Job 38: Science Reveals God’s Glory

The more scientists learn about the way the world works, the more we can celebrate the one who made it all.

Don’t miss our live online podcast recording event on this topic!

Tues 22 Oct, 7.30-8.30pm BST, with Rev Dr Dave Gregory: meteorologist, Baptist pastor & editor of Messy Church Does Science

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Summary

When cloud seeding was blamed for a massive flood in Dubai, scientists pointed out that current rain enhancement technology would have added precious little to the super-sized storm that hit the country. In Job 38 God declares his power and wisdom as creator. Scientific endeavour has begun to answer some of the questions posed in this passage in a small way, but there is always so much more to learn. God is creator and sustainer of everything, and any new discovery only serves to remind us how amazing he is.

© R Bancewicz

Qs for your devotions/group discussion

1. Have you learned or experienced something recently of the natural world that gave you a sense of wonder or awe? e.g. noticing the intricate detail in a flower, or a fact about the universe.
2. What do you think of the idea that the more we know about the world through science, the more we can worship God the creator and sustainer of it all?
3. Are there any scientists in your church who you could invite to help you take this conversation further?
4. How could this attitude – of science provoking wonder and worship – encourage young people in your church who are studying science?
5. How could these ideas feed into your conversations with scientifically-minded people outside of the church?

For those who use set readings on a Sunday, Job 38 is used on 20^th October 2024 (year B)

Job 38:1-7, 34-41

Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind: “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge? Gird up your loins like a man; I will question you, and you shall declare to me. Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone when the morning stars sang together and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy? … Can you lift up your voice to the clouds, so that a flood of waters may cover you? Can you send forth lightnings, so that they may go and say to you, ‘Here we are’? Who has put wisdom in the inward parts or given understanding to the mind? Who has the wisdom to number the clouds? Or who can tilt the waterskins of the heavens when the dust runs into a mass and the clods cling together? “Can you hunt the prey for the lion or satisfy the appetite of the young lions, when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in their covert? Who provides for the raven its prey, when its young ones cry to God and wander about for lack of food?”

Article

Cloud seeding hit the headlines earlier this year when a record-breaking storm caused massive flooding in Dubai. Commentators were quick to blame the UAE’s Rain Enhancement Science research programme. A number of countries have experimented since the 1940’s with releasing tiny particles into clouds. Water vapour condenses on these seed particles, making rainfall more likely.[i]

Weather is affected by so many variables, it’s difficult to say exactly how effective cloud seeding is, but statistical methods have shown that it can increase the likelihood of snow or rain by about 5-15%.[ii] In the case of Dubai the storm was so violent, even if cloud seeding had happened (it hadn’t) it would have had a negligible impact on the volume of rainfall. It was then pointed out that a far more likely cause of the unprecedented storm is human-induced climate change. Even though it’s hard to pinpoint the cause in this case, the overall increase in temperature of our atmosphere increases water evaporation into clouds, making massive storms like this far more common.[iii]

At the end of the book of Job, God speaks about his work in creation….read more