Romans 8:18-24 Jesus Died for the Whole Creation.

Laura and Soren (re)discovering Lake Michigan.

Observation: After talking about God's offer of grace as a free gift to the whole human race, both Jew and Gentile, Paul makes an interesting move. He starts talking about the implications of God's grace, and of the new age begun by Jesus' resurrection, for the creation itself: animals, plants, oceans, mountains, and all that we see. He writes about how all living things--not just humans--are negatively affected by sin, and groaning as they await the fullness of life promised in Jesus' resurrection. We're not alone in leaning forward and longing for this new future. Paul talks about how someone "subjected" the creation to futility and decay. Some commentators believe he means Adam himself, the primordial human. Ever since the very beginning, human sin has alienated us not only from God and each other, but from all forms of life. It was this sin which Jesus overcame on the cross. When he returns, the Lord will not just renew human beings, but all things. 

Application: Christians are often (and rightly) accused of being indifferent or even hostile to the idea of caring for God's creation. We wrongly interpret God's call in Genesis 2 to "be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it" as carte blanche to do whatever we like with the earth's resources and our fellow creatures. In reality, God called Adam (and the entire human race) to steward the creation. To care for it, and allow it to fulfill its God-given purpose. Fun fact: God's first commandment in Genesis was not to humans at all: God first commanded the birds and sea creatures to "be fruitful and multiply!" If humans misinterpret our own God-given commission to "be fruitful", we make the rest of creation unable to fulfill its God-given commission to do the same. 

It comes down to this: If I was told that a member of my family was gravely ill, and something I was doing had caused it, I would stop. Immediately. No question about it. And yet, much of the way I live my life--the routines I follow out of convenience, the purchases I make, the way i choose to travel--has an impact on my fellow creatures, whom God has called good and commanded to flourish. This is not just impolite or insensitive. It is sinful. And while there's no perfect way to avoid any and all impact on other living creatures, repentance calls me to look at what I'm doing today that I could do differently tomorrow. Jesus died to renew human life, but not just human life. Creation, too, "will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God." Jesus says "Behold, I am making all things new." Thank God for that. 

Prayer: Lord, help me know better, and then help me do better. Forgive me when I fail to love my neighbor as myself--both human and not. Amen.