Creation
Shall Praise Him
by
Pastor Jack Hayford
The Heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world
(Psalm 19:1-4).
It’s easy to take something like the simple singing of birds for
granted.
In a nature film I watched last week, a group of ornithologists
took those songs very seriously. Their conclusions both delighted
and disappointed me.
These were scientists who both studied creation and denied their
Creator. Their love for our wonderful world was so commendable;
their neglect, if not rejection, of our wonderful Lord, so disappointing.
My mind was ignited by one observation they made, fired with an
idea which no one could deny as a possibility—not even my bird-watching
friends.
My idea was generated by one conclusion their study had drawn.
Showing by scientific means that each type of bird renders a distinct
call which identifies its kind, the researcher noted, “Here, the
bird is saying, ‘I’m a red-winged blackbird. I’m a red-winged
blackbird.’”
Of added and striking interest was the fact that each bird has
a kind of unique “signature” to the call which identifies its breed;
an ending which, in a way, says: “I am this PARTICULAR red-winged
blackbird.”
I turned to Anna and said, “I’m going to challenge the conclusion
made by that scientist. His observations are verifiable and enlightening,
but he has concluded that the bird is saying, ‘I’m a red-winged
blackbird.’ The fact is, he doesn’t know anything more than that
the specific call is the identifying song of that specie. My proposition—no
less provable than his—that the birdsong is, ‘Praise You, Father,
that You created me a red-winged black-bird!’”
I hold that the evidence of Scripture shows most of creation still
in tune with its Creator.
This was verified by one of my first truly exciting discoveries
in the Greek New Testament years ago. I was studying the Gospel
of John, chapter 1, when in verse 11 I discovered a difference in
the gender of the term “His own.” The verse reads, “He came unto
his own, and his own received him not” (KJV). But the first “His
own” has a neuter ending, while the second has a masculine ending.
Most literally translated, it would read: “He came unto His own
things (the whole creation which verse 3 and 10 declare Him
responsible for making), and His own mankind did not receive
Him.”
In one sentence the stark fact stands out: Humans are the only
beings in the physical realm of this planet who are out of touch
with their Creator.
Romans 1:20 tells us that, “Since the creation of the world His
invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things
that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead….” But the ensuing
verses of that chapter outline the decadence of man and civilization
when thanksgiving and honor toward the Almighty are abandoned.
I’m glad I know Him!
I’m glad He made me me.
And I’m thankful that through Christ Jesus, the One who made all
things, I am being recovered from the debris of confusion in a world
where most of humankind have lost their identity and their destined
individuality.
It’s enough to wake You up in the morning with a song. |
Jack
Hayford Ministries
14800 Sherman Way, Van Nuys, CA 91405-2233