Readings for today: Genesis 8-10, Matthew 4:12-25, Psalms 4, Proverbs 1:20-23
“And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. The fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth and upon every bird of the heavens, upon everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea. Into your hand they are delivered. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything...And you, be fruitful and multiply, increase greatly on the earth and multiply in it." (Genesis 9:1-3, 7)
As I’ve mentioned before, we will see a pattern repeat itself throughout the Bible. Humanity is lifted up by God. Loved by God. Blessed by God. God covenants with them to be their God and they to be His people. We saw this happen with Adam and Eve. We saw this happen with Seth. We see this happening with Noah and his family. We will see it with Abram and Sarai and the rest of the patriarchs/matriarchs. We will see it with Moses and Joshua. Samuel and David. Finally, we will see this pattern find it’s completion and fulfillment in Jesus Himself. God continuing to pursue His people throughout history. However, despite God’s faithfulness, humanity remains faithless. We abandon Him. We abandon His ways. We rebel against His laws. We reject His will. Our lives descend into chaos and pain and death. Thus the need for covenant renewal.
The words above from Genesis 9 should sound familiar. They are a restatement of the creation mandate God first gave Adam and Eve in Genesis 1. “And God said to them, "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...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. You shall have them for food. And 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. 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.” (Genesis 1:28-31) This is God’s will for all humanity. He creates us so we will be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth with His image. His glory. His love. His grace. His purpose for our lives is dominion. He has given the entire earth over to our care. Every plant. Every tree. Every animal. Every bird. Every fish. And this is very good in God’s eyes.
The problem, of course, is we are such terrible stewards. We exploit the earth for its resources. We consume far more than we need or could ever want. We over-indulge. We are gluttonous. We are drunkards. We are wasteful. And this is no politically liberal diatribe. Facts are facts. We use and abuse the earth to satisfy our every desire. Look at the amount of trash in our oceans. Look at the amount of waste in our landfills. Look at the obesity rates in our country or the rates of addiction. Think about your own life and how this manifests itself. Where do you over-indulge? Where do you drink or eat or use energy to excess? Consider a personal audit of your finances and your time and your talent...how much of it is being spent on you or your family? And how much of it is being directed outward towards the planet God has entrusted into your care? Towards others who are in need? Towards God and His ministry in the world?
Creation care is a divine mandate. We should be concerned about our footprint on the earth. We should be concerned about climate change and how much of it is man-made. We should be constantly seeking renewable and sustainable ways to use energy. We should consider our rate of consumption. Not because we are being forced to culturally. Not because we align with some kind of political party or another. Not because ranchers and farmers and oil and gas folks are evil. They are not. No, we engage on these issues because we are Christians and God has given us dominion. Furthermore, we know God expects us to exercise that dominion unselfishly, for the good of the world He loves so much. In this way, we are actually practicing for heaven. We are getting prepared for glory. For when the new heavens and new earth come, the creation mandate will be renewed once again and we will be sent out to care for all God has made for all eternity.
Readings for tomorrow: Genesis 11-13:4, Matthew 5:1-26, Psalms 5, Proverbs 1:24-28