The heavens are telling the glory of God

“And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. ¹⁷ And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, ¹⁸ to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1.16-18

The wise men followed the star to Bethlehem in order to worship Jesus (Matthew 2.2). When the true light of the world, Jesus, (John 1.1-13) hung on the cross, the sun’s light was eclipsed (Luke 23.44-45)   The psalmist confesses “The heavens declare the glory of God,
    and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” Psalm 19.1

The rise and ebb of the tide, the fish I like to catch, the birds that fly and roost, the wild game we like to hunt, these are all affected by the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun upon planet earth.

And more often than I would guess, these two lights - the sun and the moon- line up with the earth in such a way that the moon is right in the middle. When that happens, if you are in the right spot on earth’s surface, the moon’s position leaves the spot where you are temporarily out of the sun’s direct light. Thus an “eclipse” of the sun, or a solar eclipse.

“Partial, solar eclipses are common, but a total eclipse is very rare for a given location on the Earth. A total solar eclipse occurs somewhere on earth about three times each decade. A particular city might expect to witness a total solar eclipse only about once every 360 years!” (DeYoung and Whitcomb, Our Created Moon, Master Books, 2003, p.32)

It is our turn in the Texas Hill country today, April 8. As a parent, grandparent, and friends, this gives me an opportunity with my children, grandchildren, and friends. Isn’t it amazing how God created and ordered the moon, the stars, the planet, on which we live, and life itself!  “The heavens are indeed telling the glory of God.”

Oh, and wear your eclipse glasses😊.

Let’s pray: Gracious and almighty Father, thank you for creating the sun, the moon, the earth, the entire universe. Thank you for the solar eclipse we get to live under. But these only point to the true light of the world, your Son, Christ Jesus; thank you that he swallows up the darkness of my sin, death, and the devil. These adversaries cannot eclipse him. Use even my mouth to hand over forgiveness, life and salvation in his name to my family and neighbors. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.