The Glory of God… The Heavens Declare…

Design Demands a Designer There is intricate, incredibly complex design all throughout our universe from the smallest atom to the farthest galaxy One purpose of this design is to have an ordered environment for mankind to live Another purpose of this design is to declare that there is an intelligent designer; a powerful Creator God (Psa. 19:1-6; Rom. 1:19-20)

The Earth Genesis 1:1-2,9-10; Job 26:7; Psa. 115:15-16; Isa. 40:22; 45:18 93 million miles from the sun; not too close (too hot) or too far away (too cold) from the sun Liquid water necessary for life is present on the Earth only; approximately ¾ of its surface is water Oxygen necessary for life is present on the Earth only

The Earth A protective atmosphere of ozone (O 3 ) about 12 miles above the earth filters most of the ultraviolet light from the sun; allows the rest of the sun’s light to pass through The rotation of the Earth on a titled axis of 66.5 degrees (90 – 23.5) allows for the seasons (Gen. 8:22) Gravity keeps everything and everyone from floating off into space as it travels 66,600 mph around the sun, and 1,000 mph on its axis

The Earth The earth magnetic field produced within the earth repel and deflect dangerous space particles (x-ray, gamma rays, ultraviolet light) The hot inner core of the earth provides heat to the surface

The Moon Genesis 1:14-19; Psa. 33:6-9; 1 Cor. 15:40-41 Approximately 2,100 miles in diameter; orbits 240,000 miles from earth; orbits every 29 ½ days Provides light at night and gravity for moving the earth’s ocean tides (2 high, 2 low, every 24 hrs.) Provides a mathematically precise “calendar” for telling time (Num. 10:10)

The Planets Genesis 1:14-19 Like the moon, the planets provide an accurate, dependable “calendar” for reckoning time and seasons; not for worship (2 Kings 23:5) Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto (Acts 14:12-13; 19:35) Planets are “wandering stars” (Jude 13)

The Sun Genesis 1:14-19 A star; a glowing, hot ball of hydrogen gas; fusion of hydrogen to helium produces heat, light, and energy Approximately 400 times bigger and farther away than the moon (both have the same angular size); 100 times the earth’s diameter; 93 million miles from the earth, 864,000 miles in diameter Provides light and heat for the earth; energy for plant growth

The Stars Genesis 1:14-19; Neh. 9:6; Psa. 136:9; 147:4; 148:3- 6; Job 9:9; 38:31-33; Isa. 13:10; 40:26; Jer. 31:35; 32:17; 33:22; Jas. 1:17 The closest star is Alpha Centauri; about trillion miles away; 6,800 times farther away from earth than Pluto (Isa. 55:9) There are many galaxies; we live in the “Milky Way” galaxy containing about 100 billion stars and many “nebula” and quasars

The Stars Provide light and direction; not for worship (Deut. 4:19) and not for revelation (Isa. 47:13; Jer. 10:2) The “north star” (Polaris) has been used for centuries to navigate The “morning star” or “day-star” (Venus) appears in the eastern sky at dawn (Job 38:7; Isa. 14:4,12; 2 Pet. 1:19; Rev. 2:28; 22:16) Christians shine as “lights” (luminaries) in the world (Phil. 2:15)

The Stars The Bible speaks of the following stars and constellations (Isa. 13:10) … Pleiades (Job 9:9; Job 38:31-33; Amos 5:8) Bear and her cubs (Job 9:9; 38:31-33; Arcturus) Orion (Job 9:9; Job 38:31-33; Amos 5:8) Mazzaroth (Job 38:31-33; constellations; Zodiac signs) Castor and Pollux (Acts 28:11; Gemini constellation)

Who Is the Designer? Explosions (the “Big Bang”) do not make order, but disorder; not complexity, but chaos Is it reasonable to believe that all this design in the universe came about by accident? Did it just happen? –A computer? –An automobile? –A house or building? –A watch or clock?

Who Is the Designer? Is it reasonable to believe that an intelligent being created these things? Yes. –God created the universe through Jesus Christ (John 1:1-3; Col. 1:15-16) –God created mankind special within the universe (Psalm 8:3-4)

A New Heavens and Earth One day our universe will be gone (Psa. 102:25-26; 2 Peter 3:5-13; Rev. 21:1) There will be a new heaven and earth designed by the Designer Are you ready?