The Book of Nature

Psalm 19 declares the reality of God can be seen in two ways. One way is through nature. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork” (v. 1) the psalmist sings. All of nature bears the fingerprints of God. The irreducible complexity of life from microscopic DNA to the macroscopic level of earth being finely tuned and suited for biological life having the right kind of sun to orbit, moon for regulating its seasons, and existing in the “Goldilocks’ Zone” of a spiral galaxy bear witness to Intelligent Designer. One can call this the book of nature and through science we read this book.

There is also God’s special revelation found in the Scripture. The Lord has spoken through Moses and the prophets in the Old Testament, and through Jesus Christ and the apostles in the New Testament. People can observe God’s natural revelation and know that He exists; however, it is only through God’s special revelation that people can enter into a personal relationship with God. Concerning the Scriptures, the psalmist sings, “More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine god; sweeter than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb” (v. 10).

Just as one studies hermeneutics to refine their skills in biblical interpretation, one also needs how to learn to read the book of nature in order to develop a robust understanding of the universe. The more one learns about the nature of the world, the more one can understand the God who had made the universe.

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