John N. JohnsonDec. 2008

The Heavens Declare the Glory of God

Hercules Globular Cluster of Stars

M13 Credit: Wade Hilmo 2007

Credit: Wade Hilmo 2007

Pinwheel Galaxy - stars

M101

Whirlpool Galaxy - stars

M51Credit: Wade Hilmo 2007

Lagoon Nebula – gas

M8 Credit: Wade Hilmo 2007

The Milky Way – our galaxy

Credit: Wade Hilmo 2007

God’s Excellence - in the Stars

God Set his Glory in the Heavens Romans 1:20 - “For since the creation of the world God's

invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse”

God Set his Glory in the Heavens

Psalm 8:1 - O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens

What do you think of when you see the stars?

God Set his Glory in the Heavens

Psalm 8:2 - From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.

Look up and see that God is awesome! God wants you to praise Him

God’s Excellence - in the Stars

God’s Work can be seen in the Heavens Psalm 8:3 When I consider your heavens,

the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,

Ring Nebula

Deneb

Vega

Northern Cross inSwan Constellation(Cygnus)

Harp Constellation(Lyra)

Northern Cross In Swan Constellation(Cygnus)

Cygnets -baby swans

Swan - Cygnus

Solar Eclipse the Sun’s light blocked by the moon

Solar Flares - red

Corona - white

Sun eclipsed by moon – animation

God Set his Glory in the Heavens

Psalm 104:19 - The moon marks off the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down

God’s Work can be seen in us

Ps 8:4-6 What is man that you are mindful of him, the

son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly

beings and crowned him with glory and honor.

You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:

All flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field

Bengal Tiger

Australian Merino Sheep

God’s Work can be seen in us

Ps 8:8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas.

Bar-tailed Godwit(Limosa lapponica)

Migration of Bar-tailed Godwit (bird) migrating north from New Zealand to China 6,615 miles non-stop in 9 days

Oceanic Whitetip Shark Carcharhinus longimanus

Pilot Fish Naucrates ductor

Elphinstone Reef in Egypt in the Red Sea

Credit Thomas Ehrensperger

Humpback Whale

God’s Excellence - in the Stars

God’s Work can be seen in us Ps 8:9 O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is

your name in all the earth!

Crab Nebula

M1

God’s Excellence - in the Stars

God is excellent Part of his excellent plan is to care for you.

Barred Spiral Galaxy

Part 2 – God is Talking

Boeing booster Rocket IUSSends Magellan spacecraft to Venus

Venus hot Surface -camera sees through clouds

God is Talking

God is still talking yo us God Planned the path of the Sun The one who planned the Sun shows us

how to live our life: what path we should take

God is talking

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

God is talking

Psalm 19:2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge

God is talking

Psalm 19:3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard

God is speaking to all people

Miao peopleChina

Miao People Creation Story

Miao story: “On the day God created the heavens and earth, On that day He opened the gateway of light. In the earth then He made heaps of earth and of stone. In the sky He made bodies, the sun and the moon.”

Miao People Creation of Man

Miao story: “On the earth He created a man from the dirt. Of the man thus created, a woman He formed…”

God is talking

God Planned the Sun – the path it takes

Newton’s Laws of Motion –are really God’s Laws of Motion

God is talking

Psalm 19:4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,

God is talking

Psalm 19:6 The Sun rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat.

Sun

God is talking

God, who planned the Sun, shows us how to live our life:

What path we should take

God shows the Path to take

Psalm 19:7 “The law of the LORD [Yahweh] is Perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.”

God shows the Path to take

Law of Gravity is not just a good idea – ignore it, jump off a roof and you’ll suffer

Laws of God are also not just a good idea They are warnings – ignore them by lying

or greedily coveting or stealing and you’ll suffer

Earth

God shows the Path to take

Psalm 19:8 “The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.”

God’s perfection in the stars and planets

Moon in the Pleiades Star cluster bound strongly by gravity – chains as God said to Job, 38:31

Betelgeuse star- red (cool) giant star

Rigel star – blue (hot) star

Orion the Hunter constellationStars loosely bound by gravity –like cords as God said to Job, 38:31

God shows the Path to take

Psalm 19:9 “The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous.”

the one who planned the universe has a plan for you –

We should be listening to God in His Word

Apollo 15 Moon Landing

Apollo 15 Moon Landing David R. Scott, commander

Alfred M. Worden, command module pilotJames B. Irwin, lunar module pilot

Landed on Moon: 30 July 1971 Jim Irwin spoke about his faith in Christ

and the Bible in Seattle 1985 He wrote his life story: To Rule the Night

Lunar Rover - Apollo 15 onMoon - 1971

God Watches the Path you Walk

 Psalm 121:1-3 Quoted by Astronaut Jim Irwin on Moon I lift up my eyes to the hills—

       where does my help come from?   My help comes from the LORD,

       the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip—

he who watches over you will not slumber

Orion Nebula

M42

God is Talking

The Heavens declare the Glory of God Psalm 19:1 The Heavens declare His righteousness For

God Himself is Judge (Psalm 50:6, 97:6) The heavens will praise thy wonders, O LORD

Thy faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy Ones (Psalm 89:5)

When He established the Heavens, I [Wisdom] was there (Proverbs 8:27)

Part 3 – God’s Care for Us

Have you not Heard

God Cares for us He wants you to hope in Him Have you not heard?

– He is able to know you – and all that is going on in your life.

Lightning Storm

Isaiah 40:21a Do you not know? Have you not heard?

Aurora Australius

Isaiah 40:21b Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

Isaiah 40:22a He (God) sits enthroned above the circle (horizon) of the earth

The Great Bear-Ursa Major

Isaiah 40:22b – He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

Have you not Heard

“Do you know” Isaiah said: Our problem is that we don’t listen sometimes

We don’t know about God.

Have you not Heard

From the beginning of creation God has shown himself by what he created

the heavens declare the Glory of God: God has shown himself to us

Have you not Heard

Isaiah said - God knows all the stars by name

So we know that He knows you by name also

Is 40:26a Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these stars?

Our own Milky Way Galaxy

Is 40:26b He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name.

Isaiah 40:26cBecause of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

Isaiah said that God knows all the stars and planets by name(Isaiah 40:26)

Planet is Greek for Wanderer, it moves among the stars

What are these planets’ names?

Venus

Earth

Mars

Mercury

What are these planet names?

Jupiter

Saturn

Uranus

Neptune

In 2006 Pluto was demoted from being called a planet It is now a “dwarf planet”

What is this newly discovered dwarf planet? It is larger than Pluto and has a moon

Eris – a dwarf planet, bigger than Pluto

Dysnomia - amoon of Eris

The Big Dipper Constellation - Latin: Ursa (Bear) Major (Great)

Big Dipper

Little Dipper(upside down)

Have you not Heard

God is able to know you and all that is going on in your life

God who has all this power is able to help you

Comet Hale-Bopp

Isaiah 40:27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel,

Martin Fireball – large meteor

Isaiah 40:27b “My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God”?

Bar-tailed Godwit

Does God feed this bird enough so it can fly 6,600 miles from New Zealand to China?

Blue Morpho Butterfly

People complain that God doesn’t love them. Does God love this butterfly?

Is 40:28: Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

Small Magellanic Cloud of Stars

Isaiah 40:28b; He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.

Cat’s Eye Nebula

Is 40:29a He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak

Children in Southern Sudan - Africa

Isaiah 40:30 - Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

Students in Ghana Africa

Is 40:31b but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength

Students in Southern Sudan - Africa

http://homepage.mac.com/globalhealing/SouthernSudanEd./PhotoAlbum31.html

Isaiah 40:31c:They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

God is able to help us

God doesn’t tire

God is always there for you

God wants you to put your hope in Him

North American Nebula

Scriptures

The Heavens declare His righteousness For God Himself is Judge (Psalm 50:6, 97:6)

The heavens will praise thy wonders, O LORDThy faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy Ones (Psalm 89:5)

When He established the Heavens, I [Wisdom] was there (Proverbs 8:27)

Part 4 - The New Heaven

The New Heaven

The New Heaven – Stars and Earth are going to cease to exist

God wants us to live in that heaven – called the New Jerusalem

Now we see the glory of God in the stars,

Then we will behold his glory directly

The New Heaven

What will happen to the Earth and the stars?

2 Peter 3:10 – The earth will be burned up

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

2 Peter 2:10 - The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare

Astronomers believe thatsomeday the sun will become a redgiant, expand and burn up the earth

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper Rev. 21: 1 - Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

Rev. 21: 2 - I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

Rev. 21:4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

The New Heaven

How can we know for sure we will go to the new heaven?

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

Rom. 3:23 – all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Rom. 6:23 – For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

Rom. 5:8 - But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Blue Morpho Butterfly

Rom. 10:9 - if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

The New Heaven

What will the New Heaven be like:? Revelation 21:19-21 Foundations Stones 1 - Jasper, 2- Sapphire, 3- Chalcedony 4 – Emerald, 5- Sardonx, 6- Sardius 7 – Chrysolite, 8 – Beryl, 9 – Topaz 10 – Chrysoprase, 11 - Jacinth, 12 –

Amethyst

1 - Jasper

1 – Jasper

2 - Sapphire

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper3 – Chalcedony

4- Emerald

5- Sardonyx

6 – Carnelion, Sardius (Ruby)

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper7 - Chrysolite (peridot, gem-olivine)

8 – Beryl Sea-green beryl or aquamarine (center)

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

9 - Topaz

10 – Chrysophrase(Apple-green Chalcedony)

12- Amethyst

11 - Jacinth(red-violet zircon)

The New Heaven

What will the New Heaven be like:? Revelation 21:19-21 Twelve Gates of Pearls Streets of City pure gold, like

transparent glass

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

New Heaven – Twelve Gates of Pearls

1 - Jasper

1 - JasperNew Heaven -Streets of Gold

Gold Nugget 156 ounces10 pounds

1 - Jasper

1 - Jasper

Rev. 21:23 - The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.

Rev. 21:3- And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.

Rev. 22:7 And Behold I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book.

The Heavens do declare the Glory of God