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God's
love for creation within sacred text
Selections from the Book of Psalms
Psalm 50
( A psalm of Asaph)
1 The
Mighty One, God, the LORD, speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.
4 He summons the heavens above, and the
earth, that he may judge his people:
10 for every animal of the forest is
mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. 11
I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are
mine. 12 If I were hungry I would not
tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
Psalm 104
10 He
makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the
mountains. 11 They give water to all the
beasts of the field;
the wild donkeys quench their thirst. 12
The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.
13 He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth
is satisfied by the fruit of his work. 14
He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate—
bringing forth food from the earth: 15
wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and
bread that sustains his heart. 16 The
trees of the LORD are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he
planted. 17 There the birds make their
nests; the stork has its home in the pine trees.
18 The high mountains belong to the wild
goats; the crags are a refuge for the coneys. [b]
24 How many are your works, O LORD!
In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.
Psalm
24(A psalm of David)
1 The earth is the LORD's, and everything
in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
Selection from the Book of Proverbs
Proverbs
12
10 A
righteous man cares for the needs of his animal,
but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.
A passage from the Book of Job
Job 12
1 Then Job
replied:
2 "Doubtless you are the people, and
wisdom will die with you! 3 But I have a
mind as well as you; I am not inferior to you. Who does not know all
these things? 4 "I have become a
laughingstock to my friends, though I called upon God and he answered—
a mere laughingstock, though righteous and blameless!
5 Men at ease have contempt for misfortune as the fate of those
whose feet are slipping. 6 The tents of
marauders are undisturbed, and those who provoke God are secure— those
who carry their god in their hands. [a] 7
"But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the
air, and they will tell you; 8 or speak
to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish of the sea inform
you. 9 Which of all these does not know
that the hand of the LORD has done this? 10
In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all
mankind. 11 Does not the ear test words
as the tongue tastes food? 12 Is not
wisdom found among the aged?
Does not long life bring understanding? 13
"To God belong wisdom and power; counsel and understanding are his.
14 What he tears down cannot be rebuilt; the man he imprisons
cannot be released.
15 If he holds back the waters, there is
drought; if he lets them loose, they devastate the land.
16 To him belong strength and victory; both deceived and
deceiver are his. 17 He leads counselors
away stripped and makes fools of judges. 18
He takes off the shackles put on by kings and ties a loincloth [b]
around their waist. 19 He leads priests
away stripped and overthrows men long established.
20 He silences the lips of trusted advisers and takes away the
discernment of elders. 21 He pours
contempt on nobles
and disarms the mighty. 22 He reveals the
deep things of darkness
and brings deep shadows into the light. 23
He makes nations great, and destroys them; he enlarges nations,
and disperses them.
24 He deprives the leaders of the earth
of their reason; he sends them wandering through a trackless waste.
25 They grope in darkness with no light;
he makes them stagger like drunkards.
Covenant Between God and the Earth
Genesis 9
8 Then God
said to Noah and to his sons with him: 9
"I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after
you 10 and with every living creature
that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals,
all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on
earth.
11 I establish my covenant with you:
Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never
again will there be a flood to destroy the earth."
12 And God said, "This is the sign of the
covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with
you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13
I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the
covenant between me and the earth.
14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth
and the rainbow appears in the clouds,
15 I will remember my covenant between me
and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the
waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16
Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember
the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every
kind on the earth."
Humankind's destructive tendencies
documented in history
Isaiah 24
4
The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and
withers,
the exalted of the earth languish. 5 The
earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated
the statutes
and broken the everlasting covenant.
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Taking
care of God's creation should be a part of our daily routine. We should not
fall into a complacent state and balk at embracing the responsibility as
stewards of creation. Hesitating to accept this responsibility would place
an undue burden on future generations by fostering both environmental and
economic degradation that are interconnected realities. As stewards we
understand that God owns all of creation. Our responsibility to help
preserve and care for His creation is an act of obedience to our Father.
This act of obedience is one that all disciples should embrace because it
demonstrates the love and appreciation we have for our Father and His
creation. God loves all of creation and deems all creation worthy to receive
care, compassion, and respect.
