NATURE IN THE LIGHT OF CALVARY

“Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in they field? From whence then hath it tares?” He said unto them, “An enemy hath done this.” Matthew 13: 27,28

We find joy in studying the Lesson Book of Nature, noting the shifting light as the Master Artist paints His masterpieces across the heavens. We marvel at the mysteries of undersea creatures, and thrill at the singing of the birds. We catch our breath in wonder at the perfect beauty of a rose. In all His Works we learn of the Creator.

And yet, as we come into contact with nature we also see cause for perplexity. We see suffering and tragedy, predators preying upon their own kind. We hear of great wastes of beautiful forests by fire, fields destroyed by blight or pestilence. The forces of nature often seem evil and treacherous. Clearly Natures Lesson Book needs an interpreter.

“Only in the light that shines from Calvary can nature’s teachings be read aright.  Through the story of Bethlehem and the Cross let it be shown how good is to conquer evil, and how every blessing that comes to us is a gift of redemption.

   In brier and thorn, in thistle and tare, is represented the evil that blights and mars. In singing bird and opening blossom, in rain and sunshine, in summer breeze and gentle dew, in ten thousand objects in nature, from the oak of the forest to the violet that blossoms at its root, is seen the love that restores. And nature still speaks to us of God’s goodness

   ‘I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil.’ This the message that, in the light from the cross, may be read upon all the face of nature. ‘The heavens declare His glory, and the earth is full of His riches’.”

  – EGW  (Book Education pp 100, 101)