become a little concerned when I’m floating in a large body of water with unknown wonders and creatures beneath me. Each of us could probably describe something that causes a sense of awe, anxiety, or fear.

Let’s take it up a notch. Let your mind wonder down the trail of infinity. Let’s think of a simple example from math. There are uncountably infinite numbers between 0 and 1 (0.1, 0.2 … 0.9; 0.01, 0.02… 0.09; 0.001…). Now, consider the heavens. Let your mind go on a space journey across the universe. Pass by Jupiter, which has a radius 11 times that of the Earth’s radius. Thus, in terms of volume, Jupiter is over 1300 times the volume of Earth. Or turn the other direction and look at the Sun. It’s radius is approximately 110 times that of the Earth. Therefore, the Sun’s volume is 1.3 million times the volume of the Earth.

To measure our Solar System, astronomers use a unit called astronomical unit (AU), which equals 93 million miles. While our Solar System is vastly unknown, Pluto sets at about 40 AU from the Sun. Beyond that, astronomers estimate that the Sun has the dominate gravitational force out to 125,000 AU (or 2 light-years). While the Oort cloud is estimated to range from 50 AU to 100,000 AU (now, that’s a big cloud). All this is still within our Solar System, which is contained in the Milky Way.

Now, 1 light-year is a unit measurement that is equal to 63,241 AU. The Milky Way is approximately 100,000 light-years in diameter and contains some 200 billion stars, of which the Sun is one. Furthermore, the Universe is estimated at 93 billion light-years across. (numbers from Wikipedia).

Our minds quickly lose track and cannot adequately conceive dimensions of this order. By thinking on these things, I am not setting out to prove any scientific explanation. Rather, I want to warm up our minds.

Consider with me that God created the universe and all that is. He also holds it together. From the vastness of the universe to subatomic interactions, God is a magnificent designer. Furthermore, God is infinite in being and perfection. He is holy unlike anything we have ever seen or fully conceived in our mind.

Our inherent sinfulness cannot exist in true fellowship with God. Therefore, we deserve God’s mighty wrath as our due punishment. Therefore, let me ask you again, what makes you shudder?

Dr. Peter W. Singer, Director, 21st Century Defense Initiative The Brookings Institution, quoted and commented on roboticist Daniel Wilson contemplating the singularity in humans as being the “top of the food chain” yet relatively physically weak. Here’s a segment:

- “The human being is almost singularly pathetic. We lack claws, sport tiny little teeth, and are covered with thin, delicate skin. Most of us can’t even walk outside barefoot.” Roboticist Daniel Wilson is pointing to a singular riddle of humankind’s place on the planet. We are one of the weaker species physically and yet we sit at top of the food chain. The reason is our technology. A saber tooth tiger may be able to chew us to bits, but once that first cave man learned to shake a stick, its time was over. Today, we could literally bomb that tiger back into the Stone Age, that is, if it hadn’t already been made extinct by our stick-wielding ancestors.

I would like to simply clarify that humans are a singularity in creation–by design. As much as I am involved in and enjoy technology, it is not the reason that humans are so different from all other species. Technology is simply a mode in which we reflect creativity. The reason that we are a singularity in creation is because we were created in the image of God. We were created in the image of the infinite, all powerful, majestic God. He then gave us authority over all other created beings. I don’t think our singularity has to do so much with us being relatively weak. Rather, our singularity has to do with being an image bearer. Out of this flows creativity, including technology. Consider the following:

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so.

God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Genesis 1:26-31

“The universe is God’s choral poem, and science is a system of allegories within it. That is the thesis that I propose to expound and defend. Yet it is not a “thesis” at all, if the word “thesis” commits me to a certain kind of strict logical defense. I am not putting forward my thesis that science is allegory as the endpoint of a deductive or inductive argument. Rather, it is a springboard for a program of exploration and reflection that turns upside-down some conventional ways of thinking about science.”

Vern S. Poythress, Science as Allegory (1983)

My brother-in-law, Jim Hamilton, has recently been chosen to join the faculty at Southern Seminary.  Read the honoring press release here.

My brother-in-law recently delivered a lecture at Southern Seminary that is available in audio and manuscript.

Title: “The Typology of David’s Rise to Power: Messianic Patterns in the Book of Samuel“

My friend, Dr. Tony Chute, recently presented three talks at my previous congregation’s annual church history conference.  I like the titles to his talks:

“When Evangelicals were Fundamentally Sound”

“When Modernism was the Best Show in Town”

“When Fundamentalists were not Fun to be Around”

Who are the evangelicals? Are they a right-wing fundamentalist voting block that follows the lead of Pat Robertson and the late Jerry Falwell? Are they people who continue to stand for family values just so they can give Hollywood a hard time? Or are they merely middle class citizens who simply want to live purpose driven lives so they can experience their best lives now?

It is hard to know the answers to these questions when the word “evangelical” is so loosely defined. Indeed, it has been said that an evangelical is anyone who admires Billy Graham!

The design of this conference is to explore the history of evangelicalism with the purpose of understanding how they have maintained their identity between the twin errors of fundamentalism (which shunned engagement with the world for the sake of sound doctrine) and liberalism (which set aside sound doctrine for engagement with the world). Each session will be aimed at  conveying the history of the movement with practical application for Christians today.

I know that many men (and women) struggle with guarding their heart and mind while on the internet.  Likewise, our children are becoming very proficient on the internet.  On the web, there are many great thing but also many very destructive things.  So, I recommend Covenant Eyes as a tool to assist in this battle.

Covenant Eyes provides two services, which you can get separately or together.  First, they provide internet accountability through a report that gets sent to your accountability partners.  Second, they provide internet filtering.  Check it out and use the internet wisely.

The entire NASB is now available for download in MP3 format.  Check out the link to the right.

I was recently reminded by a friend who works with Muslims of the difference in the way-of-thinking between eastern cultures and western cultures.  Easterners often think in terms of relationships, whereas, Westerners often think in terms of philosophical ideas.  For instance, I’ve previously asked people in Sunday School to give me short descriptions of Jesus.  The first ones are descriptions like rock, alpha and omega, bread of life, etc.  These describe Jesus in abstract terms.  Don’t get me wrong, these are all very fine descriptions.  They are biblical.  However, other terms that we might think of to describe Jesus are king, shepherd, high priest.  These terms are more relational and less abstract.

My friend pointed out that Easterners follow people, whereas Westerners follow schools of thought.  He said that Westerners tend to identify more with Christianity than with Jesus.  This is challenging for me.  How do I describe my Christian walk?  Am I an evangelical, reformed, baptist… Christian?  Or am I a follower of Jesus?

This leads me to another area that I think Westerners tend to be weak at, that’s mentoring/discipling.  Again, we tend to identify ourselves with the type of church we attend and which theological points we ascribe.  Rather, in trying to follow Jesus, shouldn’t we identify ourselves, not only with Jesus, but with other Godly men or women who are mature followers of Jesus?  This is probably why my undergraduate years were some of the most spiritually rich years — dedicated time sitting under the feet of Godly men.  Easterners are honored to imitate their leaders.

My friend pointed out that westerners are too independent, too individualistic.  We don’t want to submit tp authority (for instance: elders, Word of God).  Let us learn from eastern culture.  Realize that Jesus lived and taught in such a culture.  He told us to follow Him.  And in following Him, may we sit under the feet of men and women who also follow Him.  May we imitate their lives in Godliness.  Likewise, may we tell our children and friends to imitate us as we follow Jesus.

Recently, my wife, who is a homemaker, mothers 3 little ones and is expecting a 4th, became ill.  Normally, she presses through little infirmities in order to perform her daily activities.  However, this time was a little more severe.  She was in bed for 3 days and was slowly recovering for another 3 days.  Thankfully, I was off from work already (between school quarters), but I learned first hand that when Mom is sick the house just doesn’t run well.  I thank the Lord for my wife–her gifts, her diligence, her patience, her love.  She brings much in terms of quality to our home.

The words of Proverbs 31 are ringing in my ears.  “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels… Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.  Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”