Take for example the astrophysicist or those who plan to land a spacecraft on, say, Mars. If they don’t factor the Julian Day Number into their calculations, there is a strong possibility the spacecraft will end up anywhere but the selected site on Mars.

Every day since creation, each day has been numbered, and Julian Day zero was (for the sake of using the present-day calendar system) January 1, 4713BC. If you are reading this at noon on May 26, 2018, you may be interested to learn that today’s Julian Day Number is 2,458,265.0 (because the Julian Day commences and finishes at noon). If the time happens to be 12.45pm plus 6 seconds, the Julian Day Number will be 2,458,265.017889. It can be narrowed down to the split second, and it must be if the spacecraft is to land on Mars at the appointed time.

The question could be asked: “What is so significant about January 1, 4713BC?” Why does that date have to be plugged into a calculation that will determine whether my space-craft will end up on Mars at the appointed time, or somewhere else? Why is the Julian Day Number so essential in calculating the heliographic coordinates of a sunspot on the surface of the sun, or the perturbations of a planet’s orbit? 

If today’s Julian Day Number is divided by the number of days in a year, we end up with a figure close to 6735 years. Allowing for variations in the number of days in a year across the millennia, this supports the theory of a young earth. Maybe the Julian Day Number is a reminder that God needs to be factored into the equations regardless of whether we give him any credence or not.

The Bible commences with: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” There can be only one beginning; this is why it is preceded by the definite article.

In the Bible, God offers the reader an invitation: “Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens and see who created all these stars . . .  he has named them all because of his greatness, might, and power.” (Isaiah 40.26).