Category Archives: The Bible and Science

Shadow  

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Shadow is the perfect example of a Bible study that had multiple reasons to start it. The first is the phrase “in the shadow of your wings”. The second is the from the Tolkien trilogy Lord of the Rings. Then the “science teacher” kicked in and I remembered that shadows are naturally occurring things. The metaphors then divided the writer part of me, requiring that the light and dark side of this come forth. Yes, there will be several posts from this thought. 

The science part first. Shadows occur because there is a light source strong enough to cause one. A solid object blocks the light and as the rays respond to the object a shadow is formed. The brightness of the light, the size of the object, and the distance that separates them determine the shadow.  

Earth’s shadow is the biggest one we deal with every day; you know it as night. We tend to not think of night as a shadow, but the earth is blocking the sun’s light rays from us. During the night we are in the umbra of its shadow. That is the darkest part. Loosely, we could call dawn and dusk the penumbra, or the lighter part of a shadow. The light-scattering properties of the atmosphere also come into play at these times of the day. 

You may not always see a penumbra, but it is there. It may only be a thin lighter part that rings the main shadow, but it is present. If the source is bright enough our eyes may have a hard time picking it out, and it may not be very wide. 

Unless you are Peter Pan, shadows are very obedient and follow your every movement. They will resemble the object that is blocking the light, but it may not be a perfectly clear image. The penumbra will add to the haziness of an exact match. The surface you view the shadow on will also affect its appearance. As the angle of the light changes to the solid object, so will the umbra. 

In dusk and dawn, the color of things will appear different. This is because of the amount of available light that enters our eyes and activates the cones and rods of the retina. A very simple idea needs to be said here. You will not see your shadow if you are facing the light, it is there but you have to look for it. 

Questions for you: What is the third type of shadow called? What common item has umbra as part of its name? 

Three Negative Forces

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There are three negative forces in our world that are the opposites of love, faith, and hope.  The opposing forces are hate, fear, and confusion and shame.  I paired confusion and shame because they are frequently together in Scripture.  Love is opposite of hate, faith opposes fear, and hope battles confusion and shame in our world.  These and more bad things flow from sin, which is the real problem.

The word negative, to be honest, caused me to stop and think awhile.  Most of this reflection is because of friction!  As a science teacher, I presented friction as a “negative” force and frequently as something to be defeated.  Just because something opposes you does not mean that it is bad, remember the angel in the talking mule story of Balaam.  If there is a “push” normally there is a “pull” that is needed to get the job done!  Without friction, we do not move.  So, in itself friction is not bad, as it is nice to move.  Friction is not the topic of this post, so back to hate, fear, and confusion and shame.  Just remember to be careful when using the word “negative”.

Sin and Satan use these three negative forces to affect this world. For Christians, they will affect us if we don’t use God’s grace given us through the sacrifice that Jesus provided.  In discussing the post of Creation Qualities #1 and #2 with my wife brought up 1 John 2:16 when I mentioned these negative forces.  The Apostle John talks about the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life as not being from the Father. (These are KJV terms, my 1990 NIV uses different terms for the same ideas.)  Since lust are internal and pride can have an outward and internal manifestation I thought I could work them into the pattern of the first two posts.  Trying this thought and then that one, I just never felt comfortable in squeezing them into a “negative” form of the first post.  Pride and the lusts did not pair up nicely with hate, fear, and confusion and shame.  The thought that did develop was that pride and the lusts could develop from hate, fear, and confusion and shame individual or collectively. Hate, fear, confusion and shame, pride, and the lusts are real and they will consume you if you let them.  Jesus is the source of help when you finally realize that you have a problem – see “Following Jesus?” and find a good Bible-believing church! 

The Bible and Science – Creation Qualities #2

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When I am lifted up, I will draw everyone to me. John 12:32 (NIV)

A very simple definition of a force is a push or pull (draw) on an object.  Movement of some kind is the result of a force being applied to an object.  In the first Creation Qualities post, I saw three things that keep our world as we know it.  Then, I compared those things (atomic forces, light, and gravity) to Father God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. 

Now, I want to compare three Bible forces to these natural forces. (Light is a force because photons can physically push things.). The Biblical forces are – love, faith, and hope.  (See my post Faith, Hope, and Love)

Love holds this world together.  Father God is love, He is the glue in our existence. 1 Corinthians 13 states that love is the greatest of these three forces.

Faith – Faith shines from believers lighting the way for unbelievers to find Jesus.  Faith, like light, has two parts.  There is an invisible part of faith, but there is also the physical side of faith.  Faith will grow and change you.  This causes you to do and say things that are the result of the internal work in you (works of faith).  

Hope – Our hope draws people to us. Hope joins faith and love together. Like gravity the more you have (bigger you are) the more things are drawn in.  If you could lose all gravity nothing would be attracted to you.  Hope has the same effect.  The more you have the more people want to be around you.  If you are without hope people are not drawn to you.

The Bible and Science – Creation Qualities

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Romans 1: 20 (NIV) 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 people are without excuse. (I added the bold lettering.)

There are three things that frame and shape our existence on this earth and in the universe – atomic forces, light/EM spectrum, and gravity.  I can see these as shadows of our triune God.

Atomic Forces

These forces are not completely understood.  We know about the particles of protons, neutrons, and electrons and how they combine, rearrange, and come apart.  There is some understanding of quarks and atomic glue, but the mysteries of atoms are vast and may never be completely understood.  The inquisitive nature of mankind will drive us to keep exploring! 

Atoms, particles, and forces are responsible for the EM spectrum and gravity.  The EM spectrum and gravity are intertwined with atoms, being a part of and coming from atoms and their varied interactions.

EM Spectrum

Light, the primary energy source on earth, is part of a group of energy waves called the EM spectrum.  All of the waves are useful and some are dangerous.  As electrons change position wavelengths of the EM spectrum can be emitted.  Science recognizes that light is energy and can exert a force.

Gravity 

The attractive force that pulls on everything.  Its strength depends on the sizes of the objects and the distance between them.  That force is always working, even though you may not be aware of it!  Mankind has found ways to resist gravity for small periods of time, but it will always bring things down to earth.

What I See

  • Father God is the atomic force. We, His people, know and understand some of our Father, but there is much we can only imagine.  It is nice to have a God that shows Himself as real and a mystery. 
  • The EM spectrum is Jesus.  He is our light and life.  Many people think of Him only as a baby and forget He rides a white horse, carries a flaming sword, and has an angelic army coming behind Him.  Jesus has a supernatural (invisible) side and a physical side.
  • Gravity is the Holy Spirit.  He draws us to Jesus.  The closer you get to Him the stronger the force of attraction.  You can resist Him, but I would look out for the landing (every knee will bow).  

∞ I praise and thank You that You have made Yourself seen in creation.  Give me eyes and ears to hear the sounds of You that are all around us.  Amen.

Light and Dark #4 – Christmas Characters

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Isaiah 9: 2 (NIV) The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.

Darkness and Light is very much a part of the Christmas story!  Holding to the idea of God starting with darkness and then bring light plays very much into the First Coming of Jesus.

This image in Isaiah 9: 2 where it is foretold that Galilee would see a great light.  Verse 6 of chapter 9 is also a much-used Christmas verse. In chapter 8 we see what was happening in Isaiah’s life as well as Israel at the time of this word.  Isaiah and his children are physical signs to a nation that was not following God, and Assyria is predicted to come and sweep the land clean. Galilee was part of the Northern Kingdom that left the worship of God for idols.  Kings and Chronicles go into detail of their unfaithfulness and for Galilee to be associated with Gentiles or the nations hints how far they had fallen. 9: 2 tells us that the people were in darkness (spiritual darkness) and that they would see a great light.  This is the region where Jesus did much of His earthly ministry, they saw the Light!  Isaiah 8: 19 – 22 paints the picture of mediums and spiritualists with the people being distressed, hungry, and fearful.

Dark and light set the stage for the angels’ announcement to the shepherds in Luke 2: 8 – 12.  It was night all around the shepherds when the Glory (light) replaced the darkness and they heard that the Light of the World had come.

Joseph was in darkness (night, asleep) when the angel told him to accept the Light and marry Mary. Joseph had several dreams that would lead him into the light he needed: to go to Egypt, to return, and to go to Galilee.

The Wise Men also show our dark to light theme in Matthew 2: 2; 9 -10.  They were the living definition of the Gentiles in Isaiah 8, they worshipped the stars and sought guidance from the created not the Creator! So, in their night they saw a light (star – “every star a burning signal fire of grace” from the song 100 Billion X by Hillsong) that would lead them to worship the King!  The Father also gave them night visions to protect the Light and sent them home a different route.

After many Nativity movies and planetarium shows on the Christmas star, I will admit this thought is not mine or original.  I have heard about comets and stars in the wrong constellations, then there was the animated movie that the door to heaven was left open as explanations for the star. We know that the glory showed in the night sky over Bethlehem.  The Magi eluded they saw the star/light when the king was born.  It reappeared after leaving Jerusalem and then stationed itself over where Jesus was. (I think the Holy Family went back to Nazareth before going to Egypt.)  The Magi gave Herod a two-year period since they observed the star.  I find it easier to believe that the star/light was angels on “star-duty” than a comet or out of place star.

To tell the story of Christmas there has to be darkness, and Light came in to show the way.

See the post Follow the Light.

pic: http://clipart.christiansunite.com

FURTHER THOUGHT – Compare the Christmas story to Genesis 1 and the “First Day”.