The Real Rules of the Universe
And why you should not trust your scientific calculator
Pentecost is coming. It is naturally associated with the Holy Spirit being poured out on the Early Church after Jesus had ascended into heaven. But the Spirit brings something more remarkable and potent than wind and tongues of fire: words.
Over the course of this year, the power of words has been emerging as a theme. A couple of weeks ago, we remembered Aldhelm who took great delight in playing with words, using them to enthral and intrigue. (There’s even a video) I also argue how words are the source code of the universe in my new stand-up theology show, God, the Bible and Everything (in 60 minutes).
The Laws of the Universe
We can be tempted to think the universe is governed by immutable laws of physics, as discovered by Newton and then revised by Einstein. In time, someone else will come along and make us all ashamed and embarrassed for believing in Three Laws of Motion and the Theory of Relativity. That’s how science moves forward. Old science dies out with its former proponents. As Max Planck wrote in Scientific Autobiography and Other Papers (1948)
“A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.”
A couple of things about that quotation make me laugh. One is that a highly respected scientist is called ‘Planck’. That does not sound very flattering. The other thing is an idea that came to me when I saw my daughter had a ‘scientific calculator’. I said to her that it means the answers that calculator gives will be proven to be wrong in about 200 years’ time.
Grand Unified Theory of Everything
So how is the universe governed? What is the grand unified theory of everything? The answer was written by Moses, most likely, at the very beginning of Genesis. The governing force in the universe is the word of God, who spoke all things into being. This theme is reinforced throughout scripture. Look at Psalm 33:6 which says:
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host. Psalm 33:6
What would happen if God took away that breath? Job 34:14 speculates on that very idea:
If it were [God’s] intention
and he withdrew his spirit and breath,
all humanity would perish together
and mankind would return to the dust.
Jesus is described as the Word by John, and in Hebrews 1:3, he is described as:
the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
But do our words have power? Not quite Jesus’s level of power, but read James 3 for a sense of the power of using your tongue:
… the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
Reading such words is challenging when we are so casual with words. We are surrounded by them. They are stacked up in books by our beds. They are all over the internet. I’m typing a thousand of them right now. I wrote another five hundred funny ones over on The Wycliffe Papers. And there’ll be more words along next week.
Back to Pentecost
But this collection of a thousand words is about Pentecost. Christians all over the world will be celebrating this major feast day on Sunday. We don’t have feasts for Pentecost anymore, sadly. We used to have Whitsun parades until recently. In medieval times, the church raised funds with ales. But Whitsun celebrations are a thing of the past.
No-one is quite sure why Pentecost is called Whitsun in England. It might be something to do with the white robes worn by those baptised in this season. Why you would wear white robes to baptised during Pentecost, I don’t know.
We do know the origin of the word Pentecost: it is fifty days after Passover. But Christians celebrate it because of events on that day recorded in Acts 2 in which the Holy Spirit is poured out on Jesus’s followers. It is very dramatic:
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
It is truly remarkable that God himself comes to dwell in his people by his Spirit. This would have been unthinkable for the Israelites in the day of Moses whose presence with the Lord on Sinai made his face shine. It was so bright and unnerving, they asked him to veil himself. But at Pentecost, everyone’s Moses.
What is the first thing that God’s people do when filled with the Holy Spirit? They speak. Not only do they speak. They miraculously speak in other languages, reversing the curse of Babel.
God-fearing Jews from every nation… heard their own language being spoken.
They are not asking their way to the beach or the railway station. They are “declaring the wonders of God!” Peter then stands up before the crowd and what does he do? He does not perform a miracle. He speaks. He preaches the gospel concerning Jesus Christ, quoting extensively from other words written scripture.
It’s all about the words. They are the source code of the universe, and the very words of life. Peter’s message intentionally sounds a lot like the message of Jesus, the one who raised the dead and rose from the grave himself:
“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off.”
That’s how to use words. To speak the truth in Spirit-filled power. How do we use words? Do we use them to give life? Or corrupt the whole body? Or to sing songs of praise at Pentecost? As Charles Wesley wrote:
O For a thousand tongues to sing
My dear Redeemer's praise!
The glories of my God and King,
The triumphs of His grace!
My gracious Master and my God,
Assist me to proclaim,
To spread through all the world abroad
The honours of Thy name.
Enjoyed this? Do subscribe! It’s free and you’ll get an instalment of Cary’s Almanac every Friday lunchtime in your inbox to get your head right after a busy week:
Have a look at The Wycliffe Papers for jokes for those serious about the Bible:
And here’s the video on Aldhelm:
And I refer to this video about St Dunstan: