2009 North American Bible ConferenceDecember 28, 2009   And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.  Colossians 1:17-20   The Promise that the Creator Made about IsraelThus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar (The Lord of hosts is His name): “If those ordinances depart from before Me, says the Lord, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.” Thus says the Lord: “If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, says the Lord.”  Jeremiah 31:35-37   If we think about these verses simply, we can see that God had a very clear purpose in leading the Israelites, and that with these words that He addressed to no other nation in the world, He promised to protect the Israelites, basing His promise on certain principles of the creation. But let’s clear our thoughts for a moment and examine these verses more closely. When we think of light, it is often sunlight, moonlight, or electric lights that come to mind. Yet those who carry out scientific research on light, say that there is more to it than just visible light. Light is not just warm or hot. One of the various characteristics of light can be used to kill germs and another of its qualities can be used to take X-rays. As I was reading this passage, it occurred to me that these are very strange words. It says that the sun was given for a light by day and the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night. But then, it says, “[He] disturbs the sea, and its waves roar.” In Genesis chapter 1, we find that on the first day of the creation there was the light, and on the second day the waters were divided from the waters. This was a tremendous incident. It was not on the scale of the waves moving on the ocean; a huge expanse of water, big enough to cover the whole earth, was pulled up and down. If you consider this from a scientific point of view, you can see that it is related to the force of gravity. Yet, before we consider the force of gravity from our human perspective, the Bible first explained this movement in relation to the light. Who “disturbed the sea and made the waves roar?” Of course, it is God who made this happen, but it is the moon that does it in reality. As far as we know, this is a phenomenon that occurs as a result of the gravitational pull between the earth and the moon as they revolve around the sun. This is not incorrect. Yet, when I read passages like this in the Bible, it occurs to me that man needs to be humble in front of God. The Bible contains passages that cannot possibly be understood by means of our human logic. How is it that God explains the seas rising and the waves roaring by first talking about light? It would have been so simple for us to understand if Jeremiah had written, “God have made the earth and the moon, and because they move together, the waves occur.” But this is not the case; as he wrote of the sun having been given for a light by day and the moon and the stars for a light by night, he spoke of the tremendous kinetic energy of light. There are similar passages in various places in the Bible. The reason I am saying all this is not in order to explain in a scientific or spiritual way, the truths recorded in the Bible. The people of this world believe that it is some kind of power that exists between the sun and the moon that causes the ocean waves. Yet, the Bible does not only talk about the sun and the moon; it says that the sun was given for a light by day and the moon and stars for a light by night, and the waves roar. We examine something and study it and claim that we have thus attained some kind of superior knowledge, but such knowledge is just shallow and relative.There is no way that modern science can measure that certain absolute pulling power hidden within this earth. In Hebrews chapter 1, however, it says, “Upholding all things by the word of His power” (see verse 3). This is talking about a certain absolute power that no scientist in this world can calculate or prove. All that man is able to do is measure the relative weight of an object; we cannot prove its weight no matter how superior a machine we may use. The Bible, however, is talking about the existence of a certain immeasurable power. This is true of the entire universe in which we live and the everything on earth. It is not because I believe the Bible that when I read a passage like this it is easy for me to think that it is because of the light that the waves roar and because of the light that the sea acts as it does. It is simply that I am curious as to why God says these things. Even when we write something, we do it with a purpose and intention. So when God said in this very short verse, “Who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar,” aren’t you at least a little curious as to what He meant? We may live with the misconception that we have a scientific understanding of the earth, the moon and many more things, but as we read the Bible we can come to realize just how deeply man’s ignorance extends. I, too, am not certain as to the meaning of these verses. It is just that they give rise to all kinds of thoughts and imaginations. Clearly, the light was there on the first day of the creation as the Bible says, “Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good.” At the same time, “God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:3-5). Clearly some action was taking place here. Isn’t it because there was some kind of movement that there was evening and there was morning? God did not say from the beginning, “Let there be gravity, let there be some kind of movement.” He said, “Let there be light.” It was because God said this that some kind of movement began to occur, the earth began to rotate, the waters began to be pulled up, and gathered together into one place and the dry land appeared. The Bible tells us that this enormous change in the environment came about within just three days, but I am not sure if this could be explained with any human language or through any scientific explanation.Also, as the the moon revolves around the earth, it brings about the ebb and flow of the tides. The human body consists of about 70 percent water, but why does this water have no tidal flow? The powerful force of gravity affects the waters throughout the world causing the ebb and flow of the tides, so shouldn’t this force also have an effect on our bodies which are so full of water? We tend to think of our brains as being located in our heads alone, but actually the brain is connected right down through the body to the tail bone. The brain has a wide range. Also, the brain, which resembles bean sprouts, is completely enveloped in cerebrospinal fluid. The moon brings about the ebb and flow of the oceans, but why does it have no effect on water in a cup or the water inside the human brain? If, as natural science tells us, the tides are caused by a certain reciprocal affiliation, this should also affect not only the ocean waters but also all the water on the earth. It is because of the unquestionable existence of the invisible master of this power that this is not the case. Also, our bodies are energized when we eat vegetation that has received light in order to grow. We can read about this in Genesis chapter 1. When we think of a full moon, we often associate it with a howling wolf. People talk about what happens when there is a full moon and there are various legends related to this phenomenon, but actually when people look up to the moon as it brightens the darkened world, people and animals alike definitely experience changes in mood and thoughts depending on the brightness and phase of the moon. We may see this as lyrical or sentimental, but at such times an invisible chemical change does come about in our bodies. There are times when even just one pebble in front of a house can become too hot to handle because of the strength of the sun’s rays. Similarly, there is a huge natural satellite suspended in space beside the earth. This receives the light of the sun and at night it shines that light down onto the earth. The light of the sun is reflected by the moon and brightens up the world.The moonlight shines on the earth even when the sunlight is there, but we can only see the light from the moon when the sunlight has gone. When evening comes and the sun sets, the temperature falls and it turns chilly. That is when the moonlight shines. It is as the Bible says, “There was evening, and there was morning.” We consider this image as beautiful, we express it in poetry and prose, and Bible talks about animals creeping around in the moonlight, (see psalm 104:20) but nobody knows how that light brings about a change in the heart of men and animals. The answer is definitely to be found within the power of the light that we are unable to see or fathom. Even so, people say that the things that can be calculated and measured are scientific and exist in this world, but they deny the existence of things that cannot be seen or calculated. When I read passages like this in the Bible, I wonder what and how much we really know as we are living in this world. People think they know something, using their intelligent brains. They exult themselves, boasting of their advanced technology and claiming that their telephones, cars and so on are greatly improved, but just as God says in passages like this in the Bible, they cannot know the tremendous things that are hidden within God and within the science that He has shown to us. They say they know, but they do not.I acknowledge and believe what the science of this world tells us, but I do not think that it is complete. Things that we have believed as truths change after a while. We used to say that there were nine planets in our solar system, but not long ago, it was decided that Pluto was not actually a planet and it was stripped of its status. There are times when, after a little more research, even facts that we have calculated, think we know, publish and believe are found to be incorrect and it has to be made known that these facts are not true after all. The same is true in the field of medicine and of natural science. It is true of everything that man says. Yet, the Bible contains words that cannot be understood through man’s common sense, and it tells us that it is these words that make the world move. Light has an invisible power that we cannot know. This power exists in this world and we live by the existence of this power. It is as the Bible says, “Thus says the Lord, who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar.”When water and light meet, vegetation grows. Also, when light shines on our flesh, a change definitely comes about in our bodies. I do not know exactly what that change is, but the effect that sunlight has when it shines on our bodies is different from the effect that the moonlight has. Yet the science of this world is not able to disclose all of this. This is because the tremendous truths that God has created and hidden cannot be seen with our human eyes. It is because man cannot see these things that he says that God does not exist and people live under the illusion that truth consists of the things that man has made.   “If those ordinances depart from before Me, says the Lord, then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever.”  Jeremiah 31:36   During the day the sun shines and during the night the moon shines and the stars twinkle, and in the midst of all this, there is a connection with some tremendous power that brings about the ebb and flow of the tides. This exists in our world, although we cannot understand precisely what it is. We cannot prove this scientifically but we see it in the course of our lives. This is an unbreakable law and it occurs every day. It is difficult for us to see with our eyes the deeply hidden power of God’s creation. Yet, as the Bible speaks of the relationships between the sun, the moon and the waves?things that we can see with our eyes?it tells us that God will provide absolute protection for Israel as long as these ordinances remain intact. God is talking about His purpose in leading the Israelites in this world and the extent to which He is protecting them. People discuss whether or not the Bible is true and question how a just God can send people to hell for not knowing the Bible. They also say that because of this, they cannot

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