External Evidences

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night" (Genesis 1:3-4).

The world that God was creating for man, his special creature, needed to have some very unique features. We see described in this passage one of the most important and yet one of the most unusual parts of the creation. That being the creation of light.

When we start to think about light, we have to first ask what it is? If you go to the dictionary, it will be defined something like this, "natural agent by which things are visible," or "the electromagnetic wavelengths capable of producing the sensation of vision." So what this says is that it is what we use to see with. But what does that tell us? That leaves many questions unanswered, such as "Where does light come from? What is light? What is the origin of light?" Have you ever thought about light? Scientists have spent much time trying to figure what it is and how it works, and they still are working only with theories. Well let's take a look at a little of what we do know about light.

Light is part of a larger group of wavelengths of energy called the "electromagnetic spectrum." It is the part that we call the "visible spectrum." The other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum include such notables as, X-rays, radar waves, gamma rays, ultraviolet radiation, infrared radiation, radio waves, TV waves, microwaves and electricity. Our eyes are capable of being stimulated only by the wavelengths of this "visible spectrum" of the electromagnetic spectrum to produce what is called sight. Light travels at the incredible rate of 186,283 miles per second. It travels in individual units called photons. Light can be produced by any number of widely varied sources such as the sun, fire, chemicals, biochemical methods, when living things make light or bioluminescence. This is done by the firefly that we chased and caught as children, the angler fish living in the dark depths of the ocean, and even the microscopic dinoflagellates in the sea can do it. Each of there organisms can make and combine the proper chemical substances to produce light without producing heat which is normally associated with light. How each of these animals got the ability to do this is not understood by the scientists of today.

Does the world need light? Certainly it does! Plants must have light to produce the chemical energy that all animals need to survive in the process called photosynthesis. Light can be an indicator of temperature to serve as a warning as in "red hot." Light can provide a communication method as it does for the firefly, and warmth as it does for the turtle basking in the sun. It serves as a marker of the passing time. Certainly light is a vital part of the design that God has put into the world.

As we hurry about our busy lives, we often take for granted the little things in the creation around us and one of those things we take for granted is light. Indeed earth would be a very different place if there were no light -- only darkness. Let us be thankful to God for his creation of this marvelous thing called light. As the psalmist said, "O give thanks unto the Lord. . . . To him that made great things" (Psalms 136:1, 7).

If at any time you have questions about the world of science or the area of Christian evidences please don't hesitate to contact me, and I'll do my best to provide an answer.