Creation Care

Messiah College’s confession of faith states that “We believe in the triune God—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—who created and sustains the universe, and who desires to redeem us and all creation …. God bestows on us the Holy Spirit who leads us to repentance, instructs us in righteousness and empowers us to live joyfully as disciples of Christ, as servants of others and as caretakers of the created order.”

The faculty in the Biological Sciences Department believe that we are to pray as instructed by Christ that God’s Kingdom will come and His will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven (Matthew 6: 10). This prayer points to the future complete healing and renewal of Earth even as now Creation continues to groan under the impact of human sin (Romans 8:19-21). We also recognize that our destructive use of creation may result in our death (Revelation: 12:18).

We affirm that the intrinsic value of creation was established by God with the proclamation that it is very good (Genesis 1:31). Human kind was given the authority, responsibility, and privilege to care for God’s Good creation (Genesis 2:15). Since all Creation is God’s (Colossians 1:16, Hebrews 2:10) and we are His stewards, our care of Creation is an act of worship and is done for God and Creation’s benefit, not primarily for ours. Psalm 104 and Job 38-41 provides insight into God’s relationship with Creation and therefore serve as models for our stewardly relationship with and care for Creation. Our responsibility was not altered by but rendered more difficult by the fall. Human sin continues to take a heavy toll on God’s creatures (Hosea 4:3). We look forward to Christ’s return and the full renewal/redemption of Creation as the New Earth We acknowledge that through Christ’s death and resurrection all Creation is reconciled to Christ (Colossians 1:20) and that we who are redeemed have been given the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18).

Our role and responsibility as stewards today is clearly laid out in the scriptures above. A primary responsibility of God’s stewards is to maintain the fruitfulness of God’s creation. Human caused pollution, global climate change, and the loss of species are marks of our failure to properly care for God’s good earth and to love and serve our human neighbors who depend on Creation’s sustainable health. The steward’s role is a proactive one – to prevent damage to creation. We are indeed given the privilege to use from the fruitfulness of creation, but not to abuse its fruitfulness and sustainability. We must seek wisdom and guidance from God’s indwelling spirit as we each embrace our ministry of Creation’s reconciliation.