You are a leftover. And, evidently, our world is made of leftovers. Even more astounding: our universe is made of leftovers.
For every one billion particles of anti-matter in the early universe, there were a billion and one particles of matter. When matter and anti-matter met, they annihilated each other—leaving relatively few leftover particles of matter. The universe and everything in it is built of the leftover—tiny remaining bits of matter that were not cancelled out by anti-matter.
Now, here’s the thing: Was this a cosmic accident, or was this an intentional outcome?
Rather a lot of things got annihilated in a massive bang in order for you to exist. It’s as if God was introducing his creation with a giant fireworks display.
Certainly, the opening chapters of the Bible teach us God was delighted with his creation, (he called it “good”) and it also teaches that God delighted to sharing a loving relationship with us. Perhaps this explains why God was pleased to begin his creation project with a bang.
Now, the big thing is: What are you going do with these amazing facts? Will you shrug your shoulders, commit intellectual suicide, and do nothing… or will you allow the extraordinary “show and tell” of the cosmos prompt you to explore the mind behind it all. Quite frankly, it’s difficult to think what else God could have done to invite your faith—that wouldn’t result in forcing it.
The marvels of the cosmos… and the marvels of creation are designed to encourage us to reach out to God. The Bible says in Acts 17:27: God did this (create a remarkable world)so that people would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
So… I invite you to do so.
I invite you to do so because there will be an ending. You will physically end. And interestingly enough, our solar system will end.
Scientists tell us that our sun will die in 4.5 billion years time. If you manage to escape to another solar system, you are not out of the woods, because the universe itself is due to die and fade away in what is known as ‘heat death.’
Professor David Wilkinson writes about how non-Christian scientists are feeling about a world without hope. In his book, Christian Eschatology and the Physical Universe, he writes:
This end of Universe in the heat death of futility raises a great deal of pessimism within the scientific community.
Certainly, the 20th century English philosopher, Betrand Russell, didn’t express much hope. He said:
The world which science presents for our belief is even more purposeless, and more void of meaning … all the labours of the ages, all the devotion, all the inspiration, all the noonday brightness of human genius, are destined to extinction … and the whole temple of man’s achievements must inevitably be buried beneath the debris of a universe in ruins.
The American physicist, Steven Weingberg, author of the book, The First Three Minutes, says mournfully:
The more the universe seems comprehensible, the more it also seems pointless.
In their search for hope, some physicist suggest that there are an infinite number of universes in existence, or coming into existence… so that the chance of there being one which allows life should not be surprising. The physicist and theologian, John Polkinghorne highlights the bleakness of this view, describing such universes as: occasional islands of meaningfulness in an engulfing sea of absurdity.
The cosmologist, Paul Davies summarizes the overall feeling concerning this the death of our universe, saying:
(An) almost empty universe growing steadily more cold and dark for all eternity is profoundly depressing.
The huge question each of us needs to answer is “why”? Why does anything exist, if it’s just going to end? What on earth am I here for?
The Bible makes it clear that this is a question God expectsus to ask. The Apostle Paul says that it is reasonable for people to look at existence, ponder its meaning and to let it introduce the possibility of God (Romans 1:20).
I invite you to do so. Let the miracle of existence point you to God; and let Jesus point you to your purpose in God.
