For Carol Bassett
Praise him, sun and
moon; praise him all you shining stars. ~Psalms 148:3
Have you ever lain in the grass on a summer night and looked up at the
stars or stepped outside on a cold winter night and marveled at how the sky
seems littered with them, to the point where you couldn’t count them all if you
tried? For all those celestial crystals that are clearly visible and separate
from the rest, including those that form what we know as constellations, there
are trillions more that appear to us as but a vast swath of silvery dust across
the deeper reaches of space.
Stars matter so much in our lives that they are mentioned often in
literature and in movies, are depicted in art, and are observed and studied by
those who have made a science of gazing upon them through highly specialized
magnifying equipment that brings them closer to us than we could have ever
imagined. Most importantly, however, as part of God’s great creation, they are
often used as symbols in the Bible where they hold a special meaning or play a
very special role.
When the Lord commanded that there be two great lights in heaven, they
included “the greater light to govern the day…and he made the stars.” (Genesis 1:14-18)
Not only are we to look up at the stars to appreciate their breathtaking beauty
and majesty, we are also to appropriate their light for ourselves, that we may
be beacons to lead others to God. (Philippians 2:15)
In the story of Job, despite all the terrible afflictions that God
rains down on him to test his faith, he never falters. In the midst of his great
suffering and confusion, Job can still manage to find the faith and the
strength to turn the focus from himself and onto God. And he uses stars to make
his point! (Job 38:31-33)
While scholars are not certain who wrote Psalms 147 and 148, their
intent is nonetheless clear as songs of praise. “He determines the number of
the stars and calls them each by name…praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all
you shining stars!” It is not unreasonable to assume here that “the stars” are
synonymous with the righteous and the faithful upon whom God has bestowed his
favor and grace. Like the lights that God placed in the heavens during
Creation, we are to carry his message forward into the world to guide those who
might have lost their way along the journeys of their lives. We are, in other
words, to be stars ourselves, and not of the variety that the Hollywood gossip
columnists write about!
As the Gospels begin to tell the story of Jesus’ entrance into our
world, the place of his birth in the small town of Bethlehem is marked by
nothing less than a star. It glimmers brightly in the sky above the lowly
stable where he lies wrapped in swaddling in a manger. And it is this glowing
beacon that later leads the Magi from the east to the place where they will
behold he who has come to save the world from its sins. (Matthew 2:9-10)
In the second chapter of Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he
admonishes them to be like Christ, to acknowledge that Jesus was born to
glorify God, his father. We are to take that message into our own hearts and
acknowledge that God works in us to fulfill his purposes. Because of this, we
are to go about our lives without complaining…”so that you may become blameless
and pure…children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation…then
you will shine among them like stars in the sky.” (Philippians 2:11-15)
It is impossible not to be struck wordless upon seeing a sky filled
with stars. When, as children, we are told about heaven being God’s home, we
naturally and automatically look up in hopes that we might catch a glimpse of
that wondrous place. Our gaze is limited by the sun’s blinding intensity during
the day; but at night, there is nothing between us and that great black velvet
jeweler’s drape with its billions of gems twinkling and glinting across it,
reinforcing our belief that God is, indeed, up there on his throne watching us,
guiding us, protecting us. (Job 22:12) How miraculous is it that, as far away
as God is in his heavenly mansion, he is with us in the blink of an eye when we
need him and call upon his holy name!
How blessed we are to merit this concern, this attention, this great
love! How special we are to God, and how much faith he places in us to carry
forth his light into the world! The vastness of his heavens, and all that is in
them, reminds us of our smallness and puts us into perspective. But when we
look up and realize their limitless bounds, we know just how great his love for
us is. (Psalms 8:3-4)
(All Scripture passages are taken from the New International Version
(NIV) of the Holy Bible.)
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