God: Who Has Created And Is Creating

Meditations on Christ in the Psalms

October 3, 2022

God: Who Has Created And Is Creating

 

Those who live at the ends of the earth

    stand in awe of your wonders.

From where the sun rises to where it sets,

    you inspire shouts of joy.

Psalm 65:8

The prose of Psalm 65 inspired a world view summarized by a line in the United Church of Canada’s Affirmation of Faith: “We believe in God: who has created and is creating.” The psalmist is affirming his faith that God is the Creator of heaven and earth, and God is Master of His creation. The earth and its inhabitants were not created and then left to their own devices; God is actively engaged in the affairs of humankind, and all creation, to bring about God’s complete redemption of all He has created.

This world view calls the church to proactively work to establish God’s Kingdom on earth. For many generations the people of God embraced this call, as evidenced by the church taking responsibility for building the first hospitals, orphanages, schools, and colleges. In the USA, 106 of the first 108 colleges were founded by Christians. This list of colleges and universities includes Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, and the University of Pennsylvania.

John Muir is often called “The Father of Our National Park System” because of his efforts to establish Yosemite National Park, as well as the creation of Grand Canyon and Mt. Rainier National Parks. He was motivated by a passion to preserve these lands so that all people could visit these majestic areas and meditate upon the wonders of God’s great creation.

For many years, the church has been retreating from the public sector and making the Christian faith a matter of personal and private piety. However, this position denies our Biblical heritage.

My Takeaway: After reading Psalm 65, I am led to meditate on the Apostle Paul’s exquisite proclamation of the supremacy of Jesus Christ:

“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross” (Colossians 1:15-20). 

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2022 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.