Genesis 1
And God blessed them. And God said to them,S)">(S) "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth." 29And God said, "Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit.T)">(T) You shall have them for food. 30AndU)">(U) to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food." And it was so. 31V)">(V) And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
Today is Earth Day. God blessed us by giving us dominion over this planet on which we live, and all living things. We are charged with caring for it. For tending this fallen garden. For redeeming what once was.
You'll notice God did this in His perfectly-designed plan for man. Not after the fall when sin had entered and corrupted things. Beforehand. That means it is a good and perfect thing to do, tending this spherical garden that orbits our sun.
I believe this is something Christians, especially more conservative and traditional ones, have forsaken. Yes, we love the earth. Yes, we acknowledge that we are in charge of it. But our actions show little care for it.
What usually happens on Earth Day is conservative Christians cry out against those unlike them who have taken up this worthy banner. Yes, many environmentalists probably worship the created more than the creator. But, why do we insist on condemning the day because they have taken leadership on that which we've neglected? Why is it wrong to care about the good stewardship of our planet? Surely there are limitations to our abilities, and God is always Sovereign, but can we not labor with God as he blessed us to do in the garden, free from all anxiety of what may ultimately result environmentally?
Why not reassert God's design that His chosen ones should lead in caring for God's work which He labored for six days to bless us with dominion over? Why must we insist on polluting it spiritually with anger and frustration? Can we not join where we can in this endeavor and reclaim it, thereby realigning it to its proper focus? Why do we not redeem this day and turn attention to what God would like - a day of special remembrance for this most noble creation which is a joy and blessing to us?
We also often forget the salvific power that our earth can project for Christ.
Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Jesus Himself tells us that even if his disciples are silenced, the "rocks will cry out". (Luke 19:40) That's right - God's creation relays the gospel to mankind! Even if we are silenced, God's creation will still declare the glory of God and call mankind to worship Him. Why then not work on preserving what Jesus Himself told us is a witness to Him? What a way for those of us not gifted evangelically to participate in the story He is unfolding amongst us, while our work of preservation helps that message continue to be heard?
Why then do we celebrate this only one day? Why not an entire week celebrating the creation story? Every day could pattern one of God's day of creation. What an act of thankfulness that would be!
So, celebrate Earth Day with me today, and thank the creator for blessing us with this gift of caring for His work! May we preserve the majesty and power of His creation, thereby assisting Christ as He draws people to Himself through the awe and wonder of such beauty!
