Of course, I’ve grown up experiencing this tie on one of my
favorite shows, Star Trek. The idea
behind beaming technology (Beam me up,
Scotty!) is simply an example of this equation. You turn matter into an
energy wave at one location and the energy wave travels to a new location
(which is easy for a wave to do quickly) and there it is turned back into
matter. Even in the non-science fiction world this makes a certain level of sense,
since matter and energy are directly related. (It really isn’t that far
fetched!) In other words, matter and energy are interchangeable.
So in the beginning when God created the heavens and the
earth, we say God created out of nothing. The earth was a formless void and
darkness covered the face of the deep – there was nothing. But God, who is pure
energy – the God who is light and life – the God of love – created matter. God
gave form and substance to the universe. God created light and land, plants and
animals, galaxies and gravity, you and me. God created. Whether we call it the
Big Bang or speak in terms of Genesis 1, in the beginning God’s divine energy
was given form and God created. We are God’s creation.
And as God’s creation we are so clearly made up of matter –
of atoms and molecules formed into cells and organs. Matter that has been given
life. God has given us life. Unlike a rock or other inanimate object, God has
not only created us, but given us life. And in some way that we don’t fully
understand, the life God has given us – that spirit God has breathed into us –
is intimately tied to the divine, creative energy of God.
As a Christian, I call that divine, creative energy the Holy
Spirit. The Star Wars fans of the
world call it The Force. Some might
call it intuition or a sixth sense. Some call it love. I’m sure there are other
ways of identifying this energy of which I am unaware. Most of us know deep in
the core of our being that there’s more to the world than meets the eye – we’ve
experienced this “energy” in our lives whether we are “religious” or not.
Two thousand years ago God did something new. God poured
divine energy into His Son, God with us. For just over 30 years this man Jesus
walked the earth. He was born in Bethlehem and grew up in Nazareth, a Jew among
Jews, but also the great I AM. Divine energy made flesh in a new way – God
incarnate – different from all other humans and yet still very much human. No
wonder the woman with hemorrhages touched his robe and was healed. She sensed
Jesus’ divine energy even before she touched him. And Jesus was aware that power
had gone forth from him when she touched him (Mark 5:30). Divine energy.
And when the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost the
disciples and all those gathered together experienced a wind from God and
tongues of fire (Acts 2). They experienced the divine energy of the Holy Spirit
– a unifying energy that empowered them to do something new.
Today we experience that divine energy in so many different
ways. A conversation with a friend that is filled with grace, with resonances,
with peace. A beautiful sunset that deeply touches our spirit. God’s Word speaking
a truth that enriches and empowers us. The Holy Spirit blowing through our
church, moving us in mysterious and amazing ways. That energy has the power to bind us together – weaving the
rich tapestry of our diversity into something beautiful. That energy has the
power to heal, restore, transform, make new. That energy is the source of all
our being – the Alpha and the Omega – the power of resurrection.
We know it when we experience it. And we can all experience
it, for this energy is not meant to be contained. I experience this energy as
the Holy Spirit of God, an extraordinary gift. How do you experience this
energy?
No matter what we call this divine energy, I suspect we all recognize
it at something mysterious and beautiful and perfect. Perhaps, in some odd and
inexplicable way, E = mc2 is just another way of saying “God with
us.”
