In The Beginning: Creation Appreciation #4

Green Jesus?

Lessons 4 and 5 really need to go hand in hand. In fact, I learned I should have presented the material in lesson 5 prior to the material in lesson 4. I think lesson 4 would have been better received after our lesson 5 discussion. In this forum, I'll post them in quick succession and you can consider the information together.

Lesson 4, "Green Jesus?" initiated the first bit of push back in this course so far. It seemed everyone in class was on board with valuing creation against the backdrop of Gen 1-3, and in the context of the Psalms, but when we turned to the life of Jesus, folks in the class were a little bit more reluctant to think that Jesus would have said and done things out of concern for God's creation. I think the general sentiment was, "sure Jesus would have had concern for God's creation as part of the God head, but to read that concern in anything he said or did is stretching the text." Here is what we considered:

Birth to Death: A journey from the barnyard to bread and wine
We tried to briefly take in the scope of Jesus' life through the lens of His concern for creation.
1. Begins in a barnyard with the noise and smell of animals
2. Born into the rhythms of agricultural life
3. Immersion into a river for Baptism; the Spirit lights as a dove
4. 40 days in the desert births a regular practice of Jesus finding peace and sustenance in wilderness areas
5. 1st miracle turns water to wine – a celebration of the goodness of the fruit of the earth
6. 1st miracle with his inner circle – an overwhelming catch of fish
7. Last supper – celebrates the good gifts of creation; eating bread and drinking wine

While I think these, and many many more, events of Jesus' life do indicate weight and value to God's creation, others in the class suggested that perhaps these events have an agricultural nature because this was the context of the people of this time.

Story After Story: Parables – ways of living demonstrated by God’s creation
1. Lilies of the field
2. Birds of the Air
3. Lost Sheep
4. Mustard Seed
5. Sower and the Seed
6. Great Banquet

All these stories are demonstrations of the natural world as the expression of God’s loving relations with divine power.

Matthew 6: Lilies of the field – Ties the wonder of God’s creation to justice and resource distribution. How can a flower out-glorify God compared to Solomon’s splendor? The aesthetic and scientific presence in a flower is astounding: beauty and photosynthesis.

Kingdom Metaphors
1. Leaven in Dough
2. Seeds from a sower
3. A Pearl
4. Treasure in a field
5. Mustard Seed
6. A Net in Water full of fish

'I Am' Sayings of Jesus
1. I am the bread of life
2. I am the true vine
3. I am the good shepherd
4. I am the light

In his teachings and self metaphors he time and again uses metaphors inspired God's good work of creation. Sure these things were readily apparent and understood in Jesus' context, but strikingly absent are any metaphors using the technology of the day. Nothing is said about war machines, chariots, walls, roads, aquaducts, buildings, etc. Again, some in class said this was a matter of relevance to his audience, but I think there is more significance here.

Jesus' love and concern for creation causes him to turn to these metaphors. Because Jesus knows that in creation, God is revealed, he seems to gravitate towards these discussions. I'm not arguing that because Jesus comments about the lilies of the field, then he must be a tree hugger from California, but I think his overwhelming - almost constant - discussion of things involving the creation says something about his valuing of the earth.

Hell Metaphor
It's interesting that in Matt 5:29-30, 18:9 Jesus’ description of Hell is Gehenna: a valley full of smoldering trash and waste outside of Jerusalem. When Jesus does finally discuss trash and waste he uses it as a metaphor for Hell.

Again, was Jesus' primary mission to tell us how to come down on environmental debates? Probably not (although he certainly has a lot to say about justice and distribution of resources). Certainly Jesus' primary mission was to inaugurate God's Kingdom on earth and reconcile creation to God the Father. But in doing so, out of his great love for creation, I suggest that He did have much to say about how we steward the earth.

If you're not sold yet, stay tuned for lesson #5.