I can still remember the first time that I heard the second law of thermodynamics explained to me. I was sitting at the very top of a quite large lecture theatre, and I was only barely listening. Sadly this means that I have never quite accepted or indeed understood the law. (Alan, this is not an invitation for a lesson!) I took it at the time to mean that the universe was, according to physical laws, in a relentless unstoppable decline. I seem to remember that at the time I wrote a poem called Entropy to Disaster. The readers will be glad to know that said poem was written before the advent of personal computers and the like, and thus happily it is lost in the mists of time! It seemed to me to be a direct challenge to faith, with which I was struggling at the time. Nothing could get better, everything was doomed to decline.
I am still only barely conversant with this particular law, but my earlier fears were in part unfounded. I may have understood it better had I realised that nothing can re-generate itself without work and energy being offered to it. So I move onto the theme of this article, transformation. Recently a friend of mine Nick was introducing Moses and the new covenant. He used a beautiful passage from 2 Corinthians 3: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.†This passage reflects on the way that Moses, when he encountered God, practically shone. But of course according to the laws mentioned above, when he was removed from the energy which is the very presence of God, such glory waned, even though it was so brilliant that a veil had to be placed over Moses’ face to cover the brilliance. Moses was transformed, and brought transformation, because the energy hidden in the burning bush was given to him, to give to others.
In essence my particular energy slant on this interaction can also illustrate something of the difference between the Old Covenant and the New. The glory of God in the Old was recorded as being tangible, but passing. People encountered God, but it did not linger. With the New Covenant something intrinsic changed. It is not that God had changed, rather our relationship or should I say our proximity has changed. According to the laws of thermodynamics, one energy or heat source can only influence another object while they remain in proximity. To illustrate this, my wonderful wood burner can only heat my lounge whilst it is a. burning and b. in my lounge! Although the Bible records that Moses encountered God on many occasions he did not have the same privilege that a Christian can have. Our transformation “into his likeness with ever increasing likeness†can continue because the energy, the love which is able to bring about our transformation, does not leave us, as it did even Moses. Because with the new covenant God’s spirit is, ‘poured out upon us’ and he ‘lives’ within us, we have the very energy source, the presence of God within us who can help us to effect this on-going, day by day transformation. (the wood burner is very much alight, and in the ‘lounge’ of our hearts!) Of course transformation is only possible when we choose to co-operate with the love of God, but the reality is we can choose at any time to respond. This is because through the work that Jesus did God’s spirit no longer simply ‘hovers’ or ‘broods’ (Gen 1) over us. As Jesus explained to Nicodemus, he can be born within us. He dwells with us and we dwell with him. Now that’s what I call central heating!
I personally think Moses was pretty blessed. But our blessing is more permanent and lasting, and it is of course in order that we may be an on-going blessing of love to others. It is because of God’s great love that all is not destined for destruction. He is even now at work within our hearts, that we might ‘reflect’ his glory. (Go on, put some more wood on the burner in your heart… that you may shine with the love and radiance of God, who lives within you.)
Stephen
