Psalm 19:1-2

NASB	NLT	VOICE
1 The heavens tell of the glory of God; And their expanse declares the work of His hands.	1 The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.	1 The celestial realms announce God’s glory; the skies testify of His hands’ great work.
2 Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge.	2 Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make him known.	2 Each day pours out more of their sayings; each night, more to hear and more to learn.

In the ancient Near Eastern context, the heavens were often associated with divine activity. This understanding connects back to Romans 1:20 (which we’ll talk about later), where Paul describes God’s invisible qualities being shown in creation. The heavens are a symbol of God’s beauty and power. God’s glory is found through his creation that we witness here on earth. We learn about God’s intricate creative mindset, showing intentionality and artistry in what he creates. He has a personal and intimate connection with everything that he creates, having a piece of him being reflected on to each of us today.  

For us, it’s a reminder to pause. To observe everything around us. From the skies above, to the people around us, to the bustle of community, and everything in between. When we pause and reflect on who God has called us to be, we learn more about his beauty and we get to see how powerful God truly is. It’s a way to connect with our Almighty Creator and learn that we are a part of the moving flow of creation, and that we must yearn to connect with that harmony of the world and work to continue that harmony with everything that we interact with.

Genesis 1:6-8

NASB	NLT	VOICE
6 Then God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.”	6 Then God said, “Let there be a space between the waters, to separate the waters of the heavens from the waters of the heavens from the waters of the earth.”	6 Let there be a vast expanse in the middle of the waters. Let the waters above part from the waters below.
7 God made the expanse, and separated the waters that were below the expanse from the waters that were above the expanse; and it was so.	7 And that is what happened. God made this space to separate the waters of the earth from the waters of the heavens.	7 So God parted the waters and formed this expanse, separating the waters above from the waters below. It happened just as God said.
8 God call the expanse “heaven.” And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.	8 God called the space “sky.” And evening passed and morning came, marking the second day.	8 And God called the vast expanse “sky.” Evening gave way to morning. That was day two.

In ancient Near Eastern cosmology, the expanse was understood as a dome that separated the heavens from the earth. At that time in history, they believed that the sky was a physical structure. In a generalized sense that we can connect with, the expanse represents order and structure, separating the different realms of reality and preparing the earth for habitation. For this expanse to be between the chaos waters, God is bringing order to the chaos. The separation shows us God’s powerful over the natural world. The water above represents the rain, something essential for life and farming. The waters below represent the seas and oceans. This separation of the water is something we see in Exodus 14 (God parting the Red Sea for Moses) and Mark 4 (Jesus calming the storm) – both representing God’s power and authority over creation.

Just this little of bit of understanding into the ancient Near Eastern belief system can help us understand that God has a specific purpose for everything. It could be details that we overlook or don’t pay close attention to, but God has everything moving and acting in a specific way to align with his almighty plan. Today, that’s hard to see. Especially when we’re inundated and surrounded by hardships, pain, anxiety, and fear. We must remember that the world we’re in right now is broken, hurting, and in need of restoration. God is operating to bring that harmony back together, but he cannot do it alone. We must connect with God, to understand our purpose and why he created us for this world and learn to plug in to be able to do what he’s called us for.

Romans 1:19-20

NASB	NLT	VOICE
19 because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.	19 They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them.	19 These people are not ignorant about what can be known of God, because He has shown it to them with great clarity.
20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse.	20 For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.	20 From the beginning, creation in its magnificence enlightens us to His nature. Creation itself makes His undying power and divine identity clear, even though they are invisible; and it voids the excuses and ignorant claims of these people.

God has shown us what he is like in and through what he has created. Every person, therefore, accepts or rejects God. We must remember to treat God’s creation with respect, and not to argue against God’s creation. When the day comes for the final judgment, the time for excuses end. We must work to begin, create, and sustain our relationship with him today – for tomorrow is not granted.

As we described in Psalm 19, nature shows us a God of power, intelligence, and intentional detail. A God of order and beauty. A God who controls the powerful forces of this world. Now that’s more of a general revelation into understanding who God is. Through a special revelation, often our intentional and intimate seeking of God, we understand God’s love and forgiveness and the eternal promise that he gives us eternal life. God has given us many sources to fully believe in him and understand who he is. Unfortunately, humanity can distort this through their own misunderstandings, or they abuse the power God has given them to manipulate his teachings to push across their own harmful agenda. Thankfully, God also gifts us the power and wisdom of discernment to ensure that we can properly understand what his teachings are and what is the teachings of the world.

God revealed his divine nature and personal qualities through creation, even though creation has fallen away from the ideal (see Genesis 3). Adam’s sin ignited a divine curse upon the entire natural order. The ground that produces sustenance will no longer be easy to take. We will have to work hard to receive the sources of the world. God is still providing the vegetables and bread (a more literal understanding), but we must work towards receiving his provision. I believe this could be a way to recognize that we disobeyed God’s true intention for his creation and that this work reflects an intentional source of forgiveness and repentance.

Psalm 74:16

NASB	NLT	VOICE
16 Yours is the day, Yours also is the night. You have prepared the light and the sun.	16 Both day and night belong to you; you made the starlight and the sun.	16 The day and the night are both Yours – You fashioned the sun, moon, and all the lights that pierce the darkness.

In the ancient Near Eastern culture, there were deities related to different times of the day, but this psalm connects the belief that the God of Israel is powerful and authoritative over the day and night. This was counter-cultural to what they believed at that time. The psalmist shares that God is always present and active – offering comfort and assurance to all people. Historically as well, the sun and moon were worshiped as their own idols. The psalmist reaffirms what Day 4 of the creation narrative describes, that they are creations of God and not objects of worship. Their own pattern, reliability, and regularity reflect God’s faithfulness and order. Some prophetic perspective reflects the sun and morn to represent God’s promises.

We’ve talked about how God’s promises are eternal. We can look at the sun (though not directly) and moon and remind ourselves that they will rise again. They will be back to provide their function to God’s creation. They will be back to make sure the harmony that they bring the world will be present and that God’s plan the world is able to function healthily through them. The same thing applies to us. We will rise again. The hardships of the world can keep us and frustrate us to the point of giving up. However, through the strength of God, when we get knocked down – he picks us back up. He stretches out his hand to keep us from drowning, just as he did to Peter. Even when we doubt in his existence, strength, comfort, and care – he is there to rescue us from the chaos waters of life and allow us to push forward the plan that he set for us.

Next slice of Manna: Manna for the Mind #226