Are you a cosmic accident? Is your purpose nothing more than to exist for a few passing moments on this earth, only to fade away with the mass of humanity? If so, why in the world does this life even matter? If God is not in the picture, these questions leave us hopeless. The Christian worldview gives us so much more to live for. It says that God created you for a higher purpose. You are not an accident. You are here for a reason. And you can know that reason because God has communicated it to you. Your Creator is speaking to you in his Word and revealing himself in creation.
Last time we learned that God reveals himself through the creation of the heavens. But we can also learn about God by considering his creation of the earth. The earth calls us to consider God’s kingship and his ability to deliver us.
The Earth Establishes God’s Kingship
Because God created the earth, he both owns and rules as king over all it contains (Ps. 24:1-2; 50:10-11; 74:12). Unlike us, and unlike the ancient pagan gods, he does not need the earth to sustain Himself (Ps. 50:12-13). The survival of every king in the history of the world depended on their ability to rule and protect their kingdom. Even a king has his limits. But not so with God—he does not need us or any other part of his created order. And yet, even though God is totally self-sustaining, he is the God of salvation. He chooses to stoop down and deliver us.
The Earth Exhibits God’s Deliverance
Earlier this year in the month of May the London art gallery tried to feature an exhibit called “Majestic Splendor” by Lee Bul. Notice I said, “tried.” The artwork consisted of rotting fish decorated with sequins and beads, sealed in small plastic bags (for obvious reasons). Apparently the compounds these fish emit can easily combust, and that is just what happened. The fish combusted, causing a minor fire in the London art gallery. The gallery canceled the exhibit.
It seems like these days people will put just about anything on display. And while some people may be fascinated with zany exhibits in the London art gallery, God is concerned with putting his saving character on display. The earth is his display case. Notice Psalm 74:12,
“Yet God my King is from of old,
working salvation in the midst of the earth.”
God wants to display your life on earth as an example of his saving character. As Creator and King over the earth, his art exhibit of your life takes the “best in show.”
Because God delivers us, we can have confidence no matter what kinds of physical threats surround us. He controls it all.
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”
~Psalm 46:1-3 (cf. 96:6-9)
When God delivers Israel from Egypt to the Promised Land, the sea, mountains, and the Jordan are all asked why they “flee…turn back…and skip…like rams” and “lambs.”
The earth “tremble[s]…at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, who turns the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of water.”
~Psalm 114:3-8
In these verses, the earth visibly responds to the presence of God as if in fear. We can trust God’s control and ability to save in spite of our smallness in his creation, because everything is small compared to God. Everything trembles before the Creator King.
Consider Jesus
For just a moment, journey out of the Psalms with me to the gospels. Think of the disciples who were with Jesus in a small fishing boat on the Sea of Galilee. In the midst of a life-threatening storm they wake Jesus with the cry,
“‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’ And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’”
~Mark 4:38-41
It was not some cosmic accident that caused those disciples to get caught in the storm. And the storms in your life are not a cosmic accident, either. This same Jesus is tenderly calling to you today, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” He is the King and Creator of the earth, and he can calm the storm in your life. Perhaps you have ignored Jesus for a long time. Or perhaps you have been running to him daily. No matter what your circumstances, there is comfort and conviction in the fact that the Creator King is purposefully working in the lives of every person on this planet. We each must face this question: “Will I turn to him? Will I trust him?” The answer to that question will make all the difference in the world.
C.P.
Worship as a Way of Life 
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