Yesterday I walked into my mother’s apartment and discovered my dog Terry was dead. My faithful companion for 13 years must have been dead a couple of hours. The minute I saw his body I knew he was gone. He was just lying there in his accustomed position of rest with his ears still up, a position that he assumed all the time. You know, that position where a dog is at rest but still alert listening for someone knocking on the door, except this time though, he wasn’t alert. He was gone.
It broke my heart to see him go. It made me realize once again the teaching of the Bible that the world is not the way it’s meant to be. In other words, this world is fallen, what was once good has been stained and marred by sin.
As I drove into work today, there was a dead squirrel in the road and once again I came to a greater realization of how sin has affected every facet of life and creation. These verses from Hosea 4 come to mind:
“There is swearing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed. Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it languish, and also the beasts of the field and the birds of the heavens, and even the fish of the sea are taken away.”
As I dig deeper into God’s word I can see the mess that we, mankind, have made of this world. The Bible is like a mirror, it does not hide our depravity it exposes it and yet it is full of hope.
The Bible reveals to us a God that loves all His creatures and all His creation. I realize that many have hi-jacked Christianity and made it individualistic; all about them. However, the Scriptures present a God that is concerned for beasts, trees and land. You can even say God is the ultimate environmentalist; no one is more concerned for nature than Him.
I find great insight into God’s character in Psalm 36:6 where the Psalmist says
“… Man and beast you save, O LORD”
Also in Revelations 5:13 where the Apostle John describes a worship concerto in the future that includes creatures of all types He says:
“And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!"
I can go on with many more references. However, I will end by saying that the essential message of Christianity is that Jesus Christ died for sinners. I have no other hope than this message, because I am the foremost of sinners. But yet the Bible reveals a God that cares. A God that emptied Himself and became a human being, there is great insight into the character of God in His incarnation. He saw this fallen world and cared to save it.
As I took Terry’s body back to the Vet I thanked God I had him for 13 years, he was such a loyal friend. And as I see fallen creation I am hopeful because
“…the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Romans 8:21
I have included this short talk at the bottom “Can faith be green?” by Pastor Tim Keller.
Here is a short description of the talk:
Genesis shows us the goodness of creation, the stewardship of creation, the fallenness of creation, and the final restoration of creation. The Bible calls us as Christians to be careful stewards of creation because nature reflects God’s goodness and because nature will ultimately be restored in heaven
