Devotionals
THE NATURAL WORLD SPEAKS OF THE CREATOR
Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and all that move in them, for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it.” Psalm 69:34, 35
MOMENTS OF PRAYER
☐ Pray for the items listed in your Prayer Journal
☐ Pray for the five individuals/families you chose
☐ Pray for Adventist Personal Ministries in Canada
☐ Pray to receive spiritual insight
The same creative energy that brought the world into existence is still exerted in upholding the universe and continuing the operations of nature. The hand of God guides the planets in their orderly march through the heavens. It is not because of inherent power that year by year the earth continues its motion round the sun, and produces its bounties. The word of God controls the elements. He covers the heavens with clouds, and prepares rain for the earth. He makes the valleys fruitful, and “grass to grow upon the mountains.” It is through His power that vegetation flourishes; that the leaves appear and the flowers bloom.
The whole natural world is designed to be an interpreter of the things of God. To Adam and Eve in their Eden home, nature was full of the knowledge of God, teeming with divine instruction. It was vocal with the voice of wisdom to their attentive ears. Wisdom spoke to the eye, and was received into the heart; for they communed with God in His created works. As soon as the holy pair transgressed the law of the Most High, the brightness from the face of God departed from the face of nature. Nature is now marred and defiled by sin. But God’s object lessons are not obliterated; even now, rightly studied and interpreted, [nature] speaks of the Creator.
As divine truth is revealed in Holy Writ, so it is reflected, as from a mirror, in the face of nature; and through His creation we become acquainted with the Creator. And so the book of nature becomes a great lesson book, which instructors who are wise can use, in connection with the Scriptures, to guide lost sheep back to the fold of God. As the works of God are studied, the Holy Spirit flashes conviction into the mind. It is not the conviction which logical reasoning produces; but unless the mind has become too dark to know God, the eye too dim to see Him, the ear too dull to hear His voice, a deeper meaning is grasped, and the sublime, spiritual truths of the written Word are impressed on the heart.
The most effective way to teach the heathen who know not God is through His works. In this way, far more readily than by any other method, they can be made to realize the difference between their idols, the works of their own hands, and the true God, the Maker of heaven and earth.
Ellen Gold White, To Be Like Jesus, pg. 249 – August 23
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Let us learn hence, (1.) That atheism is folly, and atheists are the greatest fools in nature; for they see there is a world that could not make itself, and yet they will not own there is a God that made it. Doubtless, they are without excuse, but the god of this world has blinded their minds. (2.) That God is sovereign Lord of all by an incontestable right. If he is the Creator, no doubt he is the owner and possessor of heaven and earth. (3.) That with God all things are possible, and therefore happy are the people that have him for their God, and whose help and hope stand in his name, Psa 121:2.” Matthew Henry, minister and author
DID YOU KNOW?
One example of the scientific evidence for creation is the sudden appearance of complex fossilized life in the fossil record, and the systematic gaps between fossilized kinds in that record. The most rational inference from this evidence seemingly is that life was created and did not evolve.
GOING DEEPER
God is the omnipotent Creator, whom human beings need to recognize and revere, and with whom they need fellowship in order to have fullness of life. This message comes through clearly in Genesis 1 and 2, as well as in the Sabbath commandment of the Decalogue and in various other Sabbath passages. The Creator provided the Sabbath as a blessing to human beings, who need the special fellowship with their Creator that the Sabbath memorializes and fosters.
Dederen, R. (2001). Handbook of Seventh-Day Adventist Theology (electronic ed., Vol. 12, p. 509). Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing Association.
QUESTION…
What is the source for absolute divine authority? Psalm 119:89
IN LETTERS OF GOLD
“If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.” John 15:7, 8
THIS WEEK’S HOMEWORK
- Memorize: “or you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” 1 Peter 1:23
- Pray that the five individuals/families you chose, will attend the special outreach concert.
