One of the primary goals of the Webb Space Telescope is to add to our scientific knowledge of what was, what is, and what is to come.

A key way that it will achieve this goal is to look at objects at different wavelengths of light than the wavelengths of light visible to the eyes of we humans.

In particular, the Webb Space Telescope is designed to observe infrared light—this means light whose wavelength is longer than the longest wavelength of light that can be seen by the eyes of we humans.

Analogously, those who follow the Way of the LORD—those who follow the Spirit of the LORD in the Way of Jesus—“see”, “hear” and “feel” what was, and is, and is to come differently than many others “see”, hear” and “feel” about what was, and is, and is to come. (Isaiah 6:9-10; Matthew 13:13-23; Acts 28:25-28).

In modern times, since the scientific revolutions of the Enlightenment, most people limit themselves to what science can see and understand.

But, by definition, science provides a limited perspective—a limited “wavelength” to see and understand. And it doesn’t “feel” at all.

In its most precise sense, science tests hypotheses whose test results can be replicated by others. Obviously, it is not possible to replicate many aspects of the universe and of our lives.

For example, we can’t replicate our Earth in order to determine what the climate would be like on Earth today if there had not been the Industrial Revolution.

We can’t replicate our civilization to determine what Humanity would have been like if there had not been the Exodus or the Church Universal.

We can’t replicate our lives to determine what our life would have been like if we’d thought and done different things than we actually thought and did.

To make such determinations, we need to use an additional perspective—an additional “wavelength”—to see, hear and feel.

To mix my metaphor by using a different wavelength than infrared light, I like to illustrate my thinking by comparing how a picture of your hand looks different when taken with visible light compared with how a picture of your hand looks when taken with x-rays (a wavelength of electromagnetic radiation that is much shorter than the shortest wavelength of light that can be seen with the eyes of we humans).

It’s important to realize that there is only one hand and only one reality. Similarly, science and religion both show the one and only reality. But they show us different things about this one and only reality.

Which image is most useful? Is science or religion most useful?

It depends on how you need to use the image. Putting on nail polish? Or putting on a cast?

If you’re interested in pondering such ideas further, please read my thoughts in the following Appendices to my book The Promised Land (first published in 2004): “How to Apply the Word of God Authoritatively”, “How to Apply the Bible to Specific Matters”, “The Accuracy and Reliability of the Bible”, “The Spirit in Which to Study and Apply the Bible”, “Thoughts About the First Eleven Chapters of Genesis”, “Tax Law Concepts Regarding Adam, Eve, Etc.”, and “Doubts: Sunglasses and Shakespeare”.

For purposes of this brief blog, I want to stress that the question we need to ask and the determination we need to make is not WHAT was, WHAT is, and WHAT-IS-TO-COME.

Questions about “WHAT” are the kinds of questions that are best answered by science in general and by the Webb Space Telescope in particular. For ways that the telescope does this, please read NASA’s discussion of the capabilities of the telescope at its website: jwst.nasa.gov.

In contrast, as followers of the Way of the LORD—followers of the Way of Jesus in the Spirit of the LORD, we seek to answer questions about “WHO”.

We align with others to become a “primary mirror” so that we see better WHO Jesus is, we see better WHO the Spirit of the LORD is, we see better WHO the Father is, and we see better WHO the LORD is.

To learn more about how we do this, please read my blogs: “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing Jesus Better”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the Spirit of the LORD Better”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the Father Better”, and “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the LORD Better”.

By aligning with others to become such a “primary mirror”, we see better the one and only Creator, the one and only PERSON WHO was, WHO is, and WHO-IS-TO-COME.

The phrase “Who-Was—Who-Is—Who-Is-To-Come” captures the reality that the LORD (the Father-Jesus-Spirit Person) is the one and only Creator. The LORD (the Father-Jesus-Spirit Person) is not a created being.

Innumerable books, essays, lectures and sermons have grappled with how our finite minds can grasp the differences between we created beings, and the one and only Creator.

I have always loved mathematics and so one of the ways that I think about this difference is expressed mathematically.

I remember puzzling over the answer to the question: “What does 1 divided by 0 equal?”.

It’s easy to answer the question: “What does 0 divided by 1 equal?”. It equals 0.

But what about 1 divided by 0? The answer is expressed by the term “undefined”.

I think of the mathematical term “undefined” as being equivalent to the theological term “mystery”.

We don’t know the answer, but at least we are humble enough to say “I don’t know.” This intellectual and spiritual humility is far better than falsely claiming “I know”, and then indoctrinating people to memorize the wrong answer!

The “time” when the Creator was “created” is an ungraspable concept. An undefined concept. A mystery.

The Creator created time. So no timeline can express “when” the Creator “began” or “when” the Creator decided to create time

Similarly, it is an ungraspable concept to figure out “where” the Creator exists.

The Creator created the three dimensions of physical space (as well as the fourth dimension of time). So “where” the Creator exists is an ungraspable concept. An undefined concept. A mystery.

No map showing three dimensions can express “where” the Creator was, “where” the Creator is, or “where” the Creator will be.

Some theories of physics suggest that there may be far more than 4 dimensions. One theory hypothesizes that there may be 20 dimensions!

Calling upon such unfathomable complexities of physics to describe reality only serves to show that the Creator exists and acts in ungraspable concepts. Undefined concepts. Mysteries.

In the Scriptures, this ungraspable, undefined mystery is expressed in a number of passages.

When Moses asked God what his name is, “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”. (Exodus 3:14).

I have read a number of discussions about what it means to be able to say, “I AM WHO I AM”. For example, the textual note to this verse in the New International Version of the Bible gives an alternative rendering of the Hebrew to be “I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE”.

It sounds like an ungraspable, undefined mystery to me.

God’s name “I AM WHO I AM” is expressed as “YHWH”—a name so holy that it was not spoken by Jews. And so, we no longer know how to pronounce this name for God.

In most English translations of the Bible, the name “YHWH” is written as “LORD” in large and small caps. (Due to the lack of a font for large and small caps on my software, I write the name in all upper case letters.)

The book of Revelation is a message from “him who is, and was, and is to come.” (Revelation 1:4).

Indeed, the LORD God declares: “I am the Alpha and the Omega . . . who is, who was, and is to come.” (Revelation 1:8).

No wonder that heaven is filled with praise, because:

“‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.” (Revelation 4:8; Isaiah 6:3 (emphasis added)).

No wonder that people from Israel and from the Church Universal join together with the hosts of heaven:

to “worship him who lives forever and ever . . . and say:

You are worthy, our Lord and God,

   to receive glory and honor and power,

for you created all things,

   and by your will they were created

   and have their being.”

     (Revelation 4:10-11).

No wonder that we followers of the Way of the LORD—we followers of the Way of Jesus in the Spirit of the LORD—say:

“Hear, O [Humanity]: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. Love the LORD your God with all you heart and with all your soul and with all your strength [and with all your mind]” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5 & NIV note to 6:4; Matthew 22:36-38).

And no wonder that the Webb Space Telescope can never take a picture as spectacular and beautiful as what we followers of the Way of the LORD—we followers of the Way of Jesus in the Spirit of the LORD—can see, hear and feel.

READ MORE

To help understand when we should be “divisive” and when we should not be “divisive”, please read my blog “Grace and Peace—Titus”.

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”, “The Webb Space Telescope: E Pluribus Unum”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing Things We’ve Never Seen Before”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing People Better”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing Jesus Better”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the Spirit of the LORD Better”, “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the Father Better”, and “The Webb Space Telescope: Seeing the LORD Better”.

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.