Penguins
“Therefore
He is also able to save to the uttermost those who
come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make
intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25)
We FINALLY saw
the movie, “March of the
Penguins,” by renting it on DVD. It was
wonderful and I highly recommend it. We seldom get
the time for movies, but this was one I WANTED. The
film is a documentary, recorded in Antarctica, at
the bottom of the world. The “stars” of this movie
were Emperor Penguins, revealing the method they
have of bringing little Emperor Penguins into the
world. (Ted Ryan, a VP
of National Geographic, indicated we could discuss
this material.)
It starts in
the sea, with birds (penguins) that do not fly, but
rather use their wings as “flippers” that drive
their three foot tall bodies up to 1,500 feet down
into the ocean for 15-minutes at a time while they
look for food. Then it’s an incredible 70-mile trek
for these odd, waddling birds, as they travel
through the minus 58-degree Fahrenheit “summer” of
Antarctica. They reach their goal, gathering
together for warmth in an ice-filled valley. Mates
are chosen or perhaps rediscovered and eggs form
within the mothers-to-be.
The males and
females remain together until the females each
produce a single egg, which is temporarily housed in
a warm sac beneath their bellies and kept in place
by awkward, claw-like feet. The females each
approach their mates, nudging the eggs gently but
quickly from their pouches, giving them to the
males, who pull up the eggs with ungainly feet,
drawing them into pouches similar to those possessed
by the females. At this point the females leave,
wobbling along the 70-mile return journey, where
they dive-into the sea and gorge themselves with
food.
The males
remain huddled in circles, walking short distances
with tiny steps to keep the eggs in place. The males
stay in the valley for weeks, eating nothing,
protecting their young. The time when the eggs hatch
is also when the mothers return from the sea,
bellies filled with food for the little ones. Then
the newborns are transferred back to the mothers,
who feed them and the process is reversed – this
time it is the hungry males who walk the long
distance to the sea. They eat everything they can
before returning to the valley once more, and now it
is the males who do the feeding. The role-reversal
process continues until the babies are large enough
to travel to the sea, which is their true home.
Some of the
little ones succumb to the elements or winged
predators, and some adult penguins are lost to
killers in the sea and to the cold. But many do make
it and after a time, another generation of penguins
will travel seventy miles to perform the amazing
feats that God has prepared for this race of
bird-beings in Antarctica.
GodSpeaks.com has a “GodSpeaks
Billboard Campaign Devotional,” and in a
section entitled, “I Don’t
Take Your Name In Vain – God,” the following
is included: “Daniel Webster’s
eldest daughter was married to John Colby,
considered to be one of the most wicked, godless men
in his neighborhood when it came to impious
behavior. He seemed to have no respect for God and
often used His name in a derisive manner. Then
Webster heard that Colby had undergone a change. He
decided to call on him to see for himself. On
entering his daughter’s home, he noticed a
large-print Bible opened on a table. Colby had been
reading it before he answered Webster’s knock on the
door. The first question Colby asked was, ‘Are you a
Christian?’ When he was assured of Webster’s faith,
he suggested that they kneel together and pray.”
The article
continued, “After the visit,
Webster told a friend, ‘Here was a man as unlikely
to be a Christian as any I have ever seen; and he
has gone his godless way until now, with old age and
habits hard to change! Yet now he is a penitent,
trusting, humble believer!’” GodSpeaks
concluded, “God never gave up
on John Colby.”
(Used with permission).
The world is
full of amazing, incredible miracles that speak of
the Mighty, Loving Hand of God, and they are all
around us, often unseen and not understood, but the
miracles are there, whether we perceive them or not.
Scripture says that the “invisible
attributes” of God “are
clearly seen” (Romans 1:20), revealed in that
which is all around us, in objects too small for the
human eye to see, in stellar systems too far away
even for the largest telescopes to perceive, in the
peculiar and intricate reproductive habits of
penguins and in the greatest miracle of all: lives
that have been changed by the power and love of God.
When God
created mankind, His intention was that we would
have “dominion” over
all that lives (Genesis 1:26, 28). “Dominion”
did not include killing, because the necessity for
death did not exist. It was unthinkable that the
largest creature, the smallest or anything else
should ever die. We were to protect, to “govern”
the creatures that live on, under and above the
earth. We failed in our governance, not
understanding that our role was never to do it
alone, for God is with us. Jesus said, “My
yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew
11:30) which is the way it was always intended to
be. Here’s how it happens:
Penguins are
not capable of understanding the reproductive
necessities that are required and neither are they
able to “evolve” sufficiently in order to perform
those functions. It’s just too complex and the race
we call “Emperor Penguins”
would have become extinct long before it could have
naturally occurred in that hostile environment. They
respond to God.
Sinners are
likewise not capable of understanding the necessity
of being “born again”
as Jesus taught us (John 3:3, 7) and no one in the
“natural” realm can ever understand. It’s a
spiritual need, which is just too complex for any of
us to comprehend. Without the advent of Jesus
Christ, our human race would be extinct. We respond
to God.
Jesus is the “High
Priest” who is always just right for you, for
He is “holy, harmless,
undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become
higher than the heavens” (Hebrews 7:26). And
He did it all for you when “He
offered up Himself” for your sins (Hebrews
7:27). He is able to “save
(you) to the uttermost”
because He is always making “intercession”
(praying) for you and me. Do you understand that? –
Jesus Christ’s prayers are 100% ANSWERED, and He is
always PRAYING for you. That’s why you can trust Him
and keep on praying because you do not pray alone –
He is praying with and for you right now.
Lord, thank
You for praying – for ME! I surrender to You,
knowing that what I cannot do, You can. Please pray
for me right now, that I will love and serve God,
and be a help to others. I praise Your Holy Name and
trust in You now. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Ron
Beckham, Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
First Church On The Net
www.FridayStudy.org
Ron@FridayStudy.org
"While
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us"
(Romans 5:8)
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