The underlying purpose of the Webb Space Telescope is to enable us to discover things we’ve never known before.

How?

By enabling us to see things we’ve never seen before.

What is the underlying purpose of the church? To overcome the gates of hell. (Matthew 16:18). To do the will of God on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10).

How?

By enabling our eyes to see, our ears to hear, and our hearts to feel the things which we have never seen, heard or felt before—the things which God has prepared for those who love him. (1 Corinthians 2:9; Romans 8:28; Isaiah 6:9-10).

What things?

—ways to abide in the true vine—Jesus—so that we bear much fruit (John 15:5,8);

—ways to do for others what we would want others to do for us—so that we grow the Spirit’s fruit of love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Matthew 7:12);

—ways to love the one and only LORD our God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our strength and with all our mind—so that (with all our heart, soul, strength and mind) we love growing the fruit of the LORD’s compassion and amazing grace: abounding in love and faithfulness; and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin (Deuteronomy 6:4-5; Matthew 22:37-38; Exodus 34:6-7; Luke 15:1-32); and

—ways to become more than conquerors through the LORD our God—so that neither life nor death; neither angels nor demons; neither the present nor the future; nor any powers; neither height nor depth; nor anything else in all creation; will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our lord. (Romans 8:28,37-39).

READ MORE

For additional thoughts arising from the Webb Space Telescope, please read my blogs “The Webb Space Telescope—Reaching the Place of Service”, “The Webb Space Telescope—Years of Preparation”, “The Webb Space Telescope—Liftoff!”, “The Webb Space Telescope: God’s Unfolding Plans”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Shedding “Whatever Entangles Us”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Many Parts, One System!”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Fashioning Each Mirror”, and “The Webb Space Telescope: E Pluribus Unum”.

In my book Visions of the Church (published together in one volume with my book Visions of America), I use the troubled—but ultimately triumphant—flight of Apollo 13  as the narrative thread to provide an overview of 2,000 years of Church history in a mere 80 pages.

For information about the Webb Space Telescope, please check the official NASA information at jwst.nasa.gov.