Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Ever green

The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it (Psalm 24:1).

People can get passionate about the natural world around us. The members of PETA are well known for using shocking tactics in their crusade to protect animals from misuse. Greenpeace has been almost reckless in its attempts to protect whales from hunting. There are ecoterrorists who burn down new housing developments and plant bombs at car dealerships, while others sneak into zoos and laboratories to free animals from their cages. And concerns about climate change have many celebrities and politicians promoting a "green" lifestyle.

Certainly God wants us to take care of His marvelous creation; in Genesis chapter one He told the first humans, Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground. In Genesis chapter two we read, The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. From the very beginning, we have had a responsibility to manage the earth and everything that lives on it. Obviously, causing entire species to go extinct is not good management, nor is fouling the air or water with various forms of toxins.

But there is a point where good stewardship gives way to sinful fanaticism. The single most important form of life is humanity. Jesus did not suffer and die to save the environment; He suffered and died to save sinful men and women. The Bible says that this world will not be around forever; when Christ returns in judgment, this old, pain-filled world will be destroyed and replaced by a new, perfect creation. Efforts to save the planet are ultimately futile, because this world is destined for destruction.

People, on the other hand, are designed by God to live forever. When Jesus returns, He will raise everyone from their graves. Those who love Him will inherit the new earth; everyone else will be sent to a place of eternal darkness and despair. Since only human beings will live forever, the place where they spend forever should be our highest priority. Which is a more important use of our time: saving an endangered species from facing extinction, or saving a sinful man from facing hell? Which is a more important use of our resources: to preserve the life of an ecosystem by living green, or to preserve the life of a dying woman by introducing her to Christ?

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