“O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” – Psalm 104:24:
Scripture reading: Psalm 104:24-35
God, in His wisdom, ordered the universe, down to its intricate details, so that life can thrive on earth. This God, “who out of nothing created heaven and earth and everything in them… still upholds and rules them by his eternal counsel and providence” (Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 26).
Science confirms what the Word proclaims. As of 2001, scientific studies had identified 150 precise conditions that must be in place and work together perfectly for life to exist on earth. Let’s consider several of those conditions. If earth were slightly larger, increased gravity would make life impossible. If earth were slightly smaller, decreased gravity would make life impossible. Extreme temperature swings would result if earth took longer than twenty-four hours to rotate. Extreme winds would result if earth took fewer than twenty-four hours to rotate. God commissioned Jupiter to be earth’s gigantic, magnetic bodyguard, sucking all kinds of space debris into itself that might otherwise hit planet earth. Our moon is just the right size to stabilize earth’s axis and ensure that the tides are just right to sustain life*.
To declare this a mindless, cosmic accident makes as much sense as saying a tornado created a Boeing 747 when it whipped through a junkyard. Let us marvel at God’s wise design and rejoice that in Christ “all things hold together” (Colossians 1:16).
*Eric Metaxas. Miracles: What They Are, Why They Happen, And How They Can Change Your Life. “Chapter 4: Is Life A Miracle?”. New York: Dutton, © 2014, pgs.40-41.
Suggestions for prayer
Thank God for specific ways that He upholds creation and provides for you day by day.
Pastor Richard Zekveld, his wife Nancy, and their five children live in South Holland, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Richard has pastored Covenant Fellowship Church of South Holland (PCA) since 2015, he also works part-time in jail ministry as a chaplain for Chicagoland Prison Outreach. Get this devotional delivered directly to your phone each day via our RP App. It is also available in print, for purchase, at NTGDevotional.com.
