Should Christians Be Environmentalists? Part Twenty-One *

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God’s Instructions to the Human Race as His Caretakers in Nature

In last week’s blog article, we studied the correct interpretation of the controversial words “subdue” and “dominion” as they relate to Genesis 1:27-28 and harmonized with Genesis chapter 2. We can now explore what God’s caretakers in creation should be doing.

Stewardship

The Bible illustrates the concept of stewardship in several places. Perhaps the best illustration of the biblical model of stewardship is found in the Parable of the Talents (Matt. 25:14–30). This parable speaks about a man who went on a long journey and entrusted his possessions to his slaves. He gave “talents” (large sums of money) to three of his slaves (vs. 14–15). Upon the master’s return, he confronted the slaves to see how well they invested his money. Two of the slaves doubled the amount entrusted to them and were rewarded for their faithfulness. But the third slave failed to use his talent wisely and was severely punished.

In like manner, nature belongs to God (Ps. 50:10-11), but He appointed the human race to be His stewards (Ps. 8:6-8). Our responsibility is to care for the owner’s (God’s) property (Lev. 25:23). And like the slaves in the Parable of the Talents, people will be held accountable for how well they perform this task that the Master entrusted to them.

This model of stewardship comes to life 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.” The Hebrew word in this passage for “work” is abad, which is most often translated as “serve,” though it may also be translated “till” or “cultivate.” Similarly, the Hebrew word for “take care of” is shamar, a word that implies watching over something, guarding and preserving it. The Hebrew meaning of these two words clearly instructs the first couple to watch over and tend the Garden. Neither usage allows for plunder, exploitation, or abuse.

Adam’s caretaker role in nature was further illustrated when God instructed him to name the animals in Genesis 2:19. By relegating this authority to Adam, God not only demonstrated his personal interest and concern for the animals He created, but also His desire for Adam to take responsibility for them. (By analogy, when people name their pets and when zoo keepers name the animals under their care, they demonstrate their affection and assume the responsibility to take care of them.)

A similar stewardship role was later given to Noah. God commanded Noah to preserve in the ark a genetic stock of at least two of every kind of living creature (Gen. 6:19). This command was not qualified, so it would include so-called “vermin” and predators as well as animals profitable to people. Thus, Noah’s stewardship responsibilities included all creatures, not just those that serve people.

God’s stewardship charge continued with the rise of the Jewish nation. Thousands of years before modern environmental laws, God required the Hebrews to curb pollution by properly disposing of waste products (Deut. 23:12–13) and to rest from sowing their fields every seventh year in order to restore the soil (Lev. 25:2–4). (This was also to allow poor people and wild animals to eat what was left, according to Exodus 23:11.) God taught the Hebrews not to eat the fruit of newly planted trees for five years until the trees had time to mature (Lev. 19:23–25). During the conquest of Canaan, God instructed the Israelites to use only non-fruiting trees to construct their siege machines: “Are the trees of the field people, that you should besiege them?” (Deut. 20:19).

God’s divine command for Adam to tend and care for the Garden of Eden; Noah to preserve and care for the animals God would use to repopulate the earth; and the Israelites instructions to be careful stewards of the land God provided them can be extrapolated to include the entire human race and today’s natural world. Nowhere does the Bible teach that God’s edict to care for nature was limited to just Adam in the Garden or to Noah and the Israelites. It’s unarguable that the entire human race is a recipient of the stewardship mandate.

The doctrine of stewardship, applied to nature and harmonized with the correct biblical meanings of subdues and dominion, acknowledges that nature is God’s property and that He delegated a caretaker’s role to humanity. A steward does not own what he or she protects. With this responsibility comes accountability. As the Parable of the Talents illustrates, we will be rewarded if we perform our stewardship role well, and we can expect punishment if we don’t. Church historian and theologian Geoffrey Bromiley put it like this: God “will have words of commendation for those who work for the integrity of creation and words of rebuke for those who abuse his handiwork to selfish or wicked ends.” (God and Culture: Essays in Honor of Carl F. H. Henry, 82).

The Consequences of Poor Stewardship

Unfortunately, the human race has failed to take its stewardship responsibilities over nature seriously—and we see the consequences (the “punishment”) of this everywhere across the globe: The extinction of thousands of plant and animal species; huge tracts of the earth spoiled and contaminated; air and water pollution; loss forever of scenic rivers, forests, wetlands, and other irreplaceable wild habitats. I believe, as Professor Bromiley implied, the Bible teaches that God will hold mankind accountable for this disastrous irresponsibility (also see Revelation 11:18).

God always keeps His promises. Our response to His charge for the human race to be stewards over nature, however, should not be motivated just out of fear of punishment for a job poorly done. If we love God, we should make every effort to honor and protect what He considers important and of value.

In the next two (and remaining) blog articles in this series on developing a theology of nature and stewardship, I’ll show the apologetic and evangelistic opportunities of Christian environmentalism. ©

* The blog articles in this series are adapted from my book Should Christians Be Environmentalists? published by Kregel Publications in 2012. The blog articles do not contain all the chapters, data, quotes, references, or my personal experiences, which the book includes. So for “the rest of the story,” you will need to purchase the book, which is available in both paperback and Kindle. This and the following articles are copyrighted material and may not be reproduced in book or article form. But feel free to send links to these articles to your personal email list, Facebook friends and groups, Twitter followers, or other people who may enjoy them.

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