“They that use this world, as not abusing it.”
Today two unsolicited items arrived in our mailbox. One was a plea for a donation to help conserve the Swift fox, an animal native to the Canadian prairies, and now an endangered species. The other was a free magazine that offered, among other things, advice on how to eat better, how to avoid illness, and even how to “sense the nurturing energy of Mother Earth.” Both publications ultimately relate to ecology, natural resources and our attitude to them. Lately there have been various reactions to the subject, ranging all the way from dire predictions of imminent “gloom and doom” to complete denial that any problem exists. However, given the developments of the past few years, many people are very concerned about the matter. As the population of the world continues to rise and a number of important resources approach their limits, it is hard to avoid the thought that a major crisis could easily occur. A knowledgeable author expressed it this way in a recent book:
“The current world population of 6.5 billion has no hope whatsoever of sustaining itself at current levels, and the fundamental conditions of life on earth are about to force the issue. The only questions are: What form will the inevitable attrition take, and how, and in which places, and when?”
The Fear of Many
Although few wish to talk about it, the above quotation probably represents the fears of a significant number of people. Believers may well question what their role should be in all this, and how they should react to the diminishing of the world’s resources, perhaps coupled with lifestyles, at least in Western countries, that continue to use these resources on a large scale. Once again, the Word of God gives us light for every step of our Christian pathway and gives us wisdom in this matter too.
First of all, we must remember that God, who created the universe, did it for a purpose. He has chosen this world (and ultimately the entire universe) as a display of His power and glory, for “the heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handywork” (Psa. 19:11<<To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.>> The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork. (Psalm 19:1)). More than this, He has chosen this earth as the theatre to facilitate the carrying out of His purposes concerning His beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. As such, God knew exactly what He was doing when He created this world, when He allowed it to fall into temporary chaos, and when He established man upon it for a prescribed period of time. The resources He gave to man are finite, but God knew how long the world would need to last with man upon it, and nothing will frustrate His purposes. We can rest in this.
Throughout man’s history, his attitude towards the earth and its resources has ranged to extremes. On the one hand, he has often misused and squandered what God has committed to his stewardship, especially in times of plenty. We have wasted food, plant and animal life, and, more recently, fossil fuels. This has accelerated in the last one hundred years to include misuse of the soil, the wholesale destruction of rainforests, and the widespread pollution of air and water. All of this promises increasing difficulties if we are left here for a few years.
On the other hand, some have taken the attitude espoused in one of the publications I received in the mail, an attitude that worships the earth, that views all animal and plant life as being sacred, and even hesitates to use the world’s resources. Such individuals and groups often believe in “energy lines,” “mind-body exercise,” and “connecting one’s soul with one’s body” by being in harmony with “Mother Earth.” A minority suggest a return to a simpler lifestyle, perhaps farming with horse-drawn machinery and rejecting electricity and other modern conveniences.
A Proper Balance
As always, the Word of God gives us proper balance in all these things. First of all, God has given man the stewardship of this world, and as such, God intended him to use its resources. However, waste is never countenanced in Scripture, and even the Lord Jesus, the One who created all things, had the fragments of bread picked up that were left over after He had fed thousands of people. Likewise, there was no waste of the manna when Israel was in the wilderness, for God saw to it that “he that gathered much had nothing over” (Ex. 16:1818And when they did mete it with an omer, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack; they gathered every man according to his eating. (Exodus 16:18)). In 1 Corinthians 7:3131And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away. (1 Corinthians 7:31) we read that we are to “use this world, as not abusing it.” Everywhere in Scripture man is to be a careful steward of what God has given, using it as a means to an end, not as an end in itself.
The resources of this world are finite, and it does seem that, with the tremendous increase in the world’s population, there will not be enough to go around. It is quite possible that this very shortage, especially of fossil fuels, will be a factor that causes some of the upheaval and strife during the tribulation period. Should the believer be concerned about this? More than this, should we be driving cars that consume those resources and pollute the air at the same time? Should Christian farmers engage in the widespread use of pesticides and commercial fertilizers, knowing their ultimate effects on the soil? Or should we revert to a simpler way of life, to conserve as much as possible?
I believe that Scripture would call us to live in the world in which our lot is cast, serving our own generation by the will of God, and leaving the rest with Him. The use of cars and airplanes has enabled the spread of the gospel as never before. The use of modern communication systems such as the telephone, fax machine and the Internet has enabled believers to reach parts of the world as never before. The ease of printing and distributing literature has enabled the Bible and other publications to get into hands that otherwise would not have had it. For all this we thank the Lord and count on His blessing. He knows how long the gasoline will last and how long this world can go on, and thus Christians can indeed “use the world, as not disposing of it as their own” (1 Cor. 7:31 JND).
The Environmentalist Believer
In this sense every believer should be an “environmentalist,” in that he values the resources of this world because God created them, and also he values them for what they can do for the Lord. He will not hesitate to use those resources, but only in a way that will honor the Lord and further His interests. He will recognize that sin is in this world, and as such, he cannot expect perfection until the Lord makes things right. Until the curse of sin is removed, he cannot expect to see the effects of sin removed. Disease and death are part of the first creation, and we must live under it.
However, he will not be an environmentalist in the sense of worshipping the earth or feeling guilty when he uses its resources. Those who focus on “saving the planet” may have good motives, as far as wanting to preserve what is available to us, but many have no thought of God or His claims. Rather, their thoughts are of themselves, of their ultimate comfort, of preserving a heritage for their children, and of being able to enjoy “the pleasures of sin for a season” (Heb. 11:2525Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; (Hebrews 11:25)). In many cases, they are into such things as yoga, new age thinking, and ultimately occult practices. For many of them, the earth itself is a god, and thus they speak of reconnecting the mind to the body, and the body to the earth. Needless to say, such thinking ends up with man’s making himself a god, and self becomes the beginning and end of all his thoughts. May we stay well clear of such blasphemous and disordered thinking.
The Millennial Environment
There is a day coming when God will bring blessing to this world, when the Lord Jesus returns to judge this world and then reign during the millennium. The millennium will be a wonderful time, for the world will revert to an agrarian economy, and the curse on the earth pronounced in Genesis 3:1717And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; (Genesis 3:17) and Genesis 4:1212When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. (Genesis 4:12) will be lifted. In that day “they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree” (Micah 4:44But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it. (Micah 4:4)), and the ground will produce such abundance that “the plowman shall overtake the reaper” (Amos 9:1313Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. (Amos 9:13)). God will vindicate His Son in the world that has rejected Him, and judgment will be instantly executed against wrongdoers. However, even in the millennium there will not be perfection, nor the display of the fullness of blessing that God intends. God has told us in His Word, concerning the heavens and the earth, that “they shall perish, but Thou [the Lord Jesus] shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall be changed” (Psa. 102:2626They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed: (Psalm 102:26)). The world as we know it today will not go on forever, even the millennial world. Clearly the earth, including the atmosphere around it and the universe itself, will get old as a piece of clothing, and God will dispose of them when they are no longer needed. We read in 2 Peter 3:12 that there is a day coming when “the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat.” This will take place at the end of the millennium, for when this universe has served its purpose, God will burn it up. Then He will create “new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Peter 3:13) and usher in the eternal state.
As believers today, our hopes are heavenly, and we are not looking for earthly blessings, either in the millennium or the eternal state. Rather, our hopes are centered in Christ and in our heavenly blessings. We will not inhabit this earth during the eternal state, but we will enjoy the Father’s house.
In summary, let us remember God’s promise to Noah when he came out of the ark. At that time God promised that “while the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease” (Gen. 8:2222While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease. (Genesis 8:22)). A British poet (Byron) remarked, “Man marks the earth with ruin,” but God is in control, and nothing can stop the fulfillment of His purposes. For the present we are in this world — a world which is spoiled by sin and is wearing out. But God is still working here and has left us here as living witnesses for Him. He has given us resources to use and wisdom to use them for His glory and His interests, until we are called home.
W. J. Prost