Deep Inside You, Dead Things Come To Life

by Eric Elkin

“…So Abraham is our father in the eyes of God in whom he had faith, the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that don’t exist into existence.”

— Romans 4:17

In a world of misinformation, who do you know to trust? As social media platforms grow and gain influence, so does the production of misinformation. Some reports produced on the internet are biased to the left. Other stories lean to the right. There is the news released with sinister intent. Then there are contradicting opinions and all-out lies.

So what news should we trust? I trust news released by Reuters. Tests have shown it to be consistently one of the most reliable, least biased news sources. NPR produces very reliable information but is biased to the left. So I will listen to it with a filter in place.

One thing I do know is to pay attention to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Even reliable resources make mistakes, so blind trust is never a good thing. However, when the CDC is worried about an oncoming virus, we should pay attention to their concerns. The doctors and scientists in the Center spend their entire lives trying to protect us. We should respect their knowledge.

Even before COVID-19, the virus know as coronavirus, hit the news a virus battle was raging within every human being. Long after the news of it is gone, the virus battle will continue. Each mammal on earth carries an estimated 58 viruses. Collectively, scientists estimate there are 225 million cubic meters of viruses on earth. None of them care what you think about them.

“When things get bad enough, then something happens to correct the course. And it’s for that reason that I speak about evolution as an error-making and an error-correcting process. And if we can be ever so much better - ever so much slightly better - at error correcting than at error making, then we’ll make it.”

— Jonas Salk

When I sat down to read this passage from Romans, my mind focused on a simple verse. We trust the God who “gives life to the dead and calls things that don’t exist into existence.” Two things hit me about this verse. One, is God a reliable source of information? A source we can trust? Two, what do the laws of the universe say about life and death?

I found a short little video explaining the difference, or lack thereof, between life and death. The video explained how the cells in your body are all dead. They only have a life as they react to other cells and chemicals in your body. These reactions produce proteins. Everything operates by the laws of the universe.

Without getting too complicated, there were some simple lessons I gleaned from the video. Such as, nothing in your body has life on its own. Every cell, every strand of DNA, needs to be in a relationship with something to have life. Some of these relationships are good. Some, like viruses, can be bad, bad to the point of being lethal.

The other fascinating thing is how dead things come to life through relationships. Inside your body, ever micro-second of your life, dead things are coming to life. Your entire existence depends upon these relationships and reactions.

What takes place inside your body is also happening on a grand scale among planets. These laws do not care if you trust them or not. They could care less if you believe in them or not. And, they don’t care if you worship them or not. Yet, laid out in front of you is the mystery of life.

I doubt Paul knew much about the laws of the universe when he wrote the Letter to the Romans. However, in his relationship with Christ, he seems to have learned a lot about it. I invite you to consider Paul’s words may not just be an opinion or trusting a fairy tale. They may just be the secret of the universe.

These secrets tell us, your life is healthier with good relationships in it. They remind us nothing is dead beyond the point of new life. And, all of this takes place, whether you believe or not. I’m just telling you those who do trust the information find life and find it abundantly.

Click to read Romans 4:1-5, 13-17