As you read this, the moon is circling the earth at 2,300 miles per hour. Even at that speed, it will take it nearly a month to make a full rotation. Meanwhile, despite circling the sun at 66,000 miles per hour, the earth will take a whole year to make one orbit. And our sun is just one of 200 million other suns spinning around the Milky Way at 483,000 miles per hour—a speed which necessitates 225 million years to circle around once. And the Milky Way is but one of 100 billion other galaxies shooting through space at over 1 million miles an hour. The universe is immense!
In Scripture, the vastness of the universe is said to reflect God’s own grandeur. It is He who stretched out the stars of heaven, covered the earth with the seas, and made the mountains rise (Psalm 104:1-9). “Through everything God made,” Paul says, “[we] can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature” (Romans 1:20). Modern telescopes help us see God’s power and divinity—not just in our earth and sky, but in faraway galaxies too.
Paul knew nothing of the universe being 100 billion galaxies large, but consider these inspired words he wrote about Jesus. “He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see” (Colossians 1:16)—including not only “kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world,” but everything in the cosmos. All those luminous galaxies were made by and for the divine Creator Jesus, and He holds them all together in His hands (Colossians 1:17).
This is mind-boggling! The One who walked this earth two millennia ago is the same One who keeps the galaxies spinning like carousels. Jesus isn’t just the Lord of you or me. He’s the Lord of the cosmos.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 1 Kings 17:1-24
More:
Read Ephesians 4:10 and Hebrews 1:2-3 for another angle on Jesus’ glory as Creator of heaven and earth. Read Revelation 4:11 for the praise due Him.
Next:
What does Jesus being “Lord of the cosmos” mean when you’re facing trials and difficulties? What does it mean for your future?
Gary Shultz on April 18, 2017 at 6:08 am
Hi Sheridan: What a nice companion article to Jeff being added to ODB, as yourself. Truly to consider the might, glory, and greatness of God, finds a limited resource in me. Like the Psalmist, I must often say “too wonderful for me” I cannot begin to make reason or understanding with these things. We also see we “are not the only game in town” God rules and works over many more beings and things we have little if any knowledge. God ushers those entities in His perfect will bring all things to His glory, praise Him. When God asks the question, is my arm too short I hope we begin to see the limitless resources, and perfect planning of our Father. We have no concept as to how all of this is possible. That’s the kind of God I want, one far beyond what we can ever ask or think. A mighty God, no limit, no problem He does not comprehend, no place He cannot see or be. More than I can say or think, there is nothing too great or too small for my God. And yet, He has allowed us to be a part of His kingdom. Thanks Sheridan
Sheridan Voysey on April 18, 2017 at 8:47 am
Indeed, Gary – we are not the only game in town. Humbling, huh?
Tom Felten on April 18, 2017 at 8:05 am
Sheridan, thanks for this post. As I considered our amazing God, these words from Isaiah came to mind: “To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?” asks the Holy One. Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing. O Jacob, how can you say the Lord does not see your troubles? O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights? Have you never heard? Have you never understood? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of all the earth. He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of his understanding” (Isaiah 40:25-28).
Sheridan Voysey on April 18, 2017 at 8:46 am
That’s a perfect accompanying verse, Tom. Thank you.
godlove on April 18, 2017 at 10:07 am
Thank you, Sheridan. I find the link between the post on here and the one on ODB today quite interesting. While on ODB we marvel at the beauty of God’s creation around us on Earth, we are taken one step further here, quite a huge step really, as we marvel at the magnitude of the entire universe created by God. Once again, we realise that our limited human minds just can’t fathom the expanse of the greatness of our God. The immensity of the universe only gives us a hint, as we sit in awe at the creation of our Eternal and Almighty God. Also, the thought that this same Great God, thanks to His grace and mercy, came right down to redeem the sins of mere sinful man is extremely humbling and worthy of all our praise and worship. Praise GOD!
magpie357 on April 18, 2017 at 10:31 am
I sometimes have difficulty understanding that not only is our God Creator but so is Jesus. Can someone help explain this?
sandy229 on April 18, 2017 at 5:37 pm
It’s like this, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Just like there are 3 parts of an egg, shell, egg while and egg yolk, yet the are one as a whole. Does this help you?
sandy229 on April 18, 2017 at 5:49 pm
To elaborate a little more, it also says in Genesis 1:26,27 “Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, and all the earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female.” John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, the same was in the beginning with God, all things were made by Him, and without Him, was nothing made that was made.”
When God said, “Let Us make man in our own image”, he was talking to Jesus. I hope this helps you.
Magy on April 19, 2017 at 12:09 am
Thanks. Excellent example! I get it
1esther on April 18, 2017 at 10:10 pm
Hello magpie357, yes, God is Creator and Jesus is one with Creator Elohim. The Scripture that comes to mind to help explain this is John 1:
“In the beginning the Word already existed. He was with God, and he was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make.
The study notes in the NLT says: “What Jesus taught and what he did are tied inseparably to who he is. John shows Jesus as fully human and fully God. Although Jesus took upon himself full humanity and lived as a man, he never ceased to be the eternal God who has always existed, the Creator and Sustainer of all things, and the source of eternal life. This is the truth about Jesus, and the foundation of all truth. If we cannot or do not believe this basic truth, we will not have enough faith to trust our eternal destiny to him. That is why John wrote this Gospel-to build faith and confidence in Jesus Christ so that we may believe that he truly was and is the Son of God (20:30, 31).”
Magy on April 19, 2017 at 12:11 am
So Jesus is God as well as Creator?
sandy229 on April 19, 2017 at 11:29 am
Yes.
minkjh on April 18, 2017 at 12:14 pm
That’s an impressive set of numbers, Sheridan. Really mind-boggling no matter how many times I read them. All this immensity aside, we know that God is everywhere present, in every little nook and cranny of his creation in every nanosecond of time. There is nothing that can be hidden from his countenance. Even the cosmos cannot contain the incomprehensible God whose greatness we mortals cannot fully grasp.
gregumpire87 on April 18, 2017 at 5:02 pm
This is very humbling. Makes us reflect upon how fantastic the universe is and even more so, how magnificent the Creator is. I live in a rural area in the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas in CA. It really is amazing to go outside on a clear night and stare up at the sky…just completely awestruck. It makes me realize how small I really am in the universe and yet God has a profound love for me and a concern about the details of my life. I don’t think there is much that I can face that the Creator of the universe cannot carry me through. Oh God, how awesome you are!