He Holds All Things Together

The Son is the gleaming brightness of God's glory. He is the exact likeness of God's being. He uses his powerful word to hold all things together.

Hebrews 1:3a

That is an amazing statement. It is put in the present tense, saying that he is the One who is keeping things going right now. Stanford University is the site of a linear accelerator, a mighty two-mile long atom smasher. It is a great lever with which scientists try to pry the lid off the secrets of matter and discover what is in the miniature world of the atom, the neutron, and the proton. Linear Accelerator scientists have discovered a complexity they never dreamed of, and they have found particles that they cannot even invent enough names for. But one thing they are consistently discovering is that there is some strange force that holds everything together. They do not know what to call it, and they do not know how to identify it. They talk about a kind of cosmic glue that holds things together. Isn't it fascinating that here in the Word of God you have that exact kind of terminology used of Jesus! If you want a name for the force that holds the universe together it is very simple: His name is Jesus. He sustains the universe by his powerful word.

That is not only true of the physical universe, including our bodies and all that we are, but it is true of all the other forces and powers in the universe — physical, psychological, social, spiritual, whatever; he is in charge of them all. After the resurrection, when our Lord appeared to the disciples by the Sea of Galilee, in the most forthright terms, simple, artlessly, he said to them, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. (Matthew 28:18b KJV) This means he not only controls all the physical forces of the planet and the universe, but he controls all the events that occur upon them. This is something Christians tend to forget. We get so used to seeing things through the secular eyes of the media, and other propaganda forces around us, that we forget that behind the events that fill the pages of our newspapers is a mighty controlling hand that brings them all together, permitting some things to happen, restraining other things.

I recall the life of General Douglas MacArthur and those turbulent days of World War II when he was the Commander in the Pacific; then his moving on to Japan where he became a virtual Emperor; then the days of the Korean War where MacArthur was the Commander. It is fascinating to me to remember the headlines and the events that seemed so important at the time. I remember how angry the whole nation became at President Truman when he dismissed MacArthur, and the tremendous, ecstatic response the General received when he returned, first in San Francisco and later in New York. The whole nation was almost groveling at his feet.

And yet those events seem far away and insignificant now. They do not seem to have much bearing on today. I know that these events that capture our attention today are likewise going to seem faded and trivial soon. Yet they are not without meaning. The Bible tells us a mighty hand is shaping the destiny of nations and of individuals. All of these things have been and will always remain in the power of him who sustains the universe by the word of his power.

Lord Jesus, thank you that you are the One who holds all things together. Teach me to trust in you, even when things seem to be falling apart.