December 2023
Dear Friend of Creation Moments,
The young lady was confused and overwhelmed. How could she be pregnant when she had never had sexual relations? But she was reassured that this was God at work and that her baby would be very special!
Mary went to see her older cousin – whom she found out was also pregnant – six months along. When she arrived and called out a greeting to let her know she was there, her cousin reacted with intense surprise and emotion. Elizabeth was literally hit by a revelation that Mary was pregnant with the Lord! She exclaimed this in prophecy over Mary. And she went on to say how the baby within her had “leaped in my womb for joy” at the sound of Mary’s greeting (Luke 1:39-45).
At Christmas we sing:
“Joy to the world the Lord is come! …”
Interesting, isn’t it, that John the Baptist, while still in his mother’s womb, was the first to react with an outburst of joy at the incarnation of the Lord of all Creation!? And interesting, too, how Elizabeth felt the joy of the baby within her? Elizabeth reacted with great joy herself, prophesying over Mary. Then Mary responded likewise in great joy and inspiration with what has become known as “The Magnificat”, one of the Bible’s great songs of praise and worship: “My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour”… (Luke 1:46-55). Joy is contagious, and the joy of the Lord is an especially good contagion!
God gave us emotions. And there are emotional connections to physical reality. Our Creator God “is a Spirit” (John 4:24), and that Spirit gave birth to and breathes life into the physical reality of His creation – immaterial things are connected with material things. Science is bearing that out more and more.
We know, for example, that the heart emits an electromagnetic field that can be measured by electrocardiogram. Brainwaves can also be measured by electroencephalograms. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used not only to differentiate disease from healthy organs and muscle tissue but also now to map the human brain. People’s brains are activated in different regions depending on their emotional responses as they view and experience different things. And functional MRIs can “see” the different regional activity.
Different emotional states also cause the body to produce different chemical hormones in our heart, our belly/gut, and our brain. There are hormones which associate with fear and anger, for example, and there are others that are “feel good” hormones. They react in the body electro-chemically and promote physical reactions in the various muscles and other organs of our body. Babies who do not get held and touched in love, for example, can have “failure-to-thrive” syndrome. Their bodies simply don’t grow and develop at the right pace because they do not get the proper love and emotional security.
The truth is that we have invisible phenomena leading to tangible, tactile, material results. Thus, we read about little baby John the Baptist jumping and kicking his mother while in the womb in response to the joy of the Lord at the sound of Mary’s voice – with Elizabeth reacting, and Mary reacting emotionally in sequence. People can feel the joy of others!
The evidence tells us that to get to the underlying truth of things we need to go deeper than the physical reality – to work back from the physical/material to the spiritual, from the natural to the supernatural! The physical (material) action of little baby John the Baptist and his great joy inside Elizabeth’s womb produced great emotion in Elizabeth and then in Mary, which led to an activation of her spirit and the profound spiritual statement of The Magnificat. This is the Magnificent Reality we face as creatures in God’s creation, and in the Christ child – “…the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us … full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Indeed, the physical can “touch” the spiritual.
Grace and truth – what a magnificent combination! That’s what makes the Christmas season such a wonderful time as we celebrate in a special way the greatest gift of all – of God becoming one of us to reconcile us to our most awesome and holy Maker! The most splendid and powerful Personality in all existence demonstrated His great love toward us – meeting us on our level to redeem our broken situation.
Notice, it’s not only grace – it’s grace and truth. Truth is vital. Without truth, we are left in the end with meaninglessness. We are left unable to distinguish falsehoods; therefore, we are left at the mercy of evil and despair. But the absolute truth of God – His righteousness and complete integrity, His omniscience and holiness, His wisdom and word to us – grounds us with meaning and purpose and standards of goodness so that we are able to trust Him and to trust His love toward us.
God gives us the “general” revelation of His creation. And He gives us the “special” revelation of His Word. Christ didn’t come to reinforce the humanistic pride of mankind. The awesome Creator came as one of the most humble and helpless among us, a miracle in the very creation He established. As Mary proclaimed in her declaration of The Magnificat: “ …he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts” (Luke 1:51).
And so, we sing at Christmastime, “Joy to the world, the Lord is come, let earth receive her King!”
But much work remains at this juncture in history before the final Consummation of the Age. And we must continue to proclaim the truth to all nations and tongues and peoples of the world, as there are many people waiting to “receive their King”! They, too, are waiting to have their moments when they can say with Mary, “My spirit has rejoiced in God my Saviour”!
And so, we must all give to the work of the Lord on earth. We thank you and praise God for your participation in this ministry – bringing God’s life-giving message of joy and love and peace and grace and truth to all mankind – especially at this wonderful time of year!
Yours in Christ,
Mark Cadwallader, Board Chairman
P.S. This Christmas, I’m excited to offer you my latest book – fresh off the press – The Beauty of Truth, Vol. 1. Subtitled “Creation, Christ, and Critical Thinking About the Works of God and Man”, this 160-page book is a compendium of selected essays I have written for Creation Moments over the past 20 years, updated for increased relevance and including some added illustrations. The book is the first of at least two volumes and contains 50 updated essays, including:
- We Are Made for Another World
- Beauty Is Truth, Truth Is Beauty
- The Widening Relevance of George Orwell’s 1984
- Proliferation of Lies
- From the Ugliness of Evil to the Whole Truth
- Why Can’t We Just Accommodate Evolution?
- Sound, Light, and Resurrection
- Truth Is the Enemy of Totalitarianism
- Anchoring Our Hope: Spiritual-Chemical Connections
- “Utopia” to Justify Terror in the 20th Century
- What Defines the Beautiful?
- Another Humanist Attempt to Eliminate the Influence of Christ
In one way or another, all of the essays exalt Christ, verify the reliability of Scripture, describe the various deceptions that are so rampant today, and/or juxtapose those with the beautiful truth of God in Christ. Share the book with your kids or grandkids (ages 12 and up). Let me suggest that you ask for multiple copies so you can donate one to your church library and give the book to unsaved friends! There is an Appendix in the book that presents the Gospel and the plan of salvation.
To receive your copy of The Beauty of Truth, Vol. 1, simply click here to order . Or call us toll-free at 1-800-422-4253 during regular office hours (Mon – Th 8:00am-4:30pm CST). You will also receive Creation Moments’ latest CD, filled with 30 recent programs, when you purchase “The Beauty of Truth” or for a donation of $10 or more. Please click here to go to our Newsletter Resources page
