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A Holy
Environment
by
Captain
Michael Ramsay
God
cares about the environment, the land itself. He lays out some
important commands concerning it in Leviticus 25 and 26 (among
other places) in a part of Scripture that is – interestingly
enough - known as the ‘Holiness Code’. Holiness is linked to
good environmental stewardship.
One of
the first responsibilities that God gave to humankind – even
before He rested on the seventh day - was to take care of the
earth (Genesis 1:26-2:1). The Canadian Salvation Army’s
position statement on the environment reads, “As people are
made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), we have been
entrusted with the care of the earth's resources (Genesis
2:15). Stewardship requires that we use these resources in a
manner which ensures the well-being of present and future
generations. God's instruction to ‘subdue’ the earth and
‘rule’ over every living thing (Genesis 1:28) cannot be
interpreted to justify abuse or disregard for any life, not
only human life. The privileges granted require our
accountability to Him and one another.” Even more than that it
is linked with holiness and as Christians we are expected to
be holy, even as God is holy (Leviticus 11:44,45; 19:2; 20:7;
1 Peter 1:16; cf.
Psalm 89:35; 2 Corinthians 13; Colossians 1:28; Hebrews 11-12)
As a
holy people, we are directed in Scripture that we should take
care of the environment and more. Just as humankind is
commanded to have a Sabbath rest (Exodus 20: 8-11; Deuteronomy
5:15), and just as God rested on the seventh day (Exodus
20:11; Genesis 2:3), so too the land itself shall enjoy a
Sabbath rest (Leviticus 25:2; 26:34,35). This is important.
The LORD commands that “you
shall keep my Sabbaths…I am the LORD” (Leviticus 26:2) He then
offers the following blessings for observing His commandments
faithfully: you will have rain in season, the land shall yield
its produce and the trees their fruit, your ‘threshing shall
overtake the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the
sowing,’ you will eat your fill of bread, live securely on the
land in peace, fear no one, be free from dangerous animals,
‘no sword shall go through your land,’ you will have a surplus
of food, you shall pursue and slay your enemies, the LORD will
look with favour upon you, make you ‘fruitful and multiply,’
God will dwell among you and will be your God and you His holy
people. Scripture records, He will maintain His covenant with
Israel
if they live up to their responsibilities relating to the
environment as specified in the Holiness Code (Leviticus
26:3-13).
If they do not keep all the
LORD’s statutes iterated in this section of the Holiness CodeHH
(which begins
with the Sabbaths as they relate to the land) the Lord states
(Leviticus 26:16-33) that He will bring five successive sets
of curses on them, each one worse than the previous, in the
hope that they will return to Him and obey His commands. In
Leviticus 25:14-23 the consequences for failing to obey God’s
commands are specified. Verse 23 states that if the Israelites
are negligent in regard to their environmental
responsibilities specifically relating to the earth and to the
Sabbatical Year what will happen. If they fail to live up to
their holy responsibility to grant the land its Sabbath rest,
God says, “…the
land shall be deserted by them, and enjoy its Sabbath years by
lying desolate without them, while they make amends for their
iniquity:” They will be exiled and the land will enjoy its
Sabbath unto the LORD. It is emphasized here that this command
has the full authority of coming directly from the LORD,
Himself. If we, as ‘tenants’ of God’s land, fail in our holy
responsibility to carry out this duty to take care of the
environment, then the owner of the land -who cares about His
land- may remove us from it (Leviticus; 25:23 Chronicles
36:20-21).
He did remove Israel from the land, just as He had
removed those who were responsible for the same land before
them (Genesis 15:16-19; 2 Chronicles 36:20-21). As Israel neglected its environmental
responsibilities, He removed them. “He carried into exile to
Babylon
the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became
servants to him and his sons until the
kingdom
of Persia
came to power. The land enjoyed its Sabbath rests; all the
time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were
completed in fulfilment of the word of the LORD spoken by
Jeremiah” (2 Chronicles 36:20-21). When Israel neglected the land, the LORD
held them responsible. The land is the LORD’s. He cares about
His land.
Because God cares about the environment and because God loves
us, He has commissioned us to take care of His creation; so as
a holy people, we Christians should do our best to live up to
our God given responsibility to take care of His land.
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