THE WONDER OF EARTH
Happy Mother's Day! Mothers, we know you do things that no one sees, that go unnoticed, but still make our small worlds go round. Somehow, clothing appears folded, food on the table, fresh sheets for the bed, appointments for the dentist, we arrive safely at practices, new shoes paid for, this isn’t by accident but your intentional effort and genuine love. For the things we see you do and the things you do when no one is looking, thank you. We are guilty at times of taking for granted or not slowing down long enough to notice what our mothers do or have done. I hope and pray we are more aware and express our appreciation. You know what else we take for granted? Our rare solar system, especially our one-of-a-kind planet. LOL!
Psalm 33:4-9 4 For the word of the Lord holds true, and we can trust everything he does. 5 He loves whatever is just and good; the unfailing love of the Lord fills the earth. 6 The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. 7 He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs 8 Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. 9 For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command.
Psalm 33 begins with a call to praise God because of verses 4-5. Verses 6-9 develop and serve as an illustration that God’s Word and work are reliable. God’s supremacy or sovereignty and power over all things is expressed when it says, “He breathed the word, and all the stars were born,” or all-powerful. He created everything with his breath!
Our Solar System
To creationists, this rare planet we call home and the solar system we are suspended in is organized for life to exist, pointing to an intentional and intelligent designer, our Creator. Our system is extremely rare and, as of now, one-of-a-kind. In our solar system, we have the Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune (Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006. I learned this and grew up having to remember Pluto for tests).
Our orbit and rotation around the Sun
Our sun has been classified as a healthy and stable yellow dwarf star, larger and brighter than about 85% of the stars in our galaxy.
Earth rotates once every 23.9 hours and takes 365.25 days to orbit the Sun, which is why we add a leap day every four years. Earth’s axis is tilted at 23.4 degrees, creating the seasons as different parts of the planet receive more direct sunlight throughout the year. When the Northern Hemisphere tilts toward the Sun, it experiences summer while the Southern Hemisphere experiences winter. Six months later, the pattern reverses, and during spring and fall, both hemispheres receive nearly equal sunlight. -https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/
“Some stars have superflares that release enormous amounts of deadly radiation. Fortunately for us, the sun doesn’t. Solar flares are mild. The sun’s temperature and distance from Earth are ideal for life.” https://www.icr.org/content/solar-system-sun
The sun is literally holding our solar system together. The Earth does not fall “up” or “down” in space the way objects fall on Earth because everything in the universe moves toward the strongest source of gravity nearby. The Sun’s enormous mass constantly pulls the Earth inward by gravity. At the same time, the Earth is orbiting around the Sun at about 67,000 miles per hour while rotating on its axis at roughly 1,040 miles per hour at the equator. If Earth’s orbital speed were significantly slower, it would spiral closer to the Sun, and we would be incinerated. If it were significantly faster, it could drift farther away into space. Instead, God created a universe governed by precise laws that allow Earth to remain in a stable orbit, appearing suspended “on nothing,” just as Job 26:7 declares: Job 26:7 God stretches the northern sky over empty space and hangs the earth on nothing.
Jupiter, the shield.
What’s unique about Jupiter is its placement in our system. In other exoplanet systems, the gas giants are typically close to the stars. In our solar system, Jupiter acts as a vacuum and shield protecting us from dangerous comets. Apparently, the moon has taken quite a few for the team, too.
Earth
Compared to other planets in our solar system, Earth was uniquely created for Life.
We live in the habitable zone or (Image “Goldilocks” zone). Planets closer to the sun would be too hot, and planets further away are too cold. Earth was created in an ideal location https://www.icr.org/earths-location
Earth’s atmosphere is 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and 1% other gases such as argon, carbon dioxide, and neon. It's the perfect balance for us to breathe and live. Some have wondered why we don’t have more oxygen to help us breathe, but oxygen is an oxidizer; it fuels fire! So if we had more oxygen in the atmosphere, and someone started a campfire or lit a match, it would increase the burn rate or burn speed or become extremely flammable.
The Earth’s core was created to protect life. Earth has a strong magnetic field, which protects us from harmful radiation from the sun called the Magnetosphere. As our planet rapidly rotates (thanks to the moon’s help here), our molten nickel-iron core gives rise to electric currents, a process called GeoDynamo, which forms the magnetosphere that protects us. We see signs of it in our night sky from time to time. When charged particles from the solar wind become trapped in Earth's magnetic field, they collide with air molecules above our planet's magnetic poles. These air molecules then begin to glow and cause aurorae Borealis (Pexel Video: Aurorae Borealis) or the northern and southern lights. https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/
Oh, by the way, thank God he created Earth with shifting tectonic plates and volcanoes that help act as a cooling system or vents so we don’t overheat from the inside out. Did I mention that scientists believe we are the only planet designed with these shifting plates (that we know of so far)? https://www.icr.org/earths-core.
The Moon is one of the many reasons Earth is such a great home.
Our moon helps stabilize Earth’s axil tilt at currently 23.4°. We currently have a slight wobble in our spin, and without the moon, it would become unstable (Think of a Top Spinner slowing down). If we had no tilt, days and seasons would be different. If we had extreme tilt, the poles would become very hot, and the equator would be freezing. Because of our current tilt, we don’t experience severe climate instability or repeated extreme climate shifts. -Institute of Physics (iop.org) The moon serves as a thermostat for our planet, keeping climates across our planet regulated for life.
The moon has an important effect on tides. Tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun. The Moon is the dominant force (Sun is less than half as strong). Without the Moon, tides would still exist (due to the Sun), but would be much weaker. Many species rely on moonlight and tidal cycles for feeding, reproduction, and life cycles. Some species could face extinction due to disrupted life cycles. Coastal ecosystems would become less productive and more unstable, impacting the fishing industry. -Institute of Physics (iop.org)
The word Earth comes from Old English and German words that mean ground.
Ironically, Earth’s surface is 71% water. 97% of the water is in the ocean, and only 3% is freshwater found in groundwater, lakes, and glaciers. A better name may have been Ocean! There’s a perfect explanation for why our planet is covered in water… It was made for life. Where there is water, there is life.
60% of the average human body is made up of water. This varies depending on the age and body composition. Without water, we dehydrate and die. But thank God he provided a planet that is full of what we need to survive. In fact, Water is the most abundant chemical compound on Earth.
Remember the position of the Earth in the habitable zone? Because of our location, we have water in three states: solid, liquid, and gas. If we were too close to the Sun, all the water on the planet would evaporate. If we were too far from the sun, all the water would freeze. Thankfully, we are at the perfect distance. With a tilted orbit and rotation around the sun, we have a regulated atmosphere for water to thrive in every state.
As I mentioned before, 97% of our water is ocean water and not drinkable. If only 3% of water is fresh, we should quickly run out of water for humans on earth, not including animals, but God created a natural water displacement system. Do you remember learning about the water cycle in elementary school? It turns out, it is more important than we think.
Water Cycle (Hydrologic Cycle)
Water evaporates from the surface of the ocean, lakes, or ponds, and condenses in the atmosphere, forming clouds. Water from the clouds eventually rains and snows onto the ground, where the water collects into lakes and rivers as well as seeps into the groundwater. All of that water eventually runs back into the oceans, and the cycle continues. -https://www.icr.org/water-cycle
When water evaporates and rises from the oceans, the dense salt, impurities, and minerals are too heavy to turn into gas, so they remain in the ocean, nature's distillation. After forming into clouds and becoming too dense, it rains on land, providing fresh water.
Did you know the Bible actually mentions the Water Cycle?
Ecc. 1:7 All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full. To the place from which the rivers come, there they return again.
How can all this water flow into the ocean, but the waters don’t rise? Because it evaporates.
Job 36:26-28 Look, God is greater than we can understand. His years cannot be counted. He draws up the water vapor and then distills it into rain. The rain pours down from the clouds, and everyone benefits.
Job 26:8 He wraps the rain in his thick clouds, and the clouds don’t burst with the weight.
Psalm 135:7 He causes the clouds to rise over the whole earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.
Amos 5:8 It is the Lord who created the stars, the Pleiades and Orion. He turns darkness into morning and day into night. He draws up water from the oceans and pours it down as rain on the land. The Lord is his name!
Probability for Life on Earth
Probability Estimate for Attaining the Necessary Characteristics for Life (322 Parameters): Less than 1 chance in 10^282(million trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion trillion) exists that even one such life-support body would occur anywhere in the universe without invoking divine miracles. Virtually Impossible. https://reasons.org/explore/publications/articles/probability-for-life-on-earth
“No one can explain, by a natural process, how these fine-tuned physical constants could exist and know ahead of time, the precise settings that would be necessary to allow our universe to exist, and permit humans to live on earth today. The universe as we know it cannot be explained by natural forces. The finely-tuned universe, as empirical proof for the existence of God, has no formal logical defects. The only current explanation for the existence of the universe, which can be tested and verified, is the finely-tuned and designed evidence of the universe. Our universe contains the precise physical constants that have the exact values that are required to allow for complex structures, such as galaxies, stars, planets, and people to exist. None of these values is possible under any circumstance, by any naturalistic process.” https://robertcliftonrobinson.com/2024/12/21/evidence-for-fine-tuning-of-the-universe-209-physical-constants-that-make-life-on-earth-possible/
Isaiah 45:18 For the Lord is God, and he created the heavens and earth and put everything in place. He made the world to be lived in, not to be a place of empty chaos. “I am the Lord,” he says, “and there is no other.
Closing Takeaways:
God put the universe together; He knows how to put us back together.
Jesus holds the heavens and earth together; He can hold you together.
God has provided a planet for life; God knows how to supply all we need.
The water cycle offers a beautiful picture of the creation story and the story of our redemption. Just as water rises from the ocean and eventually returns to it, all creation comes from God and is being drawn back to Him. Theologians describe this movement as exitus, going forth from God, and reditus, returning to God. In the opening verses of Genesis, the Spirit of God hovers over the waters (Gen. 1:2). Humanity is placed in Eden, a garden nourished by flowing rivers (Gen. 2:10–14), an expression of His provision for His people. Water is essential for physical life, but water is a sign of spiritual life and of the Holy Spirit Himself. Yet when Adam and Eve turned from God in disobedience, humanity became separated from “the fountain of living waters” (Jer. 2:13). Instead of receiving life from God, we tried to satisfy our thirst with “broken cisterns” (ourselves or other people) that could hold no water. Sin left the human soul spiritually dry. Mankind, once made from the dust of the earth, manifested by God’s breath, began returning to dust (Gen. 3:19). But God did not abandon humanity in this drought. In His mercy, He opened the way for us to return to Him, for redemption through the living well, Jesus Christ. Even the coming of Christ is described through the imagery of the water cycle. Isaiah writes, Isaiah 55:10-11 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. 11 It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.” Jesus, the eternal Word of God, came forth from the Father like life-giving rain upon a dry and sinful world. Through Him, humanity is renewed and made alive again by the Holy Spirit. Having accomplished the work of redemption, Christ returned to the Father, completing the divine movement of salvation. Now, through Christ, we are invited into this great cycle of redemption. Jesus entered the waters of baptism, revealing the path by which humanity returns to the ocean of God’s mercy and love. We are first brought into the water cycle of redemption through faith in Christ’s sacrifice, the blood and water that flowed from our Lord’s pierced side (John 19:34). We are baptized in water to proclaim we have been redeemed. The life of Jesus flows in us through the Holy Spirit. And we now stand as a light house in the dark seas of life to point to the holy, eternal, living water, Jesus Christ (John 4:10-14), who promises that whoever trusts in Him will never thirst again (John 4:10–14).
Our greatest need is spiritual thirst, so God has given us His living water, Jesus Christ.
A Prayer for Salvation
Jesus, I know that I am a sinner in need of Your grace.
Today I confess You as my Lord and put my trust in You alone.
I believe that You died on the cross for my sins and rose again.
Thank you for forgiving me and making me new.
Lead me as I follow You from this day forward.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Discussion
What stood out to you most from the sermon, and why?
What does Psalm 33:4-9 teach us about God’s power and authority?
Pastor Ryan shared just a few ways in which our solar system and planet have been finely tuned for life. What part stuck out to you, and what else would you add to the long list?
What takeaway stuck out to you and why?
Pastor Ryan connects the water cycle to redemption: going out from God and returning to Him. How have you seen God do that in your life?
What additional notes did you make during the sermon?
How can we pray together for you today?
The most important decision you will ever make!
If you’re ready to trust in Jesus for salvation and eternal life, we encourage you to process this decision with a strong believer and, when you’re ready, say a simple prayer like this from your heart: Dear God, I acknowledge and admit I have sinned. I see my need for Jesus Christ. I believe in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I believe I am forgiven and cleansed of my sin by His death. I also believe I have eternal life because of His resurrection from the dead. I repent, I turn away from my old ways, and I choose to live my life to worship you and follow Jesus, Amen!
We would love to know if you decided to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Let us know here.
Pray Together
We hope you found this AFTER THE SERMON discussion helpful for your walk with Jesus. We pray you can find ways to apply it this week!