Jesus is calling us all to go with Him onThe Heroes’ JourneyThe Heroes’ Journey

The story of His Hero’s Journey has four chapters. We live in a world that’s been damaged by evil, but that’s not the way it was at the start and Jesus says we don’t have to accept it or escape it. We can give ourselves to Jesus and let Him show us how He

can use us to prove that His Revolution has already begun!

The Good Life

The Good Life

Our Wildly Improbable

UNIVERSEOur Wildly Improbable

UNIVERSE

“The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.” Psalm 19:1

Where Can We Find Truth?• All truth has its source in God, who is Truth

– “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.” 1John 1:5

• Incarnate Revelation: The Word/Jesus– “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have

seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

• Special Revelation: God’s Word/Bible– “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking,

correcting and training in righteousness, so that the person of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2Tim 3:16-17

• General Revelation: Nature and the Heavens

God’s Truth: On Display in NatureGod’s Truth: On Display in NatureRomans 1:18-20”The wrath of God is being

revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

Romans 1:18-20”The wrath of God is being

revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”

God’s Truth: On Display in the HeavensGod’s Truth: On Display in the Heavens

• Psalm 19:1-4 11 The heavens declare the glory of God; the The heavens declare the glory of God; the

skies proclaim the work of his hands. skies proclaim the work of his hands. 22 Day Day after day they pour forth speech; night after after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. night they display knowledge.

33 There is no speech or language where their There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. voice is not heard. 44 Their voice goes out into Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. world.

A Match Made in the Heavens?

Interacting Galaxies

13.7 Billion Present

Stars formingStars forming

Spiral GalaxySpiral Galaxy

Crab NebulaCrab Nebula

Solar System FormationSolar System Formation

Galaxies forming

We live in a galaxy, the Milky Way GalaxyWe live in a galaxy, the Milky Way Galaxy

““At this moment it seems as though At this moment it seems as though science will never be able to raise science will never be able to raise

the curtain on the mystery of the curtain on the mystery of creation. For the scientist who has creation. For the scientist who has

lived by his faith in the power of lived by his faith in the power of reason, the story ends like a bad reason, the story ends like a bad

dream. He has scaled the dream. He has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest about to conquer the highest

peak; as he pulls himself over the peak; as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band final rock, he is greeted by a band

of theologians who have been of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries.” sitting there for centuries.”

Robert Jastrow, God and the AstronomersEagle Nebula

The existence of a universe as we know it rests upon a knife edge

of IMPROBABILITY““Why did the universe start out with Why did the universe start out with

so nearly the critical rate of so nearly the critical rate of expansion that separates models expansion that separates models

that recollapse from those that go that recollapse from those that go on expanding forever, that even on expanding forever, that even now, 10 thousand million years now, 10 thousand million years

later, it is still expanding at nearly later, it is still expanding at nearly the critical rate? the critical rate? If the rate of If the rate of

expansion one second after the expansion one second after the Big Bang had been smaller by Big Bang had been smaller by

even one part in 100 thousand even one part in 100 thousand million, the universe would have million, the universe would have

recollapsed before it ever recollapsed before it ever reached its present size.”reached its present size.”

Stephen Hawking, Stephen Hawking, A Brief History of Time (138)A Brief History of Time (138)

Core of the Andromeda GalaxyCore of the Andromeda Galaxy

There are 15 physical constants, There are 15 physical constants, e.g., gravity, speed of light, e.g., gravity, speed of light,

strength of weak and strong strength of weak and strong nuclear forces, that altogether nuclear forces, that altogether

account for the universe account for the universe coming into being and still coming into being and still

existing today. existing today.

““The chance that all of these The chance that all of these constants would take on the constants would take on the

values necessary to result in a values necessary to result in a stable universe capable of stable universe capable of

sustaining complex life forms is sustaining complex life forms is almost infinitesimal. And yet almost infinitesimal. And yet

those are exactly the those are exactly the parameters that we observe. parameters that we observe. In sum, our universe is wildly In sum, our universe is wildly

improbable.”improbable.” Francis Collins, The Language of God (74)

Baby Stars in the Magellanic CloudBaby Stars in the Magellanic Cloud

Theoretical Physicist Stephen Hawking

“The odds against a universe like ours emerging out of

something like the Big Bang are enormous. I think there

are clearly religious implications.”

Physicist Freemon Dyson

“The more I examine the universe and the details of its

architecture, the more evidence I find that the

universe in some sense must have known we were

coming.”

Theoretical Physicist Stephen Hawking

“The odds against a universe like ours emerging out of

something like the Big Bang are enormous. I think there

are clearly religious implications.”

Physicist Freemon Dyson

“The more I examine the universe and the details of its

architecture, the more evidence I find that the

universe in some sense must have known we were

coming.”

Planetary NebulaePlanetary Nebulae

Nobel Prize Winner Arno Penzias

“The best data we have are exactly what I would have predicted,

had I nothing to go on but the five books of Moses, the Psalms,

the Bible as a whole.”

Isaiah 40:26“Lift your eyes and look to the

heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the

starry host one by one, and calls them each by name.”

Nobel Prize Winner Arno Penzias

“The best data we have are exactly what I would have predicted,

had I nothing to go on but the five books of Moses, the Psalms,

the Bible as a whole.”

Isaiah 40:26“Lift your eyes and look to the

heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the

starry host one by one, and calls them each by name.”

‘Polar Ring’ Galaxy‘Polar Ring’ Galaxy