Part Three -- The nature channel

What do the heavens declare about the glory of God? What speech are they pouring out? What of His invisible attributes are clearly perceived in what He has made? How is the whole earth filled with His glory?

John Piper says the universe “…is about the greatness of God, not the significance of man. God made man small and the universe big to say something about himself. And he says it for us to learn and enjoy -- namely, that he is infinitely great and powerful and wise and beautiful. The more the Hubble Telescope sends back to us about the unfathomable depths of space, the more we should stand in awe of God. The disproportion between us and the universe is a parable about the disproportion between us and God. And it is an understatement. But the point is not to nullify us but to glorify him.” -- Don’t Waste Your Life, p34

Infinitely great, powerful, wise, beautiful, unfathomable, awesome, disproportionate, glorious. He’s all right, all good, all the time – righteous. There’s nothing else and no one else like him. You look at nature and the universe and you know if He made that, then you are less than a speck of dandruff on a hair on the leg of a flea in comparison. You might not think of the word “holy” when you think of nature and creation, but that’s what it is.

The whole earth is filled with His holiness

But that does not mean everything in the world is holy – the room I’m in is filled with furniture but everything in the room is not furniture.

there cannot be two unlimited substances in the universe…there cannot be two absolutely free beings in the universe, for sooner or later, two completely free wills must collide. These attributes, to mention no more, require that there be but one to whom they belong -- A.W. Tozer, Knowledge of the Holy, p15-16

A long time ago Job smashed into God's holiness. And it was good. But not at first...

Don't I have a right to understand?

Job is blameless and upright -- the greatest man among all the people of the east. Then some horrible things happen to him, and he doesn’t understand. It doesn’t fit his expectation of why suffering and pain and senseless loss happen.

His friends don’t understand either, but they think they do, so they try to help Job see that really somehow, someway, he has messed up or all this bad would not have happened. Which certainly is a question to ask yourself -- what’ve I done wrong? But Job has already asked it, and this great, godly man has a clear conscience.

So none of this makes sense to Job and he has a million questions.

Because it has to make sense, right? And if it’s not us it’s happening to, we’d be glad to enlighten you about what’s really going on and why God’s doing this. Because everything makes sense and has a reason. And we have a right to know what it is. And, most of us are pretty good at making sense of things -- as long as it’s not me it’s happening to…right?

Job didn’t know at the time about the little scene at the beginning of the book between God and the devil. Even if he had, it still wouldn’t make sense -- it was all God’s idea! God said to Satan, have you considered my servant Job? If Job hears that, he’s got even more questions.

Starting in Job chapter 38, after Job and his friends have done all the talking, the Lord has His say. And He really doesn’t answer their questions.

More important than making sense

Instead, God seems to want to show Job that Job cannot possibly come close to understanding and appreciating God’s ways. Job and his friends assume that they can and should figure out what God is doing and why -- and God acts like proving those assumptions wrong is more important than Job’s suffering. And to prove their assumptions wrong, God does not go into long, intellectual pronouncements like Job’s friends do. God just points. Again and again He points.

He points at what He has created.

He takes everyday natural things that Job is familiar with, things that Job has maybe taken for granted, and He opens Job’s eyes to what those things say about God, and about Job’s ability (and expectation) to figure things out. God proves how holy and set apart He is by showing Job what God has done that Job hasn’t, and can’t, do, or understand.

Job has been asking God questions, and now God says, “You don’t have a right to demand or expect answers -- but I do. Now I have some questions for YOU and I DO have a right to YOUR answers.” And in asking Job these questions, God asks us, too. It’s as if God is saying, ”before we move on with addressing your situation and your questions, let’s get it straight about who you are and who I am…” This must be important.

And God opens Job’s eyes by turning to the nature channel.