The Earth Is the Lord’s – The Law of God and Public Policy: The Environment (1)

The Earth Is the Lord’s

The Law of God and Public Policy: The Environment (1)

We are stewards of God’s creatures.

The earth is the LORD’s, and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers. Psalm 24:1

All human wealth ultimately derives from the resources of the earth. In an economy in which the acquisition of wealth is the driving force, the creation is vulnerable to being exploited by those who regard it merely as a means of aggrandizing personal well-being. The environmental movement has grown up in recent decades to resist individual and corporate practices which threaten the integrity and continuity of the environment. What began as a campaign against pesticides and littering has now grown into a full-blown movement focused on saving the planet from the harmful effects of human self-interest.

The Law of God is clear that the earth and its creatures belong to God and must be used in a manner consistent with justice. Love for God and neighbor require that we regard the creation as a resource to be used with care and respect. God created and sustains all the creatures of the world; they are His to give as He pleases. He expects those to whom He entrusts His creation—the land and all its creatures—to receive and develop them in a way which reflects His holy and righteous and good character and will.

It is altogether appropriate, therefore, to work for public policies which reflect the divine ownership of the creation and mankind’s calling to exercise good stewardship over the gifts of God. The role of a steward is to receive and invest the gifts of God so that His purposes are realized and His glory is exalted (Matt. 25:14-30). The environment—the earth and its creatures—must not be regarded merely as a resource to be exploited to satisfy the whims and desires of men.

At the same time, it is important to remember that God has created the environment to be developed and used for human well-being unto His glory. The environment must not be treated as something to be revered and preserved for its own sake. The environment is not to be worshiped. As good stewards of the creation men must learn to use it in a way that benefits all human beings and honors God by bringing out the beauty, goodness, wisdom, and majesty of the Creator in all our use of His creatures.

Further, the environment must not be used as a staging ground for, or to support, wicked and self-serving practices which dishonor God. The pagan peoples of Canaan were ejected from their land precisely for this reason. The earth is the Lord’s; we must learn to use it for His glory and honor. And, while the Law of God does not offer anything like a full-blown environmental policy, there is enough in it to frame out our thinking concerning the kinds of public policies which can reflect the Lord’s purposes for our use of His creatures.

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore, editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.