The Greatest Question....
Life can get really confusing, and with all the mixed signals along life’s highway, and all the twists and turns we experience, at the end of the day, we all need to know if our efforts have made a difference, and if anything has really changed for the best because we are here. People come and go and are soon forgotten, as a new crowd comes along.
5000 professionals from around the world were interviewed to find out what makes a person truly happy. The results were very revealing and showed some common traits.
It revealed that happy people have learned to balance their work and their personal life. They serve others and have positive expectations. They accept imperfections, forgive and move on. They laugh, joke and have a sense of humor. They don’t live for the approval of others. They Live with a sense of gratitude. They say YES more than they say NO. They usually speak well of others. They let go of control, and they listen.
Albert Einstein is credited with the hallmark question, “Is the Universe friendly?”…. Einstein says that he was given credit for many things that were actually spoken or discovered by other people…..as Yogi Berra once said, "I didn't say all those things I said." – in other words, all the things people gave him credit for saying were said by other people…..
In this case, the question “Is the Universe friendly?” was first asked by German zoologist and Theist, Ernst H. P. Haeckel (1834-1919), in a thesis which he put forth. Many felt that it was a central question at the heart and core of every school of social, historical, and scientific thought.
Einstein said that science can never truly prove a theory—they can only disprove the ones that are not true, for the truth stands on it’s own. He says that one of the driving forces behind his research into the inner workings of the universe, was the question “Is the universe a friendly or hostile place”.
You see, Einstein knew that for every example of the world being unfriendly, you can find equally compelling examples, of the world as a friendly place. He said that the dividing line between the two, is our belief system and what that belief system is founded upon. Einstein is quoted as saying, “There are only two ways to live your life. One way, is to live as though nothing is a miracle. The other way, is to live as though everything is a miracle.”
Science has been focused for some time on finding the center of the universe, and when they do, many folks are going to be very disappointed that they are not it!!!!.
2 Kings 6:16 “And Elisha said, Fear not: for they that are with us are more than they that are against us”.
Many folks struggle to see the universe as a friendly place, but unless they re-wire their brains to see the truth of what Elisha said to his fearful servant they will continue missing it…and they will only see the negative things in life. We see what we are looking for!
Is the jar half full or half empty, is it a stop light or a go light, is it good morning God, or good God it’s morning!
These are the kind of questions that change everything…..
One time Tom Sawyer was told by his aunt Polly that he had to white-wash the fence. Tom wasn’t happy since he had planned to go fishing with his buddies that day. But Tom did what his aunt asked and began white-washing the fence. In a little while, along came Huck Finn and some other boys, carrying their fishing poles. They poked fun and Tom and kidded him for having to work when they were going fishing. Tom’s response was based on the half-full glass concept. He said, “You know, it ain’t every day a boy gets a chance to white-wash a fence. You can go fishing any day, but not many boys ever get such a wonderful opportunity as this!” Tom turned an unpleasant chore into something special. And a few moments later he had all the boys helping him with the job, and having fun doing it, while he watched!
The Apostle Paul must have had some Tom Sawyer in him, because he said Romans 8:28 “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose”.
When the Israelites complained to Moses in the wilderness that they had no water to drink, Moses was put on the spot, because there was too little water….Then they complained there was too much water, when they got to the Red Sea and it blocked their path. But Moses never stopped believing that the glass was half full and not half empty!!! Because he knew that God was holding the glass!
Moses believed that the Universe was a friendly place, and the desert was God’s path to something far better. He believed that the God who had lead them there, was bigger than the desert they were passing through or the red sea they had to cross…
The wilderness which the Israelites were in, was not just a place, it was also a state of mind. It was about their belief system….
Numbers 21:5 And the people said to Moses and to God…“have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in this wilderness?
Two men went to church on Sunday. One of them frowned when the organist missed a note. He glared menacingly at two whispering teenagers. He looked repeatedly at his watch. When the offering plate was passed, he felt that the usher was watching to see how much he gave. He sat tight-lipped during all of the singing. During the sermon, he felt pleased with himself when he caught the preacher making a mistake. As he sneaked out a side door during Communion, he muttered to himself, “That was a terrible service, why do I even bother?”
Meanwhile, the other man delighted at the sight of a father exchanging hugs with his son. He enthusiastically joined in the singing. During the Offering he wondered, “God has given me so much. Am I giving enough?” He reached out and prayed with someone. He listened eagerly to the scriptures to find a word to live by. Part of the sermon helped him with a question he had often thought about. He enthusiastically joined in the singing. As he left the church, he thought to himself, “How good it is to be here together with God’s people in God’s presence.”
Both men had gone to the same church, on the same Sunday, but each came away with a different perspective. It was their mind set that made all the difference.
There are many who feel that the question of major importance is “Are we alone in the universe?” We now know that there are billions of earth type planets in our own galaxy, capable of sustaining life as we know it. That means it’s possible, there millions of planets with beings similar to ourselves, out there in the Milky Way galaxy and even more beyond?
It makes you think….We can’t get along on this planet now, with the people we have in our lives ….what makes anyone think we would like those folks somewhere out there, any better?
Millions of dollars have been invested in establishing listening posts around the globe for radio signals that would indicate intelligent beings who are living out there somewhere. Nothing has been discovered thus far, but many continue to hope.
An even more ambitious effort called BETA has been set up with an 84 foot dish antenna near Boston designed to sweep the heavens on billions of channels for signs of life. Nothing has been discovered, but they are still hopeful. "I have no doubts," says BETA director and Harvard physicist Paul Horowitz. "Intelligent life in the universe is guaranteed!. Intelligent life in our galaxy is so overwhelmingly likely, that I'd give you almost any odds." All he has to do is read the bible…..
Mark 13:27. "And then shall He send His angels, and shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven." Notice it says… "The uttermost part of heaven"
But more importantly to us today, than whether or not aliens will show up and announce that we are not alone, Is the truth that someone from another dimension has already shown up, with a message for all mankind, that we are never alone.
He left the portals of glory, and came from a perfect place in every way, to feel what we feel and experience all the things that we go through, and He lived, died, and rose from the dead, to let us know….
Matthew 28:20 “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world?. Well, the world hasn’t ended, so that can only mean that He’s right here with us!
He has been trying to get our attention since His first words in the book of beginnings, the book of Genesis….
The book of Genesis is not just the book of beginnings, it is the book of our beginnings…. It is our source for existence, and it is about our purpose and it is about our destination….
There are three questions we all want to have answered… Where did I come from?...(that’s about more than who my momma and daddy are) Why am I here?... (that’s not about what I’m doing, but who I am) And where am I going? You can never answer the last question until you answer the second question, and you will never answer the second question until you answer the first one.
Genesis tells us where we came from and it also tells us why we are here. We were made by God and we were put on the earth to know God, to have fellowship with Him and to be with Him forever. And in doing His will, we find meaning and purpose and fulfillment and incredible satisfaction and a sense of self-worth.
One little boy asked his mom, “Mom, I graduated from day care, then I graduated from Kindergarten, then I graduated from Elementary school, So why can’t we ever graduate from church”? His mom said, “Honey, it’s because the bible is our text book, and we will never be able to finish it!”
This brings us to the greatest question of all, “What will I do with God?” If God is not given the proper place of priority in our lives, He is not diminished, but we are! We were made by God, for God, to be with God, and the more we know about him, the happier, and more fulfilled, we will all be and the more we will understand ourselves.
In the sermon on the mount, which many say was Jesus greatest sermon, Jesus said… Matthew 5:3 “Happy and blessed are the humble, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. v4 Happy and blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. v5 Happy and blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. v6 Happy and blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. v7 Happy and blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. v8 Happy and blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. The word “see” is op-tan'-om-ahee, in the original Greek, and it means to “come to know” God.
There is a God that is beyond the God that most folks have come to know.
Suppose someone visited my house while I was not there. There is much they could you learn about my family just from looking around. You might discover that we had 2 boys and one daughter, from the pictures displayed in our home. You would see pictures of my wife, and my grandchildren. You would probably know I was a pastor, from the sermons which are filed on the shelves and in files, and the books which are there as well. And if you looked in my closet, you’d discover I’m average height just by looking at my suits and clothes. You would discover that I enjoy golf, from the 3 bags of clubs and golf shoes in the downstairs. There’s a lot more a careful observer could discover about the Elliott family just by rummaging around through our drawers and bookshelves. In the end, you’d know a lot about me although you wouldn’t know me personally. The clues are everywhere for those who care to look but it would only take you so far in really knowing me.
The cosmos is God’s house. Oh, you didn’t know He looks like Jesus? That’s because Jesus is God! And He has left clues everywhere about what kind of God he is. From the ever changing deserts, to the majestic mountain peaks, you can’t help but be overwhelmed at the mighty power of God to create such magnificence. He is as infinite as the heights of the heavens or the dark recesses of the mighty Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Each snowflake testifies to his uniqueness. The changing colors of the fall, proclaim his creativity.
The galaxies shout out, “He is here.” The wildflowers sing together, “He is here.” The rippling brooks join in, “He is here.” The birds sing it, the lions roar it, all the aquatic life declares it in the oceans—"He is here.” All creation joins to sing his praise. The heavens declare it, the earth repeats it and the wind whispers it—"He is here.” Deep cries out to deep, the mighty sequoia tells it to the eagle who soars overhead, the lamb and the wolf agree on this one thing—"He is here.”
No one can miss the message. God has left his fingerprints all over this world. Truly, “This is my Father’s world,” and every rock, every twig, every river and every mountain bears his signature. He signed his name to everything he made. The earth is marked “Made By God” in letters so big that no one fails to see it…. “He is here”!!!!
He created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. He spoke and the stars filled the sky. He spoke and the birds began to fly. He spoke and the fish began to swim. He spoke and the roses began to bloom. He spoke and the snail began to creep, the coyote began to howl, and the hummingbird started to hum.
Hebrews 11:3 explains creation this way: “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made out of things that are not visible (ex-ni-hi-lo).” This Greek word means that He said it and it was so!
On the basis of Genesis, the book of our beginning, we know these things are true: God is….God creates….God has not changed….He is sovereign. He is Almighty. He is Omnipotent. He is Supreme. He is our friend that sticks closer than a brother…. So the Universe is a friendly place…..We are never alone….and God wants us to know him!
Writing over 450 years ago, Martin Luther asks the question, what does it mean to say, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth?” Here is his answer:
“I believe that God has created me and all that exists. I believe that he has given me and that He is preserving, my body and soul, my eyes and ears, and all my members, my reason and all the power of my soul, together with food and raiment, home and family, and all my property, and that he daily provides abundantly for all the needs of my life, protects me from all danger, and guards and keeps me from all evil; and that he does this purely out of a fatherly and divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For all of these things and more, I am in duty bound to thank, praise, serve, and obey him. This is most certainly true”.
Everything beautiful begins with God. Life begins with God. Truth begins with God. Understanding begins with God. Wisdom begins with God. That’s why Genesis 1:1 is the first verse of the Bible. Skip this and nothing else in the Bible will make sense. Skip this and you’ll miss the central fact of the universe. Skip this and even though you graduated from Harvard or Yale, you’ll spend your days nibbling around the edges of truth and never hitting the bullseye. You’ll know the details of daily life, but you’ll never understand where you came from, why you are here, and where you are going when you die.
Someone asked the question, “Why is it that when you talk to God, it’s called praying? But whenever you say that God talks to you, they call it paranoid schizophrenia”.
On Christmas Eve, 1968, the three astronauts of Apollo 8 circled the dark side of the moon and headed for home. As their tiny capsule floated through space, they saw the glistening green, blue and white hues of earth slowly fill their window. In that moment, they did not quote Einstein or Darwin or Shakespeare. Only one thing could capture the magnificence of the moment. Billions of people around the world heard the voice from outer space begin to read: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” The astronauts read Genesis 1:1 to a worldwide audience. And in that moment any other words would have fallen short.
In the beginning was God, and God is love, so IN THE BEGINNING WAS LOVE! We are here because God wanted us here, in order to love us… Before anything there was God’s love, and His love became our purpose. When mankind rejected that love, then love showed up as a Savior who was willing to die, to bring us back. The God who created us, is madly, hopelessly in love with us. Someone has said that the beasts of the field say: “Love made me.” The birds of the air say: “Love made me.” The creatures that swim in the rivers and the sea say: “Love made me.”
And when we turn to Him and receive that love and seek to know the lover of our souls, then we too can say from our deepest places, “Love is what made me”
It’s a very short distance from Genesis 1:1 to John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life”.
It is that leap of love, that answers our deepest questions.
One of the most important things in human living is to find out what Jesus believed, to discover his values and ideals, and to strive to achieve his life purpose. If He is God, let’s follow Him, study His words, and submit ourselves to His truth. Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the life of Jesus and how he lived it, then allow it to be reflected in and through us.
Does God care about you, is He involved in your daily circumstances, does He have a plan for you, has He prepared the future with you in mind?
John 13:1 simply says…. “Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end”. He loved you then, he loves you now, he will love you till the end……
The gospel means “Good News” and our mission is to live the good news story of Jesus; to do the things He did and to do the things He told us to do, and to teach others to do the same, and to go forth rejoicing as we work the works of Christ together! And to know because of Him, the universe is a friendly place!!!!
Our Declaration…..“I declare the Perfect Will of God over my life today.! I declare today, that as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. My desires and passions are coming into alignment with His desires and passions for me. I know that without faith it's impossible to please God, so today I ask you Lord to strengthen my faith, and I affirm that I choose to trust in the Lord with all my heart and I choose to walk by faith and not by sight. I declare an open heaven over my life, in Jesus' Name! Today I declare that I believe in the goodness of the Lord within every detail of my life, and my family's life. I walk according to the Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ and I choose to speak words of life and walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which I've been called. I seek the Spirit of wisdom and understanding.
I ask you Lord for your complete protection over my family today against accident, incident, injury, disease and illness, sexual, emotional, spiritual, physical and financial damage. Thank you for a hedge of protection around myself and my family from the snares of the evil one in Jesus' Mighty Name. Circumstances are aligning themselves in my favor, because I walk in the Spirit of Favor … I am excited to meet those who are appointed by God to use their resources and influence to help me achieve my dreams. Thank You Lord, that people will go out of their way to assist me. I am physically, spiritually, emotionally and intellectually equipped to do what I am here on earth to accomplish. The blood of Jesus cleanses me and heals me as I encourage myself in the Lord. I take on an attitude of gratitude, I take on courage, and God's strength is being made manifest and evident in my life today.
I have available to me, wisdom and abilities that I will use to add value to the lives of others, because I know that in helping others reach their dreams I will be aided to reach my own. I will show compassion to those in need. I will give strength to the weak and inspiration to the weary. I will be faithful in little things, as I manage well the resources God has entrusted me with, so I can rule over much and give whenever and wherever I see a need. The blessing of the Lord enriches my life and blesses me exceeding, abundant, above all that I could think or imagine. I am appointed for victories and not defeat, supernatural turnarounds and miraculous breakthroughs are ahead, in the midst of great impossibilities. I am an overcomer, and though I may experience setbacks, they will pave the way for comebacks. I am not a victim, for I believe that God will turn things full circle so they will become successes. I now release the champion that is inside of me. I release the winner that has taken up residence in me, so I may reach my destiny. Today, I choose to succeed, for I am more than conqueror through Christ.
