Gospel and Environment

Last updated on: October 15, 2010 at 3:20 pm by Scot McKnight

Gospel and Environment 2010-10-15T15:20:15-05:00 Scot McKnight

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I got this question from a reader. An answer could take up a book — or a series of books — or at least a chp in a book, but I’ll give it a few lines.

Does the gospel include somehow not only good news of God renewing all of creation in Jesus, but also in living it out the call to humankind in Jesus to again be stewards of earth?

We begin with a problem. For most people, the gospel means the ABCs, simple basics of how we get saved. So, the gospel means God loves us, Jesus died for us, and we will spend forever with God in heaven. For others the gospel refers to the theological robustness of how we are saved, so it will take on a thorough explanation of thinks like justification by faith and double imputation, or things like sanctification and personal transformation into holiness, and for others it begins to sound like the gift of the Holy Spirit and the gifts and charisma.

Without denying the vital significance of robust theology of how salvation works, we need to realize that such terms and ideas don’t naturally lead to concern for the world and, more importantly, neither do they lead to the concern the prophets have with an earthly salvation and manifestation of God’s redemptive glory, or to brilliance of the redemption of all creation in Romans 8, and I’m thinking of these lines:

8:18 For I consider that our present sufferings cannot even be compared to the glory that will be revealed to us. 8:19 For the creation eagerly waits for the revelation of the sons of God. 8:20 For the creation was subjected to futility – not willingly but because of God who subjected it – in hope 8:21 that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage of decay into the glorious freedom of God’s children. 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers together until now. 8:23 Not only this, but we ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 8:24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with endurance.

And I’m thinking also of Revelation’s grand and glorious vision at the end of heaven coming down to earth for the new heavens and the new earth.

That is, many times the way we conceive of the gospel as personal salvation from our sins — and limit it to that — does not lead us to the robust way the Bible conceives of what God is doing in this world. And the “gospel,” after all, is the good news that God is doing this work in Christ. Sometimes this is call cast as “spiritual” vs. “earthly” — and that is just too dualistic and hierarchical for the Bible’s message.I’m quite convinced, at the same time, that many get wound up in environmentalism and start to get mushy in their thinking and the next thing we’re staring at something that looks a lot like panentheism or even pantheism. But, their extremes shouldn’t lead us into dualism.

Instead, we need to reframe how the Bible actually teaches the gospel. I want to quote just one text — and much more could be said, and I take this text to be a paradigmatic “gospel” text in the New Testament:

2:6 who though he existed in the form of God

did not regard equality with God

as something to be grasped,

2:7 but emptied himself

by taking on the form of a slave,

by looking like other men,

and by sharing in human nature.

2:8 He humbled himself,

by becoming obedient to the point of death

– even death on a cross!

2:9 As a result God exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

2:10 so that at the name of Jesus

every knee will bow

– in heaven and on earth and under the earth –

2:11 and every tongue confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord

to the glory of God the Father.

At the heart of the gospel itself is the declaration that Jesus Christ, the one born of Mary, the one who emptied himself to the point of the cross, the one who died with us, instead of us and for us, and the one who was exalted, is Lord. This status of Jesus Christ is the consummation of the status designed for humans in Genesis 1:26-27, where humans are made to rule and mediate on God’s behalf in this world.

So, is creation care part of the gospel? Indeed. We are called to rule and mediate, on God’s behalf, but we messed this up and God did just that — rule and mediate — in his Son, and he is now Lord and Mediator over all and for all. He is Lord over all, including creation.

Hence, I would say that creation care is inherent to our central calling: we rule today in Christ.

Previous Post

October 14, 2010

The Moral Landscape (RJS)

Next Post

October 14, 2010 Say What?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Acts of the Apostles Adam Advent Anabaptism Angels Anglican Apologetics Atonement Baptism BCP Prayers Bible Biblical Studies Birds Blogging Bloglossary Bonhoeffer Books Calvinism Christianity Church Church History Coffee Colossians Commentary Recs Conversion Creation Creeds Culture Death Ecclesiastes Economics Education Embracing Grace Emergent Emerging Movement Eschatology Essays Ethics Eucharist Evangelicalism Family Fasting Fathers Fellowship of Differents Footsteps Tour Fun and Whimsical Gospel Grace Happiness Heaven Hell Holy Spirit Irenaeus James Jesus Jesus Creed Job Justification Kingdom of God Law Lectures Lent Liberalism Love and Marriage Mabanteneni Manhood Mary Miracles Missio Alliance MissioLife Missional Missional Jesus Movies and Film New Perspective Northern Seminary OneLife Origins Project Orthodox Parables Pastor's Spouse Pastoring and Leading Pastoring and Preaching Patristics Paul Paul-John Tour Pharisees Pietism Political Theology Prayer and Formation Preaching Problems for Faith Psalm 119 Psalms Public Issues Purgatory Religions Resurrection Revelation Romans Rule of JCreed Science and Faith Sermon on the Mount Sports Ten Commandments Theology Third Way Top Ten Lists Translations Uncategorized Universalism University Ministry Way Out Weekly Meanderings Wisdom Women and Ministry Work Worship Writing & Blogging Youth Ministry

Select a Month July 2021 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 0000

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

I am a period of seven years times seven, followed by a year of liberty and restoration. What am I?

Select your answer to see how you score.

A year of rest The Year of Jubilee The Sabbath year A holy year