God's Earth

I read a post over at Benjamin's blog that sparked a response from me. It was too long to try and write in his comment section. :)

In his post, Benjamin writes: "...man has a responsibility not to slash and burn the planet."

Just tonight we discussed this very thing in Bible study at church. What, exactly, is our responsibility to God's earth? Based on our discussion and my understanding of scripture, here are my thoughts on the subject:

In Genesis 1:28, God commands man "to be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it." The original Hebrew word there for "subdue", kavash, means: "to dominate or bring into bondage". Basically, God commanded us to control this earth to use it as we will, not simply be "good stewards" of the earth. True that "the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof", but here, He clearly gave us control of it. God doesn't directly address the earth or the things on it (plants and animals, etc). He works through us to affect and impact His other creations. I do agree that we should, in some respects, be good stewards, but simply because if we don't take care of this world, nothing will be left.

An example my pastor gave about the control God has given us over the earth goes like this: there are two types of control that can be given to someone. For this example, say I'm giving you a piece of land. The first type of control I can give you is that I appoint you to take care of the land. You can do whatever you want with it, but I'll be coming back for a full account of your actions. You will be accountable to me for what you've done with it while it was under your control.

The other type of control is that I flat out give you the land. It's yours, you do with it what you will. I won't be checking up on you. If you destroy it, that's your decision. If you use it to bring forth crops or build something on it - kudos to you.

The second type of control represents what God said in Genesis 1:28. He created the earth for our benefit. Everything in it is subject to us. Several examples of how we have subdued the earth are: air-conditioning, buildings, roads, dams, levees, genetically altered crops that produce more on less land, clothing created from natural resources (i.e., cotton, silk, etc.), electricity (which is created in some areas by harnessing the power of running water), natural gas to heat our buildings...you get the picture. The problem is, current special-interest groups and environmentalists have convinced us that we need to be subjected or controlled by the earth. We should leave the earth in its "pristine" condition. If they had their way, we would all live in the wild, unable to use the natural resources God gave to us. Just think of all the legislation that restricts our actions in regards to natural resources. God never intended that.

When it is all said and done, He is not going to ask for an account of what we did with the earth. In fact, the book of Revelation, in the Bible, tells us this earth will be destroyed and a new one will be created. (Revelation 21:1) Through lies and deceit, Satan is once again robbing us of something God has given to us.

Benjamin also commented that: "The primary motivation that fuels human exploitation of the earth's natural resources is not disregard for the planet, or a sort of cavalier ‘we can do whatever we want’ ecological myopia, it is rather the thirst for wealth, the love of money which is the root of all evil."

As to the argument about the love of money leading to destruction of the earth...the simple fact remains that if people are driven by money to use natural resources, it's not in their best interest to destroy the very thing that makes them money. It is a fallacy that these "money lovers" are destroying the land. Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule.

For example, did you know that in America, there is about the same amount of forest cover today as there was 100 years ago, even though we consume more wood per capita than any other region in the world? (Source: LA Times, Tues. March 26, 2002, By-line: Patrick Moore, co-founder of Greenpeace) In this article some other environmental myths are debunked by the late, Dr. Julian Simon. An interesting read.

Anyway, just wanted to post some thoughts on the subject, but don't take my word for it. You should always find the facts for yourself. Don't simply accept one person's word as truth. There are a lot of people spreading un-scientific pabulum as fact, simply because they are trying to get money for their program or research facility. Follow the money.

If you'd like to know where I found my information, let me know!