Zach’s Theological Musings

Subtitle: Exegeting Creation.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed…” 

  The English word “poem” comes from the Greek root “poiema” which refers to a created thing/something made. For example, both Genesis 1:1 (in the Greek Septuagint) and Romans 1:20 use a form of this word to describe God’s work of creation (see also “workmanship” in Ephesians 2:10). The physical world is a “poem” coming from the very mouth of God. Creation doesn’t just “exist”, it tells a story. It is God communicating.

  John Piper says it like this, “The universe and everything in it is God’s work of art. What’s the point of this word? The point is that in a poem there is manifest design and intention and wisdom and power. The wind might create a letter in the sand, but not a poem. That’s the point. God acted. God planned. God designed. God crafted. He created and made. And in doing that, Paul says in [Romans 1] verse 19, God made himself evident to all mankind. The universe is a poem about God.” (Sermon at Bethlehem Baptist Church, September 27, 1998)

  It cannot be denied that throughout the Scriptures God uses similies, metaphors and allegories which draw on the physical world to teach spiritual lessons. It seems to me to be almost as surely undeniable that God planned all of this before He created the world. In other words, long before Jesus taught His disciples that the kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, He designed mustard seeds to be like the kingdom of heaven, in order that He might teach about the kingdom of heaven using mustard seeds.

  Commenting on Jesus’ parables in Matthew 13, Matthew Henry reminds us to hear the word of God preaching to us in all of God’s creation around us: “Christ chose to do thus, … That common actions might hereby be spiritualized, and we might take occasion from those things which fall so often under our view, to meditate with delight on the things of God; and thus, when our hands are busiest about the world, we may not only notwithstanding that, but even with the help of that, be led to have our hearts in heaven. Thus the word of God shall talk with us, talk familiarly with us, Prov 6:22.” (from Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1991 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.; Matt 13:1-23)

  Here is just a sampling of some ways we can look at God’s creation and be reminded of Biblical truth:

1. God made rocks to be so strong and firm in order that we might understand what it means that, “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge.” (Psalm 18:2) And whenever you see a stone structure you can be reminded that we as Christ’s disciples are living stones being built up into a spiritual house, leaning in on Him as our Chief Cornerstone (I Peter 2).
2. God designed a solar system in which we observe the sun faithfully coming up day after day without fail in order to help us appreciate God’s faithfulness to His covenants and especially His covenant people. “Thus says the LORD, “If you can break My covenant for the day and My covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant so that he will not have a son to reign on his throne… ” (Jeremiah 33:20ff).
3. Why is there hair on your head (at least for most of us)? Hair teaches us many things about God. For one thing, it illustrates how God knows us better than we know ourselves (Matthew 10:30). Hair is also a testimony to mankind’s lack of control over the affairs of the world, even himself (Matthew 5:36). Hair is even a reminder of the extent of our salvation, that even though we be put to death by our enemies in this world, yet in Christ “not a hair of your head will perish” (Luke 21:18). It is not so surprising then that Paul even dedicated half a chapter to issues about hair in I Cor 11.
4. Fishing, farming, gardening, and baking all have a great deal to say about Judgment Day and life in the Kingdom of God. Just see Jesus’ parables.
5. If you eat a Fig Newton be sure to remember the signs that Jesus is coming soon (Matthew 24:32ff).
6. Trees and foliage thrive along the edge of a river, and they do it by God’s design for our sake, that we might grasp our own need to sink our roots into the Living Waters (cf. Psalm 1).
7. Fire is hot! I thank God for the gift of painful yet temporary burns in order that I might learn to fear Him and avoid His wrath in the never ending Lake of Fire.
8. Dust is a humbling reminder of what we came from as well as the destiny of these current bodies (Gen 2:7, Gen 3:19). However, we can also have hope and be encouraged when we look at dust and remember God’s covenant with Abraham and his seed (Gen 13:16).

  We could go on and on, and in future blog posts I probably will. All the different animals, plants, minerals, seasons, weather conditions, relationships, social patterns, human and celestial events, are ultimately about God, Christ, and the gospel.

  That’s all for now. It’s time for me to go think about the regal Lion of Judah while I brush my teeth (Gen 49:12).

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 12th, 2008 at 4:33 am and is filed under Creation, God. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.