Christian and Environmental Stewardship - 1363 Words

Christians and Stewardship of Their Environment 1. Introduction Our earthly habitat is not an unexpected occurrence of little worth, but rather, it is one to be highly valued and preserved. The biblical doctrine of creation helps the Christian to understand the true significance of the world in order to deal with the environmental crisis. The Bible says, â€Å"For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (King James Version, Isaiah 45:18). In Christian teaching, God not only created Heavens and Earth, but expressed His delight in His creation. This creation meant, everything encompassing the trees, the†¦show more content†¦That means we do not have the right to do with the earth as we see fit. We cannot exploit the land and suck it dry of all of its natural resources. To be a steward is to manage the property of another; that m eans to care for it and use it properly, not exploit or abuse the resources of the master. On the other hand, we are not to revere or worship the earth as God’s creation to the point where we fail to â€Å"subdue† it. God commands us to have dominion over the animal kingdom and to subdue the earth (Genesis 1:28). Pro-environmental groups like Deep Ecology believe that humans have an obligation to themselves and the environment as well. They believe that all forms of life have the right to exist, and that humans aren t any different from other species. They basically say that humans are equal to other species. (â€Å"Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy†). This is the sin that Saint Paul refers to: â€Å"Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever† (King James Version, Romans 1:25). Just as it is a sin to ruthlessly exploit the earth and its resources for greedy gain, so too is it a sin to revere the earth as an object of worship. We must walkout a balance between worship and exploitation, and that is where the stewardship model comes in. The stewardship model sees the earth as a blessed gift from God for the advancement and nurturing of humanShow MoreRelatedChristians and Environmental Stewardship Essay832 Words   |  4 PagesChristians, the world over, have been given the important task of stewardship of God’s creation. The problem is, Christians and non-Christians alike have become so driven to make money that concern for the earth and it’s well-being have fallen by the wayside. 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