“God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’
So, God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
“And God blessed them. 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.’ And God said, ‘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.”
U
sually, my daily schedule is to resume working on messages and pursuing some light reading for a few hours following our evening meal. Sometime later in the evening, I will wander upstairs to sit for a brief while with my wife as she watches television. She is often watching a show, and I often come in at the middle of whatever she is watching. She will pause the show and briefly explain what is going on. It is a considerate gesture on her part as she wants me to understand the story line.
Without knowledge of where a story begins, we are seldom able to make sense of the events described. Worse still is the possibility that we will find ourselves moving toward adopting an unwarranted conclusion if we don’t know how the story began. Beyond that, if we don’t understand who the characters are and how they arrived where we meet them, the conclusion of the story won’t necessarily make sense. That is certainly true when we are asking how we arrived at the place we now find ourselves as a race. If we could but understand how we got here, perhaps we would not be inclined to make some of the disastrous choices we make as a society. At least, that seems to make sense to most of us.
There is an unrequited longing for what was once ours as a race created by God’s hand. None of us has ever seen Eden, though occasionally researchers have postulated a vague reference to the location of such a Garden. For all that, we Christians hold to the belief that there was once a paradise in which death did not exist, and in which all nature existed in harmony. Though we have never seen that paradise, there is within the human heart a longing for such a paradise to again be present on the earth. Even those who are lords of chaos sell their dark acts as necessary actions meant to achieve paradise.
It seems that even a casual exploration of the origin accounts found among all cultures have stories that speak of a pleasant location where the first humans lived. That perfect environment was ruined by man’s own action in violation of the Creator’s command. We are familiar with the biblical account of the creation and how our first parents plunged the entire creation into ruin. We will consider the ruin and devastation visited on creation in future messages, but we want to look back to what was so that we can anticipate what shall be. Though we are trapped in this present condition, for all who walk with the Saviour, we know what He has promised shall shortly be revealed. And what He has planned will be an eternal paradise. All who enter that which Christ is preparing for His own will be changed so that they can enjoy that eternal bliss.
THE CREATION — Let’s go back in our minds, and in the Word of God, to the account of the Creation. The Bible begins with the statement, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day” [GENESIS 1:1-5].
This describes the opening act in the drama we now refer to as “the Creation.” Much of modern science is invested in attempting to account for creation without appealing to a Creator. The reason for this is that if people can account for the presence of all things without a Creator, then there is no need to accountability since we are an accident resulting from time and chance. If this is true, it means we are responsible for ourselves, rather than being responsible to a Creator. We who follow Christ understand that we are provided an eye-witness account of creation. I am not interested, as are some, in their attempts to suggest that the Creator guided creation over vast periods of time using natural processes. While I assuredly am not opposed to thinking the thoughts of the Creator after Him, I question why anyone who is known by the Living God would feel compelled to attempt to reconcile the best guesses of people who want to exclude God from His role as Creator with what He has revealed in the creation.
Creation is not occurring today. Scientists endeavouring to explain the Divine work, postulated in years past what has become known as the Steady State Theory of origins. They postulated that somewhere in deep space far beyond the limits of observation, creation is continually ongoing as hydrogen is continuously condensed into great cosmic blobs which are destined to become stars. These atoms are somehow transformed by a process yet undiscovered into the multiplied atoms found in the makeup of stars and the condensed gases are set blazing as though great cosmic furnaces through nuclear fusion.
These blazing stars are in turn imparted with a rotational motion by unknown forces and as they spin they began spinning off planets and moons and components of their unique planetary systems. As the planets and associated bodies cool, some of them will no doubt begin anew an evolutionary cycle resulting in the creation of life through the mercies of time and chance. No one can see any of these processes occurring, but based upon the evolutionary model of origins, of necessity creation must be ongoing. That was the view of “science” for decades until recent years.
Today, within the scientific community the prevailing view of origins appears to be what is commonly referred to as the Big Bang Theory, or some variant thereof. This theory postulates that at some far distant point in time all the atomic matter found within our current universe was condensed into a giant sphere. This great sphere, in some manner unknown to contemporary science, condensed, and the matter compacted until a critical mass was obtained and no further condensation was possible. This gaseous sphere exploded with the greatest explosion ever known in the history of the universe. The blast flung particles of the great sphere into space at speeds approaching the speed of light. As the various particles travelled through space, some cooled and condensed to form stars. The condensed gases began to rotate as they cooled—some even spinning with a retrograde motion. As the stars cooled still further they spun off planets and satellites and formed solar systems. As the gaseous orbs cooled, planets and moons were formed, with some of them forming atmospheres conducive to the formation of life and the great evolutionary process began. Today, this has become the most popular “scientific” explanation of how things came to be.
Thus, we read, “God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good” [GENESIS 1:31a]. There were no improvements required when God had finished His work. All creation was in harmony, and man—the acme of God’s work—stood in a perfect relationship with his Creator. The first man knew what it was to commune perfectly with His God. Our first parents knew what it was to walk with God in intimacy, to speak with God, to stand before God without shame as well as enjoying one another without shame. Our first parents knew how to perfectly enjoy the presence of one another as co-regents over the Creation which God had prepared.
What must it have been to commune with God perfectly? What must it have been to enjoy God, not feeling the struggle to know His will? We cannot imagine what it must have been to find ourselves lost in wonder and fascination with the Lord God, though the few times it has happened has filled us with determination to ensure that this situation always continues—until the routine of daily life once more captures our souls.
On the sixth day God’s Creation was finished. All that He had made was perfect. The completed creation was pronounced good. Had man not plunged the universe into ruin through his rebellion there would have been no need for regeneration. Likewise, the promise of a new heaven and a new earth are necessitated by man’s sinful rebellion against the Creator. This present creation is in a state of ruin and decay and must pass away as evidence of God’s grace in the face of man’s sin. Even the wicked among us recognise that nature is beautiful, even if it is marred by sin.
What was God’s creation like? How could we describe the world when God had completed His work? It was unlike the world in which we live. There were no carnivores. There were no omnivores; all the animals were vegetarians. Nature was in balance—the animals serving man and man ruling over the animals. Try as we might, we cannot imagine such a world; it is utterly foreign to our thinking and to our experience. Try to think through the meaning of what God said to the man and the woman at the first.
I do note that God made man and designated them male and female. Sexuality is part of God’s good creation. Sex is part of God’s good creation. God is not characterised by gender, as some have fatuously attempted to do in this day. Neither does God designate the animals by gender in the creation account. Only together as male and female can man be man.
There is a second matter which is significant in this account, and that is that man is not a species—man is man. We emphasise race and culture in our world, but God saw man as man. Race and culture result from the Fall. Likewise, the exaltation of one race against another is a result of the Fall. No one should ever imagine that only white people are racist. I have ministered enough among blacks and Chinese to realise that they can be just as racist as are Caucasians. There is no biblical justification for racism in the Word.
God blessed the man and the woman, giving them a mandate that made sense only in a perfect world. The divine blessing related to reproduction and responsibility. What God creates He preserves. What He brings into existence He provides for. Our first parents were given seed and fruit to eat, and the animals were given the leaves and plants. Before someone decides based on the creation account that we are to be vegetarians I remind you that God Himself gave the animals to feed man following the Fall. We realise that God has blessed all living creatures as food for us. We Christians are taught, “Everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer.” [1 TIMOTHY 4:4-5]. I’ll continue to eat prime rib steaks, brisket, and pork chops, thank you.
God appointed the man and the woman to serve as rulers over Creation. Their rule was to be compassionate, not exploitive. The man and the woman were a source of wonder and joy to one another as together they administered God’s creation. Created in the image of God, our first parents were perfectly suited to commune with God and with each other. There was no competition for supremacy, but instead there was a sense of confidence in one another and in the Creator. All living creatures were to serve man as he administered the work of God, though man killed none of them for his own use.
We are hard pressed to imagine how the bear and the lion served man. They were not carnivores, for the animals which we speak of as carnivores then ate vegetation, as did those creatures we today identify as herbivores. Did the bear have claw and fang? Are the claw and fang inherently part of carnivores as God created them, or are they evidence of the entrance of sin into the world? Were the great cats or bears strong as now? Did their great strength and bloodlust result from the Fall of our first parents?
How did the fish of the sea serve our first parents? In what way did the birds serve them? Today, we cannot imagine how sea mammals or fish were harnessed for the welfare of our first parents. We know that Adam and Eve had power to rule over the fish since God appointed them to do so, but in what way the creatures of the sea served man we cannot even begin to guess. Man can enjoy the beauty of the fish and of the birds, but this requires that these beautiful creatures be caged or restrained in aquariums. Surely our first parents did not restrain the birds and the fishes.
What is evident from this account before us is that our first parents respected life. They recognised and respected a relationship between human righteousness and the welfare of the earth. It is only because of sin that man can even think to justify the wanton destruction of any living creature, much less the despoiling of the environment. Sin utterly contaminates the prosperity of the earth and those living therein. The sin of our first father brought God’s curse upon the earth [see GENESIS 3:17] and the later wickedness of all human societies was the cause of the utter destruction of the whole world with the Flood. Human life bears responsibility under God for the wise administration of the environment. Mankind is held accountable for the world which God has created, for man was appointed to govern God’s creation.
This properly balanced view of man’s place in the creation destroys forever the position of the extreme environmentalists, and especially that of those espousing what is known as the animal rights movement. Man is not an animal, but rather he is appointed to be regent over the animals. The language God employed is the language of majesty. Older versions of the Genesis account speak of man holding dominion over the animals. Our text speaks of man ruling over the animals.
Whereas many activists today speak of specism as being reprehensible just as they might speak of racism or sexism, it is nevertheless true that man holds a special place in creation. The place occupied by the vilest man is so superior to that of any animal that any attempted comparison is delusional. Consequently, this provides a sufficient basis to formulate a rationale for the sanctity of life in the womb and against euthanasia (whether passive or active). Man is not an animal; He is in the image of God.
As He worked throughout this sixth day the Creator was doing that which would bring Him the greatest pleasure. All that had preceded was for the benefit of that which He would bring into being on this sixth day. The division into earth and sea was for the benefit of man. The heavenly bodies were positioned so that man could regulate his life through the division of time. The plants which blanketed the earth were to provide food for all living creatures and especially for man. In some way unknown to us the birds and the fish were provided for the benefit of man, as were the animals which God created early on the sixth day. All creation was brought into being for the benefit of man.
THE APEX — We read of the conclusion of the creation week before our first parents were created when we read in the verses preceding our text, “God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures according to their kinds—livestock and creeping things and beasts of the earth according to their kinds.’ And it was so. And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds and the livestock according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good” [GENESIS 1:24-25].
Before ever a man was created to work the ground, God viewed His handiwork and assessed that what He had made was good. Whenever we allow ourselves to look on the world in which we live, we manage to find incredible beauty, because God creates beauty. We go to the beach, and we marvel at the vastness of the ocean and the beauty of the sunset as it settles into the western sea. Or perhaps we go to the mountains, and we marvel at the beauty of a mountain tarn sparkling clear and clean in the morning sun. Even the prairies reveal grandeur as we observe the immensity of the skies stretching out over the boundless spaces. It was, and it is a beautiful world that God created.
And yet, today it can be a terrifying world. That beautiful beach on which we can be lulled to sleep as we hear the waves lapping on the shore becomes a frightening environment when the howling winds of a hurricane are driving the waves to pound the shore. That beautiful mountain scenery is transformed into a terrifying environment when the earth shakes and mountains begin to slide, threatening the lives of all living things in those mountains. The grandeur of the prairies turns deadly as a blizzard sweeps across those plains and whiteouts make it impossible to move without fear of being engulfed in the storm. The windchill during those winter storms ensure that a person can freeze quickly without proper clothing. One dare not grow overly complacent with our fallen world.
For all the potential hazards lying within the world, God charged the man He created, “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” [GENESIS 1:28]. You see, the creation was not always a place with frightful potential for harm. God created a world characterised by harmony with an environment that was a blessing for the man and woman whom God created and placed in the centre of this beautiful world. Man was at the apex of God’s glorious creation, and the woman God created shared equally in exercising dominion over all the earth.
Why does it matter to speak of the creation? You might well ask, “So what?” Creation matters for numerous reasons. For one thing, it is essential to know that the universe had a beginning. This is nothing less than an affirmation of true science, and in particular, the First Law of Thermodynamics. If we acknowledge this First Law of Thermodynamics, it must be acknowledged that there is a Second Law of Thermodynamics that cautions that the universe must die a heat death.
What is fascinating about being driven to this concession is that it is but a poor recitation of what is revealed in the Word of God. Of course, you will recognise the opening words of the Bible, where we learn, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” [GENESIS 1:1]. These words anticipate what John would write when he opened his Gospel account. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men” [JOHN 1:1-4].
Well, that takes care of the First Law of Thermodynamics, but does the Bible recognise the Second Law of Thermodynamics? I’m glad you asked. In his second letter to the believers scattered in the Diaspora, the Apostle to the Jews writes, “This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, ‘Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.’ For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly” [2 PETER 3:1-7].
Well, that is abundantly clear! The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that the universe will die a heat death, which is pretty much what we read in Peter’s words. It is fascinating to realise that the Second Law of Thermodynamics was not required before the fall of our first parents. Their sinful rebellion plunged the created universe into ruin, as we read in Paul’s Letter to the Romans. There, the Apostle to the Gentiles has written, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies” [ROMANS 8:22-23].
In creation, as provided in the biblical account, there was no death, for there was no sin. This is made evident when Paul treats this precise matter, writing, “Just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come” [ROMANS 5:12-14].
Thus, we need to know about the creation if we would know how we came to be, and to know that we are not a cosmic accident or the fortuitous collision of atomic particles, and to set the basis for understanding why death has come upon us. Without understanding the cause of death, we will not recognise the need for a Saviour. This raises the issue that it is important to know of the Creation just so we realise that we are accountable to the Creator. We read those stern words that remind us, “It is written,
‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God.’”
[ROMANS 14:11]
If we are created beings, and we are—and if we are responsible to give an account of our lives to our Creator, and we are so accountable to Him—this means that we have purpose. If we are nothing more than an accident of time and chance, we owe no one for the brief days of our existence in this world. However, if there is a Creator and He gives us our being, then we owe Him our gratitude and our devotion because He is worthy. Indeed, it is true, as the Apostle said, that “In Him we live and move and have our being” [ACTS 17:28]. Therefore, knowing that we owe Him our gratitude and devotion lends purpose to our lives!
Again, if we don’t know how we arrived at our present condition, it will be exceptionally difficult to rectify the problems encountered in our present world. There is no denying that our world is in a mess. Your daily news read emphasises this reality. We read Jesus’ description of the end times, and it is difficult not to draw parallels with our present world. Jesus warned, “When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains” [MARK 13:7-8]. Focus on the fact that Jesus did not say this was the end, but it would be the beginning of the birth pains—it would be the beginning of the end. Consider what we witness in a worldwide sense and draw an informed conclusion.
Added to these conditions is the despoiling of the environment, the devastation of the economy, the general climate of fear that permeates the populace; all this is the result of man’s sinful condition resulting from the fall. Politicians imagine that some new law, some new regulation, some new tax will fix the problems we face; but why do we continue looking to those who created the problem to fix what is wrong? They never look back to what was at the first or consult the instructions given by the Creator! Knowledge of the Creator and of His creation prepares us for lives marked by wisdom.
THE BLESSING — God’s good work of creation concluded with pronouncement of a blessing. “God blessed [the man and the woman]. 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.’ And God said, ‘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].
Creation as we know it is not the creation God witnessed when it was first completed. Paul writes of creation, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” [ROMANS 8:18-25].
Creation reminds us of a bride dressed in her finery on her wedding day. At the last moment, just as she is ready to walk down the aisle she is informed that her groom has been killed. Resplendent in her wedding finery she sobs, heart-broken and crushed. The contrast exacerbates an already tragic picture. The organ grinds out the wedding march even as the choirmaster sobs and grieves moved by the sorrow felt by the bride.
Throughout the Creation Week God provided a continual assessment of His work. During His work on the third day God separated the sea and the land, and then He stated that this act was good [GENESIS 1:10]. Later that same day He caused the plants to appear and the appearance of the vegetation upon the earth was seen to be good [GENESIS 1:12]. At the conclusion of the fourth day when God had created the stars, the sun, and the moon, He said His work was good [GENESIS 1:18]. The creation of birds and sea creatures was again seen to be good [GENESIS 1:21], as was the creation of animal life [GENESIS 1:25]. Each step of creation was declared to be good. In isolation, each part of creation is good; but in its sum, creation is “very good” [GENESIS 1:31]. Before anything is said about evil, or pain, or sin, or disorder, we hear God’s note of excited pleasure. All that God made is good! God’s creation was good, and it is good even to this day. Creation is under the curse of sin, but it was and is “very good.”
Good can be a neutered concept, being somewhat meaningless as it is often used. Like the word “nice,” it is somewhat vacuous, indefinite, inconsequential. It is not in its relationship to man that a thing is declared to be good, nor is it that a thing brings pleasure to an individual which makes it good; it is as a thing delights mankind and glorifies God that it is declared to be good. Good is not an ideal, but rather good refers to the concrete acts of God in the lives of His people. That which God does to the glory of His Name is good and we are the recipients of His goodness.
Those people who know God rejoice in His goodness, goodness which is revealed in His grace to them. Thus, they delight to do good as a means of glorifying their Creator. This is the basis for celebration and enjoyment of God’s world. Art and music, drama and dance can all be employed in the celebration of God’s goodness in our world. David danced before the Lord as an expression of joy and worship [see 2 SAMUEL 6:12-15]. There is an extravagance of praise and adoration in the celebration of Mary pouring precious ointment over the feet of Jesus [JOHN 12:3]. Music can be one expression of praise and worship as witnessed in the Psalms, where we read,
“Praise [the LORD] with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with sounding cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that has breath praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!”
[PSALM 150:3-6]
Closely associated with the LORD’s pronouncement that all was very good is the blessing which God pronounced on man. Previously, God had blessed the animals [GENESIS 1:22]. Then He blessed man and woman [GENESIS 1:28]. At the last He blessed the seventh day [GENESIS 2:3]. We tend to use the word “bless” rather loosely. Consider how you would know if you were blessed? Consider the blessings of the Creation week. God blessed the animals, pronouncing fecundity for them. When He blessed the seventh day it was to set it apart as holy to Himself. Apparently the divine blessing can incorporate propagation of the species and setting people apart for His own purposes. It becomes obvious that when God blessed man the blessing entailed reproduction and responsibility. Let me draw attention to this fact—reproduction and responsibility are evidence of God’s blessing on mankind. Therefore, children are evidence that one is blessed, just as taking responsibility for oneself, for one’s work, for one’s actions is evidence of God’s blessing.
This leads me to note that the Word of God rebukes contemporary attitudes toward children. Throughout the Word of God those with children are considered blessed while those who are childless considered themselves cursed. God blessed the man and the woman He created, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth…” We may not be certain that children and grandchildren are a blessing, but we stand in opposition to the blessing of God if we permit ourselves to think in such fashion. Zero population growth is an idea which has gained ascendancy in our day. Even among the people of God the idea has taken root, though few dare openly espouse the concept from the pulpit.
I am bold to state that those who promote childlessness speak more out of their own selfishness than out of concern for the earth. Just so when we determine that we will take charge of our own lives and ensure that we have no children, we deny that God’s blessing is good. God’s command to fill the earth has never been tested. The nations which twenty years ago were predicted to experience massive famine by this time are today net suppliers of food because of technological advances in the agricultural sciences.
We forget that God gives fertility and fruitfulness to man. That nation whose birth rate is shrinking is a dying nation. Despite every appearance to the contrary, when deaths begin to outnumber births, a nation is dying. Life is God’s gift. Woe to the nation which despises God’s good gift. Think this issue through. Procreation means quite literally creation on behalf of another. In this instance procreation is creation on the part of Him who is Love—God Himself. Human creativity, and especially human procreativity, is part of the outworking in our histories of the creative love of God in us as His image. All life is thus seen as God’s gift. His blessing, as with all blessings, confers not only a gift, but also a task.
The blessing of God requires not only that we fill the earth, but that we exercise dominion over the earth. I know that this concept has been perverted in the past to imply permission to rape and pillage the earth, but it is no answer to go to an opposite extreme and treat the earth as though it were divine. True rule according to the blessing pronounced entails facilitating servanthood which maintains an environment in which people reflecting something of the nature of God’s love and creativity can be at home. The Lord expects His people to act with wisdom to rule over His creation, using what He has provided to the praise of His glory and for the benefit of all mankind.
Perhaps this responsibility can be better seen by looking forward to the exercise of Adam’s responsibility within Eden. GENESIS 2:15 informs us that “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” In other words, man was to cultivate and protect the Garden wherein he had been placed. Work is not a curse, rather, it is part of the blessing of God. That which God pronounced good was that to which He gave form from that which was formless. Good arose when the Lord gave order to chaos. Just so, man does good when He reflects the divine order within society and gives form to advance within civilisation.
God’s self-revelation in history was an ever-growing revelation of His goodness. Man was made in the image of God and as result of that special position was expected to fellowship with God. Even when man flouted God in the Fall, God’s loving interest in man continued. He showed His goodness by immediately taking steps to undo the disastrous effects of the Fall. He elected Israel as His holy people, brought them out of Egyptian bondage, entrusted to them the Law, repeatedly delivered them from servitude and defeat, entrusted to them the promises and the coming of Messiah—all this was to attract the Gentiles to life in Him and to reveal His goodness. The incarnation, the atoning death of Jesus the Son of God, the resurrection of the Christ from the tomb, and the ascension into glory were all evidence of the goodness of God.
Scripture makes clear that history is not haphazard; it is a meaningful working out of God’s divine plan with the promise that all shall ultimately be consummated in Christ, the Son of God. God’s children have a vital part in this plan in that they are to reveal the goodness of God through worship of God and through inviting others to share in the grace of God. One day His goodness will be acknowledged by all creation, and He will be all in all. Because of the Fall man is by nature corrupt and can do nothing that is good. Because of God’s provision in Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit, man can live a life of obedience to and fellowship with His Creator. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
