By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. – Hebrews 11:3

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 26, 2015): Hebrew 11

The Big Bang Theory may never have happened. At least that is what some scientists seem to want us to believe. Although that often reported conclusion isn’t quite right either. The Big Bang Theory says that there was once nothing, or maybe a cosmic filament that at one point exploded into everything. All of what exists came into being in less time than it takes you to snap your fingers. This explosion, postulated to have happened somewhere in the area of 13.5 billion years ago and appropriately called “The Big Bang,” started the current expansion of the universe. And, according to the theory, at some point in the future the expansion will stop and the contraction will begin until everything that is returns to the state of a cosmic filament. And then it will happen again. And apparently this expansion and contraction will happen over and over, time and again without end. (And I am not sure why we think that this is the first time that the cycle of boom and contraction has happened –except maybe that it is our ego.)

But the new theory tends to refute this eternal expansion and contraction of the old theory. According to this theory, the universe has no beginning. It has always existed, although for the vast majority of time it has existed in somewhat of a more condensed form, although most likely less dense than the cosmic filament of the Big Bang Theory. And then, about 13.5 billion years ago, for no reason that anyone has been able to understand, the universe began to expand. And it shows no indication that it is slowing down. Unfortunately, both theories have the same weakness. Neither theory can explain why the bang or the expansion of our universe started in the first place – 13.5 million years ago.

For Christians, the easy way out is to argue for some kind of God moment. The Big Bang Theory has fallen out of favor with some scientists precisely because the theory seems to beg the question with regard to some kind of prime mover (or a God like) event. But the new theory begs the same question. Regardless of the theory, something seems to have happened 13.5 billion years ago which has drastically changed the universe in which we live.

Hebrews simply states that “by faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command.” Those two words – faith and understand – hardly seem like they should be used together. Yet they reveal a truth. We do not have the explanation for how the universe was created. Our theories cannot fully explain exactly what happened. Even the great creation passages often seem to produce more questions than answers. But we need to be okay with that.

I don’t know how the universe found its beginning. My suspicion is that maybe our scientists are not that far off. But I do know this. I can agree with Hebrews and say that whatever happened – and whenever it happened – it happened at the command, at the very word, of God. This I accept, by faith.   

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Hebrews 12