In the Beginning . . .

Posted On April 26, 2020

“First this: God created the Heavens and Earth — all you see, all you don’t see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.

God spoke: ‘Light!’ And light appeared.”

Genesis 1:1-3 MSG

The Big Bang

According to space.com: “The Big Bang Theory is the leading explanation about how the universe began. At its simplest, it says the universe as we know it started with a small singularity, then inflated over the next 13.8 billion years to the cosmos that we know today.” To figure this out, scientists observed that the universe is expanding and then mathematically worked backwards to a point when all the mass of the universe was contained in an infinitely small dot. This dot is called the “singularity.” This singularity exploded, and all of space and time began.

I’ve always been fascinated by space, and I’m amazed at everything scientists have been able to learn about the universe by just observing the cosmos and then doing the math. Max Tegmark states in his book Our Mathematical Universe: “This entire history of our Universe is accurately described by simple physical laws that let us predict the future from the past, and the past from the future.” He goes on to say that since these physical laws are written as mathematical equations, the most accurate way to describe the cosmos is in the language of mathematics. From there he talks about four levels of multiverses and explains that reality itself is a mathematical structure. Honestly, a lot of this stuff makes my head spin! I am not a physicist and I don’t claim to understand all the science, but I’m still captivated by it. Theories are constantly changing and being revised, so some of the scientific information in this post may be a little outdated. For example, Dr. Tegmark talks about what’s wrong with the classic Big Bang model and explains how inflation theory solves these problems. But my purpose in writing this is not to focus on the scientific theories themselves, but to inspire awe for the One who created it all.

As smart as the scientists are, there is a lot they still can’t explain. In his book Genesis and the Big Bang, Gerald L. Schroeder, points out that science does not tell us what happened between “total nothingness and the start of our universe.” The singularity is a point with infinitely high density and infinitely small dimensions; this cannot be handled mathematically unless we change to “imaginary dimensions of time.” But we live in real time. So just doing mathematical gymnastics to make the equations work doesn’t really tell us what caused our universe to begin. Science also cannot really explain the origins of life. Douglas Jacoby explains in Genesis, Science & History that the chance of the Big Bang spontaneously creating order and leading to life is basically zero. So what caused the universe to begin? Dr. Jacoby uses the following argument:

“. . . our universe either has a beginning or it does not; the evidence proves it does. This beginning was either caused or uncaused; the evidence suggests it is caused. Finally, the cause is either personal or impersonal. But how can an impersonal beginning account for the presence of personality in the cosmos? The personal, caused beginning can only be God.”

Douglas Jacoby, Genesis, Science & History

Science and the Bible

In order to fully understand the universe and our place in it, we need both science and theology. According to Dr. Schroeder, religion seeks truth through revealed knowledge while science seeks it through observations of the physical world. Science explains the how while religion reveals the why. Both systems of thought require extensive study and interpretation for accurate understanding. Dr. Jacoby reminds us that the Bible is accurate, but it is not written in the language of science. It is written in simple language to be understandable for all people. The Scriptures describe things as they appear, not necessarily as they actually are, scientifically speaking. But science and theology, when interpreted accurately, do not conflict.

“An understanding of both physics and biblical tradition shows that the opening chapters of the book of Genesis and the findings of modern cosmology corroborate rather than dispute each other.

. . . The biblical narrative and the scientific account of our genesis are two mutually compatible descriptions of the same, single, and identical reality.”

Gerald L. Schroeder, Genesis and the Big Bang

Several years ago, I wrote a short piece called “Sy and Chris” to accompany an object lesson which uses a folded paper (origami) cube. My father and I included it as part of a church Bible study where we were talking about science and the Bible. Since it is relevant to this discussion, I have included my story below. It examines science and Christianity from God’s point of view.

A Picture of the Infant Universe

In 2001 the WMAP (Wilkinson microwave anisotropy probe) was launched and gave the scientific community some amazing data. Because light travels at finite speed, looking into the night sky is like looking into the past. The better the instrument, the further back you can look. The WMAP satellite has been able to see all the way back to 380,000 years after the creation of the universe. By measuring the cosmic radiation left over from the Big Bang, the WMAP has given scientists a picture of the early universe. Dr. Michio Kaku in his book Parallel Worlds describes the significance of this discovery:

“The colossal energy left over from the original fireball that gave birth to stars and galaxies has been circulating around our universe for billions of years. Today, it has finally been captured on film in exquisite detail by the WMAP satellite, yielding a map never seen before, a photo of the sky showing with breathtaking detail the microwave radiation created by the big bang itself, what has been called the ‘echo of creation’ by Time magazine.”

Michio Kaku, Parallel Worlds

Dr. Kaku explains that data from the WMAP gave scientists some very surprising information: most of the universe (73%) is made up of an unknown form of energy. Called dark energy, it seems to be the force driving the galaxies apart. Scientists don’t understand it and they don’t know where this “energy of nothing” comes from. Dr. Kaku quotes an astronomer named Craig Hogan at the University of Washington at Seattle who admits that “everybody’s clueless about it.” To me, this is just another example of how science alone will not give us all the answers we seek.

String Theory

Beyond just trying to figure out the origins of the universe, scientists are working toward a “theory of everything,” which Dr. Kaku defines as a theory of every physical force driving the universe. String theory is an attempt to do this. It is based on the idea that subatomic particles are actually tiny vibrating strings. The type of subatomic particle is determined by the frequency at which the string vibrates. Dr. Kaku says, “In this way, we can explain the blizzard of subatomic particles as nothing but different musical notes of the string.” He describes chemistry as the melodies played on the strings, physics as the laws of harmony, and the “Mind of God” (borrowing Albert Einstein’s phrase) as the music resonating through hyperspace.

“The universe is a symphony of strings.”

Michio Kaku, Parallel Worlds

The book of Genesis is where it all begins. This is where we first meet God Himself, the Creator of everything, the Great Scientist, the Master Artist, the Maestro of the symphony of the universe. He speaks, and the universe is born. Or, as in C. S. Lewis’s beautiful description of the creation of Narnia, maybe He sings!

“In the darkness something was happening at last. A voice had begun to sing. . . . It was so beautiful he could hardly bear it. . . .Then two wonders happened at the same moment. One was that the voice was suddenly joined by the other voices; more voices than you could possibly count. They were in harmony with it, but far higher up the scale: cold, tingling, silvery voices. The second wonder was that the blackness overhead, all at once, was blazing with stars.”

C. S. Lewis, The Chronicles of Narnia

The Creator

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

Romans 1:20 NIV

To me, creation itself is enough to justify belief in the Creator. I love science and mathematics, but I don’t need them to prove God exists. I believe God has given us everything we need to know in His creation and in His Word. As Dr. Douglas Jacoby observes, the natural laws and design features of the universe are so complex and orderly that there is no way they can be explained by random chance. He also points out that during the Enlightenment, scientists made their faith in God the foundation for all their investigations. It’s only more recently that science and religion seem to have become at odds with one another. But this doesn’t have to be the case. As we have touched on in this discussion, and as I hope to expand on in future posts, science and religion actually agree with each other. For me, learning some of the details of God’s gifts only makes me appreciate them more.

“To study creation is to study the Creator. Science should be worshipful discovery because the heavens and all creation declare God’s glory (see Psalm 19:1). God reveals His creative genius in flowers, waterfalls, animals, and planets. God’s character is written large in nature in His organization, skill, precision, and attention to detail. He’s the Master Artist.”

Randy Alcorn, Seeing the Unseen

I feel most fulfilled when I take time to nourish my body, mind, and soul. Going for a walk reduces my stress. Prayer brings me peace. Studying the wonders of the universe together with the wisdom of the Scriptures gives me a profound sense of awe for our Creator. This week’s Scripture reading and Scripture writing passages focus on the majesty of creation. I have included a printer-friendly pdf version below the image. I hope they help you in your personal journey!

“We will find that the synthesis of scientific discoveries and biblical tradition reveals a universe that has evolved from a state that is composed of many parts and yet functions in harmony and order. It is a unity that we might well emulate in our personal journey through the space-time continuum of our lives.”

Gerald L. Schroeder, Genesis and the Big Bang

References:

• Alcorn, Randy. Seeing the Unseen, Expanded Edition: A 90-Day Devotional to Set Your Mind on Eternity. Multnomah, 2017
• Jacoby, Douglas. Genesis, Science & History: A Faith-Building Look at the Opening Chapters of Genesis. Discipleship Publications International, 2004.
• Kaku, Michio. Parallel Worlds: A Journey Through Creation, Higher Dimensions, and the Future of the Cosmos. Anchor Books, 2005.
• Lewis, C. S. “The Magician’s Nephew.” The Chronicles of Narnia, Harper Entertainment, 2005, pp. 7-106.
• Schroeder, Gerald L. Genesis and the Big Bang: The Discovery of Harmony Between Modern Science and the Bible. Bantam Books, 1990.
• Tegmark, Max. Our Mathematical Universe: My Quest for the Ultimate Nature of Reality. Vintage Books, A Division of Random House LLC, 2014.

Images:

• Astronomy Explosion featured image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
• WMAP image from NASA: www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/wmap-complete.html