There are two realms.
There is the world that we see. We can touch it, we can measure it. To a great degree we can even understand it. There are parts of it that elude us, but we keep exploring them hoping that someday we may understand them. This is the realm of science.
Then, there is the world that we cannot see. It includes all of the things that science cannot detect, quantify and explain. This is the realm of God.
It is where these two realms meet that we run into trouble. Sometimes we find things that were once part of the unseen realm that we begin to understand and can move into the realm of the seen……..like magnetism. Magnetism was once viewed as mystical, even occult. Now it is firmly in the realm of the seen…..the realm of science.
So………for better or worse,we tend to leave the realm of the seen to science…….but, how do we deal with the realm of the unseen?
Deny it. If I can’t see it and measure it with the tools of human science, then it isn’t real. The trouble is that science keeps expanding its reach. Stuff that wasn’t real yesterday becomes real today. Another problem is that science doesn’t always get things right……… just ask Columbus……or Galileo. The other problem is that we will miss out on anything real that is unseen……..both the blessings and the curses.
Ignore it. While we recognize that there are unseen things that are real, we cannot use them……we cannot manipulate them. So, why bother with them. This saves us a lot of effort but it becomes a problem if there are things in the unseen realm that can help us…….or harm us. There is an irony here. If the unseen is real, the fact that we deny or ignore it is irrelevant. Its impact on our lives remains.
Explore it. Admit that there are real things, real beings that are not only unseen…….but unseeable. Recognize that these beings can affect us and our world…….both for good and for bad. This calls for discernment. Every day somebody comes to us with an idea that they tell us is part of the unseen……..and it is a complete fiction. We have to sort between the fictional unseen and the real unseen. This is where things get difficult. Some of the unseen things that people try to sell us are easy to discard…….like Ouija boards. Others are much tougher. How do you sort between God (of the Bible), Satan, Allah, the Greek and Roman Gods, Aliens, ancestor worship, etc?
I believe that the defining act of the supreme unseen being, God, is creation. If there are other unseen beings, then the one who created me and this world is the one that counts. The creator is God.
But who is he?
I look for his fingerprints in his creation. Man is his ultimate creation and I believe that in our better moments we are a poor reflection of our creator’s heart. So what does that look like?
This reflection of our creator is “written on our hearts”…..it is “hard wired” into us.
We want to love and be loved.
We care for others, especially our children.
We need relationship.
We will forgive bad behaviour in order to build relationships.
We believe in eternity……..life after death.
We know that it is wrong to lie, steal, murder and cheat on our spouse.
We know that we should be kind to those around us…….even strangers.
We sense that there is something missing in our world.
These fingerprints are codified in the Bible. Because the Bible reflects what I sense in my heart to be true, I believe that the Bible is the best description of God that we have.
So, I believe that there is a real world that is unseen…….and largely unseeable. A part of that world is our creator……. God.
Based on the things that are in my heart on my best days, I believe that the Bible is a good description of God………..and of his expectations of me.
“The LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.”
God, NIV
Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
David, NIV