How the Moon is God’s Powerful Witness

The Faithful Witness in the Sky

When I was a child, some of my favorite nights going to sleep were the nights when moonbeams would shine on my face from the window above my bed. I’d look up and see a full moon lighting up the sky and would smile. It was like a giant night-light for me. The night felt less scary. My world seemed more at peace as I looked into the night sky, and it felt as if God was saying to me, “Go to sleep little one, I’m watching over you.”

It was at those moments when I could almost tangibly feel the presence of God. That presence all stemmed from the giant flashlight in the sky. And with the moonbeams shining on my face, I would peacefully fall asleep.

A Flashlight in the Sky

Have you ever felt the comfort of the moon’s light in your life? It is a witness to the majesty and power of God. As I have grown and have studied more about the moon, it has become clearer to me how much a witness to God’s majesty our moon is. Beyond fulfilling its creative purpose to lighting the darkness, the moon is a shining light and testimony of God’s faithfulness. It is a witness to us all of how we should illuminate our world as we walk with Christ. Let’s take a look at how the moon testifies to each of us.

And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:14-18

God designed the moon for a very unique purpose. It was created to provide light at night and to mark the seasons and the days. Without the light of the moon, very little natural light would be available for us at night. Darkness would prevail.

Before the man-made electric city lights we all rely on were invented, lanterns and torches were the only man-made options to light the night. These flame-based lights didn’t provide the kind of light we are used to. Shadows filled the room. If you’ve ever been camping, you know how dark it can be even with a roaring campfire to light the night.

Without the light of the moon, the night is so dark. But when the moon shines brightly, it is easier to navigate in the darkness. God gave us a light to help us to see and to guide us in the night.

Blocking the Light

Have you ever considered how that light from the moon is a lot like us? After all, the moon is just a giant reflective rock. The moon which lights our dark nights has no light of its own. Like us, the moon merely reflects the Light that God gives us. Much like a mirror reflecting light, the moon reflects the sun’s light onto the earth, but its brightness each night is determined by where the moon is in the night sky.

A full moon is only available to us for a few nights each month. As the cycle of the moon progresses, we get a “smaller” moon each night until only a small crescent is showing. Why? Because the moon itself is blocking the light of the sun from reflecting onto the earth. This is God’s design for the moon, but it is not His desire for us. His design for us is spelled out in Second Corinthians.

For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

2 Corinthians 4:6

Too often, we miss God’s design for us. We block the light of the SON in our lives by getting in the way. We become more concerned about our own pursuits and desires rather than God’s. And just as the moon dims each month into a small sliver of light because it blocks the sun, we block God’s light for others to see. We become no more than a crescent moon to others around us, providing very little useful light. How can others see Jesus if our lives are crowded by selfish passions and pursuits? The night grows darker for people when we get in the way of God’s light.

Marking Days and Seasons

There’s another aspect of the moon, though, that a lot of people don’t realize. Genesis tells us that the moon was created to help mark off days and seasons, which is exactly what the moon does. Before the solar calendar was put in place, much of the world followed a Lunar calendar, including the Jews. The cycle of the moon determined when Jewish holidays would be celebrated. This is one of the reasons Easter is on a different date every year because it is based on the Jewish Passover Holiday, which is based on a Lunar Calendar instead of a Solar Calendar.

More importantly, though, the moon helps to control and regulate the seasons. Without the gravitational force exerted by the moon on the Earth, the Earth’s axis would not hold at the steady tilt it is at to provide stable and predictable seasons of spring, summer, fall, and winter. Without the moon helping to hold the Earth’s axis in place, we would never know what kind of season would be coming next.

Thousands of years before scientists discovered the axis stabilization by the moon, God spoke of it in Psalm 104:19:

The moon marks off the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down.

Psalm 104:19

Notice the verse says the moon marks off the seasons, not the sun. The sun’s design is to light and warm the earth. The moon, on the other hand, is designed to help the earth rotate properly to get the full benefit of the sun’s warming rays. Isn’t is amazing how God’s Word always tells the truth!

Purposeful Design

Aside from the amazing scientific truth found in the Bible about the moon, this great truth of the gravitational pull of the moon makes me stop and think about my own life. Am I fulfilling the purpose God designed for me?

Whatever and however God has uniquely skilled you, He has called you to glorify Him in your own special way.

God’s Word tells us why the moon was created, and it fulfills every aspect of its intended design. But do I fulfill God’s intended design for me? All of us are called to have a relationship with God, and to glorify Him with our lives. Do I do that? Do you do that? Are you faithfully fulfilling the role God has given you?

Each of us is uniquely designed to fulfill our purpose. Some glorify God with their words, some glorify with their hands. Others do so with their songs. Whatever and however God has uniquely skilled you, He has called you to glorify Him in your own special way, as we’re told here:

Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:17

Tidal Stability vs. Stagnation

One other important purpose of the moon also points to the majesty of our great Creator in its unique ability to control the tides of the earth. The gravitational pull of the moon affects the earth and its seasons, but it also controls the tides of our oceans.

The moon is the reason we have high and low tides each day. This tidal flow is essential for life to exist on this planet. Without the tidal flow of the oceans, the ocean waters would soon stagnate, killing plant life in the ocean, which in turn would kill off all life in the seas. Since the ocean’s plant life accounts for most of the oxygen produced for our planet, there would not even be enough oxygen for us to breathe without the tides. Even our ability to breathe is impacted by the moon!

Spiritually speaking, how regular are the tides in your life? Have they grown stagnate because of the lack of God’s light in your own life? God’s Word is the gravitational pull in our lives. If we don’t regularly spend time in His Word, the tides slow down. They become irregular. Our lives begin to stagnate. We begin to spiritually stink, but worse yet, we begin to grow weak, and eventually we can even suffocate spiritually without a regular tidal flow of God’s Word in our lives.

A Faithful Witness

[David’s royal line] will be established forever like the moon, the faithful witness in the sky.

Psalm 89:37

Psalm 89:37 calls the Moon, “The faithful witness in the sky.” What is it a witness of? Not only does the moon give us light, help control the seasons, and help sustain life, it is a nightly reminder of God’s faithfulness to us. Our world is plunged into darkness, much like the Earth is darkened at night. Without the light of the moon, we cannot see at night. Spiritually, our world is in darkness. The only light it sees is the light reflecting off of us from Christ. Someday, Jesus the Light will return in His full Glory, more glorious than the noonday sun! But for now, we are the witnesses of Christ’s light in a world of darkness.

So, the next time you look at the moon, think of it as a faithful witness, as God has called it. That giant rock in the sky was designed to be a whole lot more than a child’s giant night-light. It lights up the sky. It controls the seasons, and provides a sustainable environment for life on our planet. The moon points to the majesty of God. It truly is the faithful witness in the sky.

The next time you are out at night, take a moment and look at the moon. Remember it is a testimony of our God. It is a reminder to you to be a faithful witness as well. Shine brightly, and fulfill God’s unique design for you. Be like the moon, and light the world!

“Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:16

So remember… Like the moon, be a faithful witness for God…

And shine!

For Further Study:

Read 2 Corinthians 4:4-7.

What vessel is described in this passage?

What treasure is contained in these vessels?

Where does this treasure of light originate? How are we a reflection of God’s light?

Consider the different phases of the moon.

Spiritually speaking, are you more of a full moon or a crescent?

If you are more of a crescent, what do you need to change to shine God’s light more fully in your life?

H