In our busy lives, most of us don’t think about what’s below the ground or under the bottom of the ocean . . . unless an earthquake or volcano gets our attention. But there are many things down there known to man, while we can only guess at other things. What we do know for certain is that “in the beginning God created the heaven [atmosphere and starry skies] and the earth” (Genesis 1:11In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)). We also know that He had a purpose in this creation, not only for His own pleasure, but for the benefit of mankind and the other creatures He was to place on it.
Genesis 1:22And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Genesis 1:2) tells us the earth which God had created in perfection was “without form, and void.” Though there are some things about creation that God in His great wisdom has not told us, we do know that He took great pleasure in preparing the heavens and the earth with its many elements to sustain plant, animal, and, of greatest importance to Him, human life. He prepared such things as gold, silver and other minerals, coal, gas and oil, along with gems of all kinds, formed under the surface for the use of mankind. He outlines six days of creation in the first chapter of Genesis.
Water, one of these vital elements, covers about 70% of the earth’s surface, making a beautiful scene for astronauts in space. The greatest depth of 36,198 feet is in the Pacific Ocean. Incidentally, the bottoms of the oceans are not flat but have valleys and mountains, and some are higher than the tallest mountains on land. Many islands of the seas are actually the tops of such peaks.
If you could bore a hole straight through the middle of the earth, it would be almost 8,000 miles long, while the distance around the equator covers about 25,000 miles. Earth is not the largest planet, but it is the most important since it is the only one on which God has placed mankind and other forms of life. Here He provided just the right amount of heat and light from the sun, a perfect composition of air for sustaining life, ample water for every need, plus a balance of night and day to meet the requirements of life. Consider also the benefit of gravity to hold things in place and yet allow them to be moved as needed. On any other planet, lower gravity would make you too light, and higher gravity would make you uncomfortably heavy. These are just a few of God’s benefits to us in His marvelous creation.
(to be continued)
ML-09/02/2001