"Entropy in an information system is the natural tendency to move from order to disorder. The ultimate result is chaos."
The idea of entropy was first established in the laws of thermodynamics by physicists attempting to describe chaotic things happening in a given system, and how long they could expect this chaos to continue before reaching some kind of equilibrium (not the best definition, I'm sure, but I paraphrase; hopefully no physicist will leave hate comments below). However, the quote above was taken from a business article (by Mark A. Coudray, found here: http://www.screenweb.com/content/systems-order-entropy-and-chaos-why-its-so-hard-keep-things-running-smoothly#.USti7TK9Kc). It, along with the laws of thermodynamics, talks about how we have to put work into a system to prevent the loss of energy, and prevent the increase of chaos.
Physicists and businessmen, mathematicians and simple observers of nature can discern that disorder and chaos runs rampant through all systems (meteors fragmenting through our atmosphere, cancer, rust, rot, etc.). And moms--how about laundry and toys constantly ending up in chaos in our closed systems (houses)? My chaos has yet to reach its equilibrium state, but then again, there's a red-headed two-year-old acting as an entropy object lesson for the time being. I mean, talk about having to put work into a system to prevent chaos!
Anyway, thanks to aforementioned physicists and businessmen, mathematicians, astronomers, doctors, and a host of other experts and professionals, most of these things can be explained to some degree, yet they cannot be completely prevented. Chaos happens.
So what do we do? Despair? At first glance, perhaps we should. Many cancers have been treated, but a complete cure has not been found, and it is certainly a long way from being altogether eradicated. We could send probes into deep space, but still never be able to prevent a meteor from crashing through our atmosphere when its path intersects ours (although it does provide material for some questionable sci-fi and action movie plots--I'm talking about you, writers of 1998's Armageddon). Additionally, all these problems of chaos and more can ultimately be explained as effects of sin in the world, or the fall of man, so we are all then culpable for the state in which we find ourselves. But are we left to perish in this darkness? (The answer is no, but read on for proof...)
"He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son He loves. We have redemption, the forgiveness of sins, in Him. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by Him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together." Colossians 1:13-17
Did you catch that? "By Him all things hold together." And again, He "sustains all things by His powerful word." (Hebrews 1:3)
"In the beginning was the Word [Jesus], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created. Life was in Him, and that life was the light of men. That light shines in the darkness, yet the darkness did not overcome it." John 1:1-5
So all things were created through Jesus, He is our life, and darkness cannot overcome Him. How's that for overcoming despair in the midst of darkness and chaos? God not only created all things through Jesus, sustains and holds all things together through Jesus, but in Jesus is also making all things new! "Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away. Then the One seated on the throne said, 'Look! I am making everything new.' He also said, 'Write, because these words are faithful and true.'" (Revelation 21:3-5)
"In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself." (2 Corinthians 5:19) And when we are reconciled to Him in Christ, He makes us new too: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation...not counting their trespasses against them." (2 Corinthians 5:17-19) So no longer is the law of chaos, spawned by our sin, our ultimate plight. “For our sake, [God] made the One who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)
So God, through Jesus, created all things; sustains, and holds all things together by the word of His power; and redeems His creation from chaos and His people out of darkness, "so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." We have all had a part in the chaos of the universe, and certainly in our own finite lives, but God sovereignly orders it all, to the glory of His righteousness. Be reconciled to Him through Jesus today, dear brothers and sisters. Live in chaos no more.
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