(II) God Is the Source of Life for All Things

Today I will fellowship about a new topic with you. What will the topic be? The title of the topic will be “God Is the Source of Life for All Things.” Isn’t this a fairly large topic to discuss? Does it feel like something that might be a little out of reach? God being the source of life for all things might seem like a topic that people feel detached from, but all who follow God must understand it. This is because this subject is inextricably linked with each person knowing God, being able to satisfy Him, and revere Him. Therefore, this topic must be communicated. Some people may have a basic understanding of this topic, or perhaps some people are aware of it: They may have a simplistic knowledge of it in their hearts, just a superficial understanding. Others may have a special familiarity with it; due to their unique experiences, in their hearts they have a profound understanding of it. But whether knowledge of this is deep or superficial, for you it is one-sided and not sufficiently specific. So, this topic must be communicated, the purpose of which is to give you a more specific and deeper understanding; this is very crucial. I will use a special method to fellowship about this topic with you, a method we have not used before and one that you may find a bit unusual, or a bit uncomfortable. Nonetheless, after you hear it you will know it, whatever the method may be. Do you like listening to stories? (We do.) What type of story do you like to hear? Fairy tales, fables or science fiction? (Fables.) (A story about God and man.) Are there stories about God and man? (Yes.) There are stories about God and man that happen near you every day. Do I even need to mention them? Whoever likes stories please raise your hands, and then I can see how many people like to hear stories. It seems that I was right to choose the method of telling a story. You all like to hear stories. OK then, let’s begin! You don’t need to write this down in your notes. I ask that you be calm, and not fidget. You may close your eyes if you feel that having your eyes open would cause you to be distracted by your surroundings or the people around you. I have a wonderful little story to tell you. It is a story about a seed, the earth, a tree, the sunlight, the songbirds, and man. Don’t fall asleep. Do you hear Me? The story I am going to tell has what main characters in it? (A seed, the earth, a tree, the sunlight, the songbirds, and man.) Will God be in it? (No.) You haven’t heard it, right? But I am sure that after the story is told you will feel relaxed and content. Alright then, you may listen quietly.

Story 1. A Seed, the Earth, a Tree, the Sunlight, the Songbirds, and Man

A small seed fell to the earth. After a great rain blew by, the seed grew a tender sprout and its roots delved slowly into the soil below. The sprout grew tall in time, braving winds cruel and rain deep, seeing the changing of the seasons as the moon waxed and waned. In the summer, the earth brought forth gifts of water so that the sprout could endure the scorching heat. And because of the earth, the sprout did not feel the heat and thus it survived the heat of summer. When winter fell, the earth enveloped the sprout in its warm embrace and they clutched one another tightly. And because of the warmth of the earth, the sprout survived the bitter cold, passing unharmed through the wintry gales and snowfall of the season. Sheltered by the earth, the sprout grew brave and was happy. It grew tall and proud from the selfless nurturing the earth provided. The sprout grew happily. It sang as the rain splashed down and it danced and swayed as the wind blew. And thus, the sprout and the earth depend on one another …

Years passed, and the sprout was now a towering tree. It had grown stout branches tipped with countless leaves and stood strong upon the earth. The tree’s roots dug into the earth as they had before, but they now plunged deep into the soil below. What had once protected the sprout was now the foundation for the mighty tree.

A ray of sunlight shown down on the tree and the trunk shook. The tree reached out its branches wide and drew deeply from the light. The earth below breathed in rhythm with the tree, and the earth felt renewed, and just then, a fresh breeze blew among the branches, and the tree trembled in delight, bursting with energy. And thus, the tree and the sunlight depend on one another …

People sat in the cool shade of the tree and they basked in the brisk, fragrant air. The air cleansed their hearts and lungs, and it cleansed the blood within. The people no longer felt weary or burdened. And thus, the people and the tree depend on one another …

A flock of songbirds chirped as they alighted on the branches of the tree. Perhaps they were evading some foe, or they were breeding and raising their young, or maybe they were just taking a short rest. And thus, the birds and the tree depend on one another …

The roots of the tree, twisted and tangled, dug deep into the earth. Its trunk sheltered the earth from the wind and rain and it stretched out its great branches and protected the earth below it, and the tree did this because the earth is its mother. They live together, depend on one another, and they shall never dwell apart …

So, the story is at an end. You may open your eyes now. I told a story about a seed, the earth, a tree, the sunlight, the songbirds, and man. The story only has a few parts to it. What feelings did it give you? Having told it this way, do you understand it? (We understand.) You may talk about your feelings. So, what do you feel after hearing this story? (It is very moving and it seems to be a story about God and man and that this is the way that He nurtures man, protects man so that afterward man can grow strong. When a man becomes a true man he can understand God’s love and return that love to Him. God is inextricably close to man.) I shall first tell you, all of the things I mentioned you can see with your own eyes and they can be touched by your own hands; these are real things, not metaphors. I want you to go ahead and think about what I discussed. Nothing I covered was profound, and there are a few sentences that form the main point of the story. (Whether it is a plant or an animal, whether it is a bird or a man, the source of its life is God.) What else? (Even though the events in the story are things that happen near us, we nonetheless often neglect the rule of God. God says it very naturally and it very naturally happens right beside us, yet within that is the rule of God. God rules all things and is the source of life for all things.) (The words God has spoken are simple, they are there for us to understand and to let us know that it is God’s rule that has arranged all things.) Is there anything else to add? (The story we heard paints a beautiful picture: The seed comes to life and as it grows it experiences the four seasons of the year: spring, summer, fall, and winter. The earth is like a mother in the way it nurtures. It gives warmth in winter so that the sprout may survive the cold. After the sprout has matured into a tree, a ray of sunshine touches upon its branches, bringing the tree much joy. We see that among all things of God’s creation, the earth is alive and that it depends on the tree. We also see that the sunlight brings so much warmth to the tree, and even though birds are common things to see, we see how the birds, the tree, and the people all come together in harmony. When we hear this story this is the feeling we have in our hearts that, actually, all things of God’s creation are alive.) Well said! Does anyone have anything else to add? (In the story as the seed sprouts and grows into a towering tree, we see the wondrous things that God has made. God made all things live and depend on one another and they are all connected to one another. We see God’s wisdom, His wonder, and we see that all the things God has created serve one another and that He is the source of life for all things.)

All of the things I just talked about are things you have seen before, like seeds, you know about this, right? A seed growing into a tree might not be a process you see in detail, but you know that it is a fact, right? (Yes.) You know about the earth and the sunlight, right? The image of songbirds perching in a tree is a thing all people have seen, right? (Yes.) And people cooling off in the shade of a tree, you’ve all seen that, right? (We have seen that.) So what feeling do you get when you see all these examples in one image? (Harmony.) Do all the examples that exist in this image come from God? (Yes.) As they come from God, God knows the value and significance of these several examples existing together on the earth. When God created all things, He had a plan for each item, and each thing He created shows His intentions and He imbues life in them. He created the living environment for mankind, which is discussed in the story we just heard. It discussed the interdependence the seed and the earth have; the earth nourishes the seed and the seed is bound to the earth. The relationship between these two was predetermined by God from the very beginning, right? (Yes.) The tree, the sunlight, the songbirds, and man in this image, are they an example of the living environment that God created for mankind? (Yes.) First, can the tree leave the earth? (No.) Can the tree be without sunlight? (No.) Then what was God’s purpose for creating the tree, can we say that it was just for the earth? Can we say that it was just for the songbirds? Can we say that it was just for the people? (No.) What is the relationship between them? The relationship between them is one of interdependence wherein they cannot be separated. The earth, the tree, the sunlight, the songbirds, and the people rely on one