By Pastor David Holland
Imagine a God who moves the moon that guides the ocean waves to break on our shores. Imagine a God who flicked a match igniting the Sun into a blazing ball of fire, heating a solar system, producing a planet as an incubator for humanity. Imagine a God who is closer to you than the breath in your lungs or the thoughts in your head.
God is greater than all that. I remember as a child attending Sunday School where I saw God on a funky used flannel board. I heard Him in starchy old hymns in a sanctuary where I was told to hush and be still. The stiff, soulless sermons talked about life and love, but did little to show it.
God is greater than that. He’s bigger than buildings, more loving than a handshake and more truthful than a sermon. Creeds and doctrinal statements describe Him but can’t contain Him. A God who transcends buildings and creeds is who I aim to know.
As a child, I memorized the Ten Commandments in Sunday School and learned how a whale swallowed Noah. I learned how Christ bled and died before His resurrection. I washed that down with jellybeans and colorful hard-boiled eggs. God is bigger than that
We need sound doctrine and buildings where we can gather to worship God, but He is so much greater than all that.
The popular worship song “So Will I” touches the majesty of the Lord in music and reveals our only proper response:
God of creation, there at the start before the beginning of time.
With no point of reference, You spoke to the dark
And fleshed out the wonder of light.
And as You speak, a hundred billion galaxies are born.
In the vapor of Your breath the planets form.
If the stars were made to worship, so will I.
I can see Your heart in everything
You’ve made Every burning star A signal fire of grace
If creation sings Your praises, so will I.
So, will I. Will you?
Forbes magazine recently published an article by Ethan Siegal describing the James Webb Space Telescope. This device can see light from at least 13 billion light years away, located in galaxies 33 billion light years away. Scientists now estimate there are two trillion galaxies. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, is a small to medium six galaxy and has approximately four billion stars. If there are four billion stars each in two trillion galaxies, how many stars would that be? My brain is starting to hurt.
If God is that big, how can He remember me? It stretches my faith to think the God who created this universe can know me intimately. Yes, God is all that and more. He has a Son.
The Bible says Christ spoke the worlds into existence-all two trillion times four billion of them. He is also the Word who came to us in human form. Equal to God in every way, yet He humbled Himself to die for the salvation of humanity.
The third verse of “So Will I” brings us down from the majesty of the heavens to the delinquency in our hearts:
God of salvation, You chased down my heart
Through all my failure and pride.
On a hill You created the Light of the world
Abandoned in darkness to die.
And as You speak, A hundred billion failures disappear.
Where You lost Your life so I could find it here.
If You left the grave behind You, so will I.
When you stand before a God like that, what do you do? Worship Him for who He is. Worship Him for giving us His Son. Worship Him for the life He wants to give you. So, will I.
Dave Holland pastored churches for 38 years before retiring in Destin. He recently released his new devotional-Bible study based on the Gospel of Luke titled “Prodigal Jesus, Journey Back to the Father” You can get a copy of this book from his website, DaveHolland.org, or at Amazon.com. Pastor Dave is available to preach and teach in churches and conferences. Contact him at DavidvHolland54@gmail.com.
Views: 0
