"And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good an devil thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." (Genesis 2:15-17)
The first verse in this passage gives evidence of yet another intimate link between God and man, and that link is part of God's creation: earth and all that is in it. God created a world, called it "good", made man in His own image, and then set man in the world to "keep" it.
I believe God intended man to "keep" it as He Himself would have done; to cherish and care for, as He Himself would have done, the soil, and the trees, and the plants, and the animals.
But the link is not just between God and man; for as we go on in Genesis we will see that there is a link between man and the earth. For what happens to man, happens to the earth and all that is on it as well, doesn't it?
And that would be so because man was created from the "dust of the ground"…God linked man and earth at the creation of man. So that as man is blessed so is the earth, and as man is cursed, so is the earth.
The question here is: What does that mean for us? And what aspect of God are we seeing in this "linking" between God and man and between man and the earth. For we know the Bible "reveals" God to us.
What is it we are seeing here?
Let this be our food for thought over the weekend. Monday we'll see what we've come up with and we'll also address the second part of the verse, especially "for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die."
2 comments:
God can create and He can destroy. If we fast forward to Revelations 21, we see that the "first heaven and earth" has passed away and is no more. It has been replaced with a new heaven and earth. Much like Adam was replaced with Christ in the since where Adam failed, Christ did not.
Revelations 21 further explains how "God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away." Death is a part of Man as it is a part of the earth. Unlike people who wish to save the earth by "humanistic means," while their actions maybe admirable, in the larger scheme they are foolish efforts. While we are to be caretakers of this earth, it is foolish to believe that Man can stop the progression of God's plan. I believe many of these people who wish to "save the earth" have replaced the earth for God...they are worshipers of "Mother Earth," instead of the Creator Himself.
From our first breathes, we are in the beginning stages of dying and until Christ comes again, as foretold, and the "new heaven and earth" is here, the old heaven and earth will continue on its path, as will Man, towards death.
Man, unlike the old heaven and earth, is not doomed to the penalty of death without a reprieve. God, through the gift of His precious Son, Jesus Christ, made way the path to everlasting life for Mankind...all Man has to do is choose. GW
I believe you are right on, GW...thanks!
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