Introduction: These days we have designer clothes, designer
homes and designer cars. Some make a big point of having
the name of the designer emblazoned on their clothes. Are
man and the creation “designer label” or an accident? Is the
name of our Master Designer emblazoned on His work? Let’s
dig in and explore that concept together!
- DESIGN OR ACCIDENT
- Imagine that you have just bought a new car.
Would you grill the salesman “Are you sure this
came off the production line and was not the
result of an explosion or other accident in the
parts room?” - I have purchased some new cars that came with
defects, but I have never purchased a car
where I thought the whole thing came together
by chance! - How complex are you compared to your car?
- What kind of logic would conclude that you
came together by chance, but your car did not? - What does the Bible claim for us: design or
chance? (Read Genesis 1:26) - What do you think it means to be created in
the image and likeness of God? - Didn’t Moses just describe God as a
spirit ( Genesis 1:2)? How are you like a
spirit? - What do you think God intended to reveal
to us when He said we are in His image
and His likeness? Why repeat two words
that seem so similar? (Barnes’ commentary
on this text says that “image” refers to
outward appearance, even if the material
is different. “Likeness” refers to a
resemblance of any qualify – here a
spiritual conformity to God.) - What do you think about Barnes’
suggestion? - Do you ever say that you want to become
“more like Jesus?” What do you mean by
that? - Read Colossians 3:9-10 and Ephesians
4:22-24. What does it mean to be like
God in these texts? (Colossians tells us
that the “image” of the Creator refers to
knowledge. Ephesians says that being like
God is a matter of a righteous and holy
attitude.) - Do these texts suggest God had a design
for our physical and mental being? - If you believed that you were created by
accident, what impact would that have
your belief that God has a spiritual plan
for your life? - Could the two be reconciled? God
created your mind and your body came
together by accident? - Do you prefer designer label clothing over generic
clothing? Do you prefer name-brand products over
generic products? - Why is that?
- When people have the opportunity to claim that
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords was their
designer, why would they prefer to claim they
were accidents of nature? - Could you imagine a hill of sand evolving? Could
you imagine a working light bulb evolving? - Why do you say “yes” to one and “no” to the
other? (Our lesson (Tuesday) has a wonderful
point it derives from a Harvard Divinity
School article written by John T. Baldwin. It
says, “[t]he human body is composed of
infinitely much more complex and
interdependent systems such as the blood-clotting system, immune system,[and]
circulatory system. This indicates the
biological impossibility of forming these
systems by countless, small, slow accumulative
steps …. Nonfunctioning intermediate steps
would have no selective value, and so would
not be preserved by natural selection.” You
could slowly accumulate a pile of sand. But
for a light bulb to work, it would all have to
work at once.) - THE LABEL IN THE SKY
- Read Psalms 19:1-6. What does the Psalmist claim
about God’s designer label and the skies? (He says
they proclaim the “work of His hands.” His label
is written in the skies.) - How does the sky do that?
- What is the speech (v.2) that they pour forth?
- How do they (v.2) display knowledge?
- Do you have to know English to be able to read
God’s designer label in the sky? (Verse 3
tells us that God’s label is written in a
universal language.) - Verse 5 compares the sun to a bridegroom or a
champion. What about the sun is like a
bridegroom or a champion? (A bridegroom is
generally young, strong and at the peak of his
life. He has plans and ambitions. He works
hard to accomplish those plans. Likewise, the
sun charges out of the dark in the East and
runs its powerful path to the West.) - Can you imagine an irregular, unguided or
unreliable sun? (“Sorry, no light today,
the sun was tired and forgot to rise.”
“Global warming picked up new converts
today after the moon ran into the earth
causing the earth to enter an erratic
orbit bringing Florida much closer to the
sun. Temperatures approached 400 degrees
in the shade.” This is all laughable
because we are used to absolute order and
precision in the orbit of the earth
around the sun.) - Read Psalms 19:7-9. Why do you think these verses
follow those describing how the heavens declare
God’s glory? Does this make any logical sense to
you?(The Psalmist is telling us that if God could
order the heavens, He certainly knows how to
direct our lives. Whenever I am tempted to
believe that God is not real I always go back to
the creation to shore up my belief in a Master
Designer.) - THE LABEL UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
- Read 1 Corinthians 12:18. What do you think about
the way God made our bodies? - Can you think of a way to improve the design?
- When you buy a car there are all of these
aftermarket accessories you can buy to improve
your purchase. - Do we have any of those for healthy
bodies? (Running shoes?) - If man cannot think of any substantial
improvement for the human body, how could
you reasonably conclude the body came
together by accident as opposed to
design? - Read Psalms 139:13-16. Did God create a system by
which we are made? Or does David suggest that
God’s hand was still personally “on the throttle”
in your creation? (David not only states God is
the Creator, but David reveals that God has the
same personal touch that He used for Adam and
Eve!) - How does that make you feel? Very Special?
- What does that say about interrupting God’s
creation? (It would seem a lot like stomping
on the flowers as God created them during
Creation week. It is not something I would do
in light of who He is and who I am.) - Friend, if you enjoy the status of wearing
designer label clothing, consider how much better
you would feel knowing that the Creator of the
Universe, the Master Designer, not only created
mankind, He took a personal interest in creating
you! Are you as anxious to reveal your
relationship with you Maker as you are to reveal
the label on your clothing? - NEXT WEEK: GOD’S POWER IN NATURE
