In The Beginning: Creation Appreciation #5

A Christian's Call
Hopefully Lesson #5 will strengthen the case that Jesus must have had concern for God's creation that would have shown up in the things he said and did.

Christ’s Dominion – Master of Creation
We began class with the 3rd account of the creation story: John 1.1-5 (the first account in Gen 1, and the second account was in Gen 2,3):

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

Also, consider Hebrews 1.1-2:
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.

The New Testament states pretty clearly that the creation was made through Jesus. This speaks to part of the mystery of our triune God. Remember we noted the plurality of God in the creation narrative in Genesis.

Then read Colossians 1.15-20:
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

The 'Creation Of All Things' and the 'Reconciliation Of All Things' are two complimentary acts in one story. We see in John 1 and Hebrews 1 that Jesus played a role in the Creation Of All Things. The New Testament tells us that Jesus, through the cross, plays a key role in the Reconciliation Of All Things to the Creator. Jesus understood his Father’s desire to restore and reconcile creation so it makes sense to me that He would have much to say about our stewardship responsibilities of the creation.

The Earth Cries Out
Hear the audible sound of the earth.

Romans 8.18-25: The earth cries out awaiting liberation.
Romans 1.18-20: Remember that God is revealed in creation.

God Gives us the Earth
God did give us the earth (Gen 1:29, Gen 9:2, Gen 12:7) but no one would assume that He gave us the earth for us to consume, destroy, or waste. Christ's life embodies the opposite of consumption, destruction, or wastefulness.

Then putting the above pieces together, we see that God loves the earth; that Jesus participated in its creation; that God gives us the earth; that Jesus reconciles creation to God; and that the earth and Jesus are gifts to all generations.

A Decreasing Scale of Recognizability: Your Sin, My Sin, Collective Sin
Your sin – all the easy to spot bad things you do.
My sin – all the bad things I do that are not justifiable in my mind.
Collective sin – a subtle evil that eludes the responsibility of the individual by propagating itself in a social context. It is a collaborative sin of toleration of oppression and injustice. Usually we recognize the wrongdoing, but since we did not cause it, and since society accepts it, we may lament it, but in the end, we tolerate it.

In the context of this conversation, collective sin shows up when we allow 15% of the world to utilize 50% of the earth’s resources. Or, when we cause animal and plant species to go extinct before future generations see them (or discover their medicinal qualities). Or, when we emit so many toxins into our air that we permanently damage our atmosphere. Surely we don’t “love one another” by damaging each other's air or by hoarding resources like oil.

In class, the point was made that there is great difficulty in determining who is right about environmental issues. There are conflicting scientific reports. Extremists on both ends of the debate are irrational and neutralize much progress on this front. That is true. My assertion is that Christians ought to be engaged in that debate. We ought to be the ones leading the cause for better use of God's creation. For too long we have been disengaged from this discussion. We have let God's creation be relegated to a secular discussion, when we should have been eager to have this conversation with the world.

In the second half of the class, beginning July 20th, we will consider our collective sin of wasting God's resources on earth. We will explore ways in which we might become more aware of how we should use those resources. And we will find ways in which Christians can effectively share God's wisdom with the world when it comes to how we need to share and steward God's creation.