Asking for a Friend | What About Caring for God's Creation?

I want to welcome you today with the words of Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him.” Psalm 24:1, NIV

‌

Today, no matter what you may be feeling or experiencing, take hope and take heart that nothing is beyond the Lord’s reach, nothing is beyond the Lord’s knowledge. He knows you, he loves you, and in Christ, he calls you his own.

‌

Today, we're asking for a friend, “Does Jesus care about creation?” As Christians, what is our responsibility, if any, to the environment, the climate, this planet, and, even, beyond?

‌

How does God’s Word speak to this question? Did Jesus give any insight into caring for creation?

Does this question even matter?

‌

According to a Pew Research poll released this past November, about half of you just answered “not really.”

‌‌

Last November, the Pew Research group released a nationwide survey that found 61% of deeply convicted people of faith do not believe that present day environmental issues concern them or their faith.

‌

Several other voices, however, state the contrary.

‌

In a January 2023 global survey conducted by the World Economic Forum, respondents ranked the most significant global risks threatening humanity over a 2-year and 10-year period of time. The following list shows the results:

‌

[[[show World Economic Forum pic]]]

‌

What do you see in this graphic?

Overwhelmingly, environmental issues rank among the greatest threats to global society, while 61% of deeply committed Christians in the United States do not even believe that environmental issues matter to them or their faith, which means a wide chasm exists right now between American Christians and people across the world on this issue.

‌

Today, my aim is to show that among any social, political, or religious groups in the world, Christians have the clearest mandate of all to lead the world on caring for creation.

‌

How do I make that claim? Let’s begin in the beginning. Genesis chapters one and two open with two similar but distinct creation narratives.

‌

In the first creation narrative, God created male and female, blessed them, and then charged them twice in verses 26 and 28 “to rule over all creation” NIV. Other translations might say ‘reign’ or ‘have dominion,’ but the meaning is the same.

‌

Underneath the English translation of ‘rule over’ is the Hebrew term ‘radah.’

‌

This term appears in several places throughout the Old Testament.

‌

In Leviticus 25, the author speaks to the master-servant relationship, saying: Do not rule over them ruthlessly, but fear your God. Leviticus 25:43.

‌

In Psalm 72, the Psalmist foreshadows the Messiah, writing: May the king’s rule be refreshing like spring rain on freshly cut grass, like the showers that water the earth. Psalm 72:8.

‌

In Genesis chapter 1, God grants human beings 'radah’ — ruling — authority over all creation.

‌

According to this first narrative, God clearly gave humanity the keys to the kingdom‌, and based on the definition of ‘radah’ authority, one could argue that God grants human beings his full permission to use the earth’s natural resources for any means necessary to advance society.

By itself, radah authority permits humanity to rule over creation however we desire.

‌

In the second creation narrative, however, the author records a very different word to describe how God invites humanity to relate with his good creation.

‌

Unlike ‘radah’ meaning ‘to rule,’ God calls humanity to 'abad’ creation in Genesis 2:15, “The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” Genesis 2:15, NIV

‌

Other translations might say ‘to tend,’ but the most literal translation of ‘abad’ means ‘to serve.’

‌

God doesn’t repeat the same charge from Genesis chapter 1 like we might expect in chapter 2.

‌

Rather, God compliments his charge to rule over by equally calling his people to serve.

‌

On the surface, the terms radah and abad appear in opposition to one another, but when held together, both creation accounts portray the image of a master embodying the ethos of a servant, or a king embracing the heart of a subject.

‌

Sounds impossible, right? Who would do that? Oh yeah, Jesus did that.

‌

In Philippians chapter 2, the Apostle Paul wrote,

‌

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!

‌

That’s ABAD!

‌

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:5–11.

‌

And that’s RADAH! He ruled from his rightful place as king.

He embodied the heart of a servant and the rule of a king.

‌

Amazing, right?

‌

From the beginning, God formed humanity with the same character of radah and abad as the Son.

‌

Though the commands ‘to rule’ and ‘to serve’ might seem incompatible on the surface, God calls us to hold them in tension together as stewards.

A steward is a person charged with the full authority and responsibility to care for something that belongs to someone else.

‌

You are a steward.

‌

You have been given authority over priceless value that does not belong to you, such as:

‌

God’s world.

‌

Your life - You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NIV

‌

Your family. Every parent knows that their child is a gracious gift from above!

‌

And your gifts, for God formed them in you.

‌

As God’s steward over the world, you have been charged to radah and to abad, to rule and to serve.

‌

If we lean too far on the radah side of God’s charge, then we risk believing a lie that we own creation, including our very lives.

‌

If we lean too far on the abad side, then we risk becoming passive and aloof to the needs of creation and one another.

‌

Instead, we are like lessees to our God who is our lessor, and because of his great love for us, he has given us permission to shape and help realize the potential of his creation. God gave us a mind like his own to imagine ideas and bring them forth into reality, not as god but as creatures in his creation.

‌

This is one the most difficult realities for us to grasp because the loudest and most authoritative voices in our culture consistently tell us that we are autonomous, powerful, and smart enough to bend the world to meet our desires, but when we live like owners in a house that does not belong to us, we not only usurp God’s role but we also do harm to God’s creation, including ourselves as inhabitants of the same ecosystem that God’s creatures depend on us to protect.

‌

This is why the laws that God gave about stewarding creation in Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy were so specific to the times back then, and why the spirit of that same law is timeless for us today.

Nearly every book of the Old Testament harkens back to God’s stewardship charge in Genesis 1 and 2, but what does Jesus and the New Testament say about creation care, if anything at all?

‌

As a matter of fact, Jesus’s very first words in ministry revealed his heart and intention for all creation. He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. Luke 4:18–19, NIV.

‌‌

In the phrase, “to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor,” Jesus referred to a command that God gave to Israel in Leviticus chapter 25 called the year of Jubilee, which provided a perfect sabbath year at the end of seven, 7-year cycles.

‌

Every 50 years, all of God’s people and their land rested. No work, no harvest, no slave, no debt, no war. Slaves and servants returned home. Debts were canceled. The land fallowed. And the nation lived at peace. Everyone and everything rested and reset.

‌

It was like a year long siesta, hang up and hang out.

‌

How many times do you think Israel obeyed this command over a 1500 year period of time between God giving the law and Jesus’s ministry?

‌

The obvious answer would be 30. 1500 divided by 50 equals 30, but the true answer is… 0

‌

Never once did Israel celebrate the year of Jubilee! Not one single time in nearly 1500 years of history. God gave Israel the ultimate test of trust with the ultimate reward of rest and provision, but the people just couldn’t obey it.

It was too demanding, which made Jesus’ words all the more inspiring for those self aware to their own needs, but awfully terrifying to others who placed their hope in the economy, their vocations, or the nation.

‌

In this declaration from Luke chapter 4, Jesus announced that he came to free us from sin AND to restore the earth and everything in it back to God’s living garden of delight.

Jesus didn’t come to free us from the world. He came to free us from sin so that we might live fully in this world.

We read Luke 4 today with so much hope, but how do you suppose the crowd of Israelites felt after hearing Jesus speak Isaiah’s words about the Messiah? 

A few verses later, Luke tells us that they tried to throw him off the mountainside.

‌

Why?

Because they knew what 'the year of the Lord’s favor’ meant, and they feared that Jesus would disrupt their livelihoods, personal desires, and national identity, and two millennia later, many still hold the same fears about Jesus. If Jesus’ way feels disruptive to you—your livelihood, personal desires, and national identity—then perhaps, those fears might be indicating areas that Jesus desires to release from you to give you freedom.

Jesus’ entire life pointed to the coming day when heaven and earth will become one, according to Revelation 21, and all creation will be restored.

Every miracle, every healing, and every forgiven sin was meant to direct our eyes like a signpost to our promised restoration with the Father.

Jesus restored a few to show God’s kingdom promises for all.

Eventually, the time will come when God as our lessor will return to claim from his stewards what he rightfully owns, and until that day comes, Jesus invites us to pray, “your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:10, NIV — To remind us that while we are creatures in his creation, he has given us his authoritative covering to advance his kingdom by stewarding creation and all within it.

Now, some of you might be thinking: yes… but… doesn’t our earth burn up in fire at the end, so ultimately, why does this matter? According to 2 Peter 3:10, NIV: The day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.” 2 Peter 3:10, NIV

‌

I believe this verse is one of the reasons why 61% of people with faith do not believe that environmental stewardship matters for them and their faith, but Peter isn’t describing how the earth ends. He’s telling a deep truth about God’s purifying judgment against sin.

‌

When the day of the Lord finally arrives, his wrath will permanently remove the cancerous evil that seeks to destroy this earth and our lives, and finish the defeat over the evil one that Jesus made victorious on the cross!

God’s justice is like a precise laser proton therapy, burning away the sin to save his creation.

‌

As Christ followers, this verse is good news about God’s good judgment, but it doesn’t record how the earth ends.

‌

The final day of the Lord is an amazing mystery about which we know very little, but here’s what we do know:

If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17, NIV

Present tense, here and now!

This is every believer’s truth. Your old life is over, and you are being made new into God’s family with the full rights and charge of stewardship that our Father afforded to our ancient parents.

As Christ followers, our foundation for stewardship is based on the following principles:

‌

1. All creation belongs to God.

‌

2. God charged humanity to rule over and to serve creation as his stewards.

3. Our sin pride has caused destruction not only in our own lives but also in creation.

‌

4. As our Messiah and King, Jesus will one day redeem all creation from sin, restore all creation back to right, and reconcile all creation with our Heavenly Father.

‌

Until then, Jesus invites us:

‌

5. To pray for his kingdom to come and his will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

‌

And,

6. To lead our lives with the same vision for restoration over creation as the Creator.

‌

This week, then, may I invite you to consider three opportunities for how to live God’s way with creation?

‌

First, invite God’s Spirit to renew your passion for God’s original charge on your life.

‌

You have been called to radah and to abad in every aspect of your life, and that charge has not changed since God first gave it in Genesis 1 and 2.

God made you a steward because he loves you, and all creation is depending on us, so when we either dodge our responsibility or use God’s charge for our selfish gain, we are sinning against God.

‌

Secular environmentalist, James Gustave Speth - chairman of the council of environmental quality under Jimmy Carter - said this at his retirement “I used to think that the top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse, and climate change. I thought that 30 years of good science could address these problems. But since then, I have realized that the top environmental problems are selfishness, greed, and apathy, and to deal with these, we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. We scientists don’t know how to do that.”

‌

But God’s people do, and When we invite Jesus to take the lead on our life, his love frees us from the oppressive shackles of sin’s greed to receive his favor and heed his charge!

At times, conversations on environmental issues use shame and blame to motivate people to action by making this issue all about recycling and conservation—which are good and necessary—but all that simply does is make your value based on what you can do for someone or something else.

Our charge to steward creation isn’t just about what you can do. It is fundamentally about who you are and whose you belong to.

‌

God gave you the privilege to steward because you bear his image.

He’s entrusted the garden to you because you are worthy of the honor to steward what belongs to God.

Second, read God’s Word wholly and completely.

‌

Like the crowd in Jesus’ day, other motivations took over God’s best for their lives to the point that they could not recognize the incarnate God standing in their midst.

‌

As a result, the tides of cultural, political, and social expectation swelled over their lives and swept them away from God’s charge.

‌

The way we rise above the ‘see level’ s-e-e level of societal trends to the heights of faith is by prayerfully reading God’s Word all the way through - not just the parts we like - in the fellowship of Christ’s Body, the church.

‌

Author and professor, Sandra Richter gave a compelling Christ-centered vision for environmental stewardship in a book titled Stewards of Eden. I highly recommend it to you on this topic. Richter wrote,

‌

From beginning to end, the Bible reveals God’s ideal for a world in which humanity would succeed in building human civilization in the midst of God’s kingdom by directing and harnessing the amazing resources of this planet under the wise direction of our Creator. As a result, progress would not necessitate pollution. Expansion would not require extinction. And the privilege of the strong would not demand the deprivation of the weak. Sandra L. Richter, Stewards of Eden: 11–12

‌

Environmental consequences often make the greatest impact on the poor and the marginalized in our communities, so whenever we take steps to steward God’s good creation, we are taking steps to follow Jesus’ way of love.

Environmental stewardship is a kingdom of God issue, and right now, our city and region need Christians to reclaim our rightful call and responsibility to lead the way on caring for creation, and when we do, a watching world will see our witness of love by how we care.

Among the top concerns for the rising Gen Z demographic is the environment. As we step into our charge as faithful stewards, we have an opportunity right now to show a generation the transformational impact of the church alive!

And finally, therefore, since all of us bear responsibility for God’s garden, tend to your part of it.

‌

Don’t concern yourself with the whole garden. Conversations like these too quickly become global in scope, which makes acting on environmental issues feel paralyzing. As a whole, this issue is too big for any one person, community, or nation, but God didn’t charge you to take responsibility for the whole world. That’s God’s job. He’s simply asking you to take responsibility to tend to what he has entrusted to you.

‌

When I think about radah and abad stewardship, I always think about my great grandfather’s garden.

[[[show pic of great grandfather]]]

He ruled over and served the land that God gave to him. He removed every weed, bug, and piece of litter that didn’t belong. He always gave thanks to God for the harvest in years of plenty and years of drought. He shared the bounty with those in need. He didn’t try to control what was beyond his control.. Rather, he knew who owned what and his role as a steward, not as a god.

The result was the best rhubarb pie that you could imagine, along with the freshest produce I’ve ever tasted.

He passed away when I was in high school, but before he died, I realized that the same principles he used to build his garden, he also used to lead his life. He taught me that if you take care of your garden, then your garden will care for you.

‌

All of us have a plot in God’s garden, and in that plot, God gave us a portion of the earth on which to rule over and to serve, including people to love, so let’s show our trust in the Lord by stewarding our plot of God’s garden well. Your faithfulness to God’s charge today matters for eternity. Will you pray with me?