CHAPTER ONE

THE MYSTERY OF THE UNIVERSE

Scripture Reading: Rom. 1:19-20; Psa. 19:1; Acts 14:15-17; 17:24-28a; Job 26:7; Isa. 40:22; Gen. 1:27; 2:7a; Rom. 9:21-24a; Zech. 12:1

1. The mystery of the universe is God:
   1. “Because that which is known of God is manifest within them, for God manifested it to them. For the invisible things of Him, both His eternal power and divine characteristics, have been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being perceived by the things made, so that they would be without excuse”—Rom. 1:19-20.
   2. “The heavens declare the glory of God, / And the firmament proclaims the work of His hands”—Psa. 19:1.
   3. “The living God, who made heaven and earth and the sea and all things in them; who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to go their ways. And yet He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good by giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness”—Acts 14:15-17.
   4. “The God who made the world and all things in it...gives to all life and breath and all things. And He made from one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, determining beforehand their appointed seasons and the boundaries of their dwelling, that they might seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, even though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and are”—17:24-28a.
   5. “He stretches out the north over the void; / He hangs the earth upon nothing”—Job 26:7.
   6. “It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,... / Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, / And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in”— Isa. 40:22.
   7. The above verses prove that:
      1. God exists.
      2. God is the origin of the universe, for the heavens, the earth, and all things therein were created by Him.
      3. God is the source of mankind, for mankind was created by Him.
      4. Human beings live, move, and exist in God.
      5. God causes the heavens to give forth rain and the earth to yield produce for man’s existence.
      6. The times and boundaries of all nations were determined beforehand by God.
2. God created man according to His image that man might be a vessel to contain Him:
   1. “And God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them”—Gen. 1:27.
   2. “Jehovah God formed man with the dust of the ground”—2:7a.
   3. “Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor?...God...might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He had before prepared unto glory, even us, whom He has also called”—Rom. 9:21-24a.
   4. “Jehovah, who stretches forth the heavens and lays the foundations of the earth and forms the spirit of man within him”—Zech. 12:1.
   5. The above verses reveal that:
      1. Man was created according to God’s image; God’s image is expressed in His four attributes, or characteristics: love, light, holiness, and righteousness.
      2. Man is a container created by God according to what He is; God wants to be man’s content, and He wants man to be His expression.
      3. Man’s virtues as the outward form of God’s attributes must have God in them as the reality for them to develop and shine forth.
      4. Man’s spirit is as important as the heavens and the earth; the heavens are for the earth, the earth is for man, and man is for God; God is Spirit, so God created man especially with a spirit as the organ to receive God.