It was Albert Einstein, one of the greatest thinkers of our time, wrestling with quantum mechanics and searching for a Theory of Everything, who said: ” I want to know God’s thoughts, the rest are details”. His search was for the ultimate set of fundamental physical laws, the holy grail of physics, a single unified field theory that coherently explains all the known forces of the universes. Having revolutionized the scientific world and the classical view of the universe forever – Einstein must have had an insight into the inner workings and complexities of the physical laws that must have have blown his mind away.
It was during my normal afternoon jog around my complex that the shear diversity of life filled me with a sense of wonder and awe. Perhaps it was the breath-taking view of the landscape; the unending swooshing and crashing of waves in the ocean in the background; a little furry rabbit scurrying along my path; tough muscular trees with luscious leaves; shrubbery of different sizes and varying shades of greens. As I sat down to catch my breath, probably more from the beauty of nature, I could not help but be blown away by the creativity of God.
I thought to myself how did God come up with this? How did this idea to create a wildlife so diverse come to him, how did the thought of creating a universe governed by theses physical laws occur to him? My ideas are seldom original, they can normally be traced back to a book I read, or speaker or quote or idea that I came across at some point in my life. However God did not have that luxury. Does God have ideas pop into his mind like me? I do not see how can that be if He is omniscient. He knows every possible thing already. Not only is He omniscient but all powerful -able to create the entire universe from nothing. We just cannot think outside this 4-dimensional framework of the universe, we cannot imagine how matter and energy can be created from non-matter and non-energy. Looking at God’s creation I understood what Isaac Newton meant when he said:
“The most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being…This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all; and on account of his dominion he is wont to be called Lord God, or Universal Ruler…The Supreme God is a Being eternal, infinite, absolutely perfect; but a being, however perfect, without dominion, cannot be said to be Lord God; for we say, my God, your God, the God of Israel, the God of Gods, and Lord of Lords…”
My thoughts started drifting from creation to Creator. The perfect being – uncaused, timeless, changeless. Is that not one of the most mind boggling concepts to wrestle with. How did God who exists outside of time first of all, even think of creating a universe that is governed by time! How does one even exist outside time? What about one the of the most unique and majestic properties of God that my mind just implodes when trying to grasp – His aseity! God is the only being who is uncaused and necessary – it is logically impossible and incoherent for God not to exist. If you can imagine a possible world that does not have God exists as a truth – then what you are imaging is incoherent and logically contradictory. Similar to imagining a married batchelor! It is no wonder Charles Spurgeon said :
” The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father. There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity. It is a subject so vast, that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity; so deep, that our pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with; in them we feel a kind of self-content, and go our way with the thought, “Behold I am wise.” But when we come to this master-science, finding that our plumb-line cannot sound its depth, and that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the thought, that vain man would be wise, but he is like a wild ass’s colt; and with the solemn exclamation, “I am but of yesterday, and know nothing.” No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God.”
What is even more amazing and humbling is that the same God – this supreme being -is extremely interested in a personal relationship with us. When you see God as He is, you cannot help but want to dedicate your life to wanting to know His thoughts – the rest really are details.
boammaaruri 