The Names of Christ
"NAMES OF CHRIST"© -is a book written by Dr. James Modlish
-reprinted here with the author's permission-

Lesson Nineteen

Sun of Righteousness
(Malachi 4:2)

Introduction: "For the Lord God is a sun and shield" (Ps. 84:11). The Lord is compared to the Sun and more specifically, Jesus Christ is called the day - spring (Lk. 1:78). The sun that shines in the sky, some 93 million miles from the earth, is full of types of the triune Godhead. We will observe several demonstrations of these types. 

I. THE TRINITY

A. The components of the sun -About three-fourths of the sun's mass consists of hydrogen, the lightest known element. Almost a fourth of the sun's mass consists of helium. Because the sun is made up entirely of gas it is invisible, yet it is visible. God obviously has both characteristics as (1 Tim. 3:16 and Jn. 1:18) reveal to us.

B. The rays of the sun - Since the Godhead can be clearly seen (Rom. 1:20) and Jesus Christ is likened to the "sun," we may conclude that He is the source of all spiritual life, all spiritual warmth, all spiritual growth, and all spiritual sight in this world. The sun has alpha, beta, and gamma rays (rays which can be seen, but not felt; felt, but not seen; and rays which can be neither felt nor seen!) 

II. THE LOVE OF GOD

Since God is love (1 Jn. 4:16), it is reasonable to conclude that all blessings come from Him (Jam. 1:17). It is universally recognized that without the sun, like as we know it, would not exist on the earth.

A. The sun provides our food - All living things - both plants and animals - are part of a process called the food chain. The food chain starts with green plants. These plants make their own food through the process of photosynthesis.

During photosynthesis, plants combine energy from sunlight with carbon dioxide from the air, and water from the soil, to make food. In the process, the plants give off oxygen. Some plants are eaten by animals, which in turn are eaten by larger animals, Man eats both animals and plants. Man and animals breath the oxygen that the plants release during photosynthesis. They exhale the carbon dioxide that, in turn, is used by plants (Phil. 4:19).

B. The sun provides our energy - Plants use sunlight for photosynthesis. Animals eat the plants, and man uses both plants and animals for food, clothing, and shelter.

Even the artificial light we use comes from the sun, for that is manufactured by power plants that use fossil fuels; coal, oil, and natural gas. These fuels come from plants and animals that lived long age.

In addition, man uses sunlight for power in other ways. For example, the effects of sunlight cause wind, which man uses to power windmills. Sunlight also evaporates water which falls as rain and snow,

The water forms rivers. Hydroelectric power plants on the rivers use the power of moving water to generate electricity. Solar energy is also becoming more and more popular. In the plainest possible words - energy is power, that we cannot live without, (Matt. 28:18).

C. The sun regulates our weather - Sunlight has a great influence on the earth's weather. For example, it evaporates water from rivers, lakes, and oceans, and this water later falls as rain or snow.

When the water is suspended in the atmosphere clouds appear. They reflect sunlight back into space. Sunlight also comes to the earth at various angles during different seasons. Clouds, and the angle at which sunlight reaches the earth, result in uneven heating of the earth's atmosphere. This uneven heating causes differences in air pressure. Air moves from high pressure areas to low pressure areas, causing wind and changes in weather.

Weather can be a blessing, (Deut. 28:12) or a curse, (Deut. 28:24) depending upon our obedience to God. (See Job 37:22 and 1 Kings 17:1)

III. THE GLORY OF GOD

The glory of God is demonstrated through the sun several ways:

A. Its vastness - The diameter of the sun is about 865,000 miles, about 109 times the diameter of the earth. The sun is 740 times more massive than its nine major planets together. These figures remind us of the insignificance of man in the light of God's attributes. (See Jer. 23:23,24; Hab. 3:3; Ps. 139:7-12; Ps. 19:1; Job 25:3, 22:12; Ps. 113:4)

B. Its colors - According to "World Book" encyclopedia, "The sunlight given off by the sun's surface is made up of many colors. These colors are not all equally bright. Various elements in the photosphere absorb some of the colors and prevent the sun from giving off those colors. Scientist can see what colors are absorbed by passing sunlight through a glass prism to form a spectrum." Various colors have always been used to describe the glory of God. (See Eze. 1:26-28; Rev. 4:3; 10:1)

A prism, be it natural (rainbow) or man made allows us to see a small part of the color of the sun.

The part that we can actually see is so small - "For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face:" (1 Cor. 13:12) that we can have little appreciation for all that will someday be made available. The earth only receives about one two billionth of the sun's light and heat. The prism that God has given us to get a better picture is HIS WORD.
 

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