n the first post, I attempted to provide a couple of convincing scientific proofs that this universe was created by design; and indeed, when the evidence is examined, it is virtually impossible to deny. The evidence that this earth is perfectly positioned in the solar system and the universe and equipped with all the necessary ingredients to sustain life…and that life actually exists is nothing short of stunning.

One of the world’s most prominent astronomers, Sir Fredrick Hoyle once said, “A common sense interpretation of the facts suggests that a super-intellect has monkeyed with physics, as well as with chemistry and biology, and that there are no blind forces worth speaking about in nature.”

To believe the universe and life on this planet just happened would be similar to believing that the grandfather clock in my living room ‘just happened’. Would you believe it if I told you that when we bought our house 20 years ago we noticed a small pile of dust and metal shavings in the corner and over the years it grew and developed into a beautiful six foot grandfather clock that keeps perfect time and chimes every 15 minutes?

Would it help if rather than 20 years, it took 20 million years to evolve into a clock?

The truth is I know who built the clock. I did. I took rough walnut boards and made the case and I bought a German clock movement and put it inside the case. I am the designer and builder of the clock.

The study of the universe, the earth and life strongly suggests that it was designed. But who did it? The Bible says that God did and the New Testament refines our understanding a bit and identifies the 2^nd Person of the Triune Godhead, Jesus Christ, as the primary agent of creation.

Here are some of the statements from Scripture, from both the Old Testament and the New:

Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”

Exodus 20:8-11, “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.’

Psalm 148:1-5, “Praise the LORD. Praise the LORD from the heavens, praise him in the heights above. Praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his heavenly hosts. Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars. Praise him, you highest heavens and you waters above the skies. Let them praise the name of the LORD, for he commanded and they were created.”

Isaiah 40:25-26, “To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.

Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.” (When I read that in the context that there may be as many as 250 billion galaxies in the universe with as many as 200 billion stars in each, that is a lot of names to keep track of!)

John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

Colossians 1:16, “He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God…for by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…all things were created by him and for him.”

Hebrews 1:1-2, “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.”

Revelation 4:11, “You (Jesus) are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

The Biblical teaching on creation is that God the Father, through Christ, the 2^nd Person of the Godhead, created the universe and life. The ‘hot debate’ among Christians who embrace this teaching is whether he did it in six 24-hour days, or he did it over a long period of time. It is often framed in the debate between “the young-earth position” vs. “the old-earth position”. If God did it in literal 24-hour days, as the Bible seems to teach, then it is possible creation happened as recently as 10,000-20,000 years ago; if God did it over time, the earth may be 4.5 billion years old and the universe 15 billion years old.

To be honest, there is convincing evidence to both positions. Obviously both can’t be right and it is possible that both are wrong. I appreciate the comment that Wayne Grudem makes in his Systematic Theology book, after about 40 pages of information from both the Biblical and the scientific side of the issue, he writes, “Scripture seems to be more easily understood to suggest (but not require) a young earth view, while the observable facts of creation seem increasingly to favor an old earth view. Both views are possible, but neither one is certain. It would seem best, first, to admit that God may not allow us to find a clear solution to this question before Christ returns and secondly, to encourage evangelical scientists and theologians who fall in both the young earth and old earth camps to begin to work together with much less arrogance, much more humility, and a much greater sense of cooperation in a common purpose.”

I like that answer. What all followers of Christ can agree on is that he did it and how long he took, is not worth getting steamed over or divide over.

You may find it very interesting and informative to read the entire chapter called “Creation” from Grudem’s Systematic Theology.

Now, can I prove that the Creator of the universe was Jesus? Not everybody who believes in ‘intelligent design’ would say that the Designer was Jesus! The other faiths of the world would point to a different Designer. Muslims would say it was Allah did; Hindus would say it was Brahma and others think that maybe it was an alien of some sort. How do we know it was Jesus? We don’t. But the evidence that Jesus was the Creator is convincing. But that evidence isn’t found in science; it is found in history, and specifically in two areas:

First: verifiable fulfilled prophecies about Jesus given hundreds of years before his birth which provide convincing evidence that he was who he said he was. According to Baron Payne’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy, there are 191 predictions in the Old Testament about the coming of Christ, including his ancestry, the city in which he would be born, that he would be born of a virgin, precisely the time in history when he would die, and how he would die.

Someone once calculated the chances of just 8 of the prophecies coming true in the life of one person are 100 million billion! That is equal to the statistical probability of the entire state of Texas being covered with silver dollars 2 feet deep and a blindfolded person is told to wade out into the sea of silver dollars and pick out the one that has the red dot on it…and he picks that one up.”

And second, the strong historical evidence of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. I am not going to go into the details, but the evidence that Jesus really did die and that he really came back to life again is very convincing. In his book, Case for Christ, Lee Strobel goes through an examination of medical evidence, the historical evidence of a missing body and the evidence of his bodily appearance following the resurrection. And from that perspective alone, it happened!

So if the evidence from fulfilled prophecy and the reality of the resurrection points to Jesus being who he said he was: The Son of God! And if he is that, then it is a small leap of faith to accept that he is also: The Creator of the universe, as the Bible says he is. But more importantly, he then also most assuredly is: The Savior of the World!

And if I’m right, then the question that naturally follows is: What are you doing with Jesus?

First, have you asked him to be the Savior of your life? He came to this world to absorb the penalty for your sins and mine on the cross and then he turned around and offered to give you eternal life as an absolutely free gift simply by believing in him.

John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him would not perish but have everlasting life.”

Have you? If you have not, this is a moment you can. It begins by acknowledging that your sin has offended a holy God; that you believe that Jesus came to this earth and took the punishment for your sins on the cross; and that by acknowledging him as your Savior, you will be given a relationship with God in this life and in the next.

Second, those of you who have, are you allowing him to be the Lord of your life?

Lordship means things like:

Obeying what he taught;

Submitting to his will;

Following in his steps.

Following Christ means we really should be different from the world where it matters!

We really should have better marriages, less divorce, fewer affairs than the world.

We really should be more generous, and less materialistic than the world.

We really should be kinder, less angry, more compassionate and loving than the world.

Let me just throw out the challenge to examine your life, your attitudes, your behavior…is Jesus more than your Savior…is he your Lord? Where do some changes need to happen? Because I believe with all my heart that Jesus is the Creator of the Universe, Savior of the world and he deserves to be the Lord of our lives.