The Moon And Stars
Consider the moon.
It provides the lesser light of night, which is soft and restful. It controls the tides. It appears to be a lifeless mass of mountains and craters, yet its surface acts as a reflector of light. If it had a fraction of the energy generated by the sun, it would render life on the earth impossible.
Next consider the stars and the planets, some smaller, some vastly greater in size than the earth. They are innumerable.
As larger and more powerful telescopes are invented, more and more stars appear. So exact are their movements that their precise position in the heavens can be forecast centuries ahead. All have their prescribed orbits and remarkable peculiarities. How reasonable is the conclusion of the Psalmist, who was moved to exclaim, 'The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard'. (Psalm 19.1-3) It is reasonable to ask, 'Can there be such vast effects without an adequate First Cause?' It is more difficult to believe that all things created and ordered themselves, than it is to accept the testimony of Scripture, 'In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth'. (Genesis 1.1). What profound truth underlies the simple declaration, 'He made the stars also'. (Genesis 1.16).
Consider Arcturus, that golden star of first magnitude, at a distance from the earth some two and three quarter million times more than that of the sun. Its diameter is computed to be seventeen million miles. Then there is the Belt of Orion, a constellation containing the enormous star Betelgeuse which has a diameter of three hundred million miles. There are countless constellations and galaxies - the Milky Way is reckoned to have thirty thousand million stars - yet there is law and order in perfection. 'He telleth the number of the stars'. Their existence and glory demand a belief in a Creator, a lawgiver, a designer possessing infinite intelligence, wisdom and power.