And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also. - Genesis 1:16
In the late 80’s Jane and I opened up a work at the Indian village called Milho in Brazil. Back in those days there was no electricity in the village and no running water. Life was simple, the people used a “lamparina”, a tin can filled with diesel oil and a wick for light. Water was carried from a nearby brook in a bucket on top of the head. At the new work we had a propane lantern for a light in the church building. Often after the services the young people would take the propane lantern outside in the moonlight and we would sit around in a circle and sing choruses as Jane played her accordion. When everyone tired of singing, they disappeared into the shadows and we would turn the propane lantern off and that’s when the wonder of the night skies caught our attention.
The Indian village of Milho was far interior from any city so there were no night lights to distract from God’s marvelous creation in the skies. The sky was black like a dark velvet sheet with holes poked through where the stars shone with a brightness and intensity we had never seen before. It was almost as if we could reach up and touch them. I could sit on the wooden bench for hours and gaze at them. Close to the equator, where we were, we could see the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper to the North, but the last star in the handle of the Little Dipper, the North Star, was over the horizon. The constellation, Orion, with his belt and sword, stood above us. The Southern Cross shone brightly in the south and was the GPS of those who traveled by foot or went hunting by night. After watching the stars for some time, we would crawl into our hammocks to sleep.
The stars are fascinating! Did you ever try to count them? They are beyond numbering. Look through a binocular or telescope and you will see many more than with the naked eye. The Psalmist tells us that our Creator knows the exact number and they are all named!
He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. - Psalm 147:4
Recently at Ambassador Baptist Church we showed a film called, “Exploring Deep Space” and I was awestruck by images taken by the Hubble telescope of the multitude of galaxies spread throughout the known universe. When we look at the night sky it is like an old television, in black and white. With time exposure pictures taken by the Hubble telescope, the stars in the galaxies take on new colors, shapes, and forms. There are no words to express what the eye beholds. And to think that God created it all on the fourth day of creation! What an awesome Creator God we have! His wonders are beyond imagination.
As I thought about wonders of the heavenlies I thought about how today we see through a glass darkly, but one day in heaven we shall see our God face to face. I wonder if we will be able to see the stars and galaxies in color, with even more brightness and clarity than possible with the Hubble telescope? What a glorious eternity we will pass with our Saviour, the Lord Jesus! And then I remembered the lost, those who have rejected the Lord Jesus, The Bible tells us that they will be separated from God, “to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever”, Jude 1:13. Oh, my friend, if you have not accepted the Lord Jesus as your personal Saviour, recognize that you are a sinner and ask for forgiveness.
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. - Romans 10:13
You too can be a child of the God who created the universe in six days. You too can enter into His glorious presence and be a testimony of His abounding grace.
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. - Daniel 12:3
– Pictures courtesy of Steve Hiebert, Morden, Manitoba.
