The Earth Teaches Stewardship

The Earth Teaches Stewardship

Gen. 1:9-12,24-28; 2:15

Intro.

A. Unless we know God as the Creator of all things - we do not know the true God (Ps. 148).

B. The earth was created for man - to use and subdue (Gen. 1:28-31; 9:1-4).

1. A militant minority in this country deny the plain teaching of God (1 Tim. 4:1-4).

2. Demonstrators - pictures of fish-hooks saying “they hurt” - well the big fish eat the little fish - does that hurt the little fish? (Every big fish I catch prevents thousands of little ones hurting!)

C. Many who would not deny God’s existence - just ignore Him (Ps. 10:4 “The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.”)

D. Three possible sources of the universe:

1. It is eternal - had no beginning.

a. Contradicts law of causality - every material effect must have an adequate cause.

b. Contradicts second law of thermodynamics - it is running down; must have been a time when it was “wound up” - had a beginning.

2. It created itself - spontaneously, from nothing. Naturalism: “Nobody times nothing equals everything.”

a. Big Bang theory - something exploded and by chance everything came into orderly existence.

b. What exploded? Where did that come from?

c. Eons of time does not help the Big Bang theory!

d. We do not know the age of the earth - or its apparent age. How old did the first tree look? How old did Adam and Eve look? Apologetics Press published a picture of fishing reel in rock: “Over twenty-five years ago, Dan Jones was trout fishing in the Tellico River. It was there he stumbled across something that still leaves geologists scratching their heads...It was a simply fishing reel - partially embedded in rock (known as phyllite) believed to be about 300 million years old (according to evolution- based dating systems)...members of geology department from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga (UTC) scrutinized the rock, and they were completely unable to explain it. They eliminated the possibility of the rock being fake (as in some type of concrete) by applying an acid test to investigate its composition... the head geology guru showed up. Department chairman Dr. Habte Churnet at first seemed somewhat indifferent to the reel in the rock, until his cohorts encouraged a closer look (Dan Jones explained again where he got it)...With great authority, he declared, ‘I am the chairman of the department, and I say this does not exist. It’s a figment of our imagination’ (Simms, 2004). When we asked Mr. Jones if he thought the department chairman stood by his statement, he replied, ‘Yeah, I think he did. They could not explain it.’ (Jones, 2005)...It was 1897 when William Shakespeare Jr patented the first fishing reel. That, by definition, would limit the age of this reel to roughly 100 years. Yet this rock, which weighs close to 20 pounds, is considered by evolutionary timescales to be roughly 300 million years old.” ( via Sentry Magazine, 3/31/05).

3. It was created by Someone (an eternal first cause that adequate to explain the effect).

a. Everybody believes that something is eternal. From nothing - nothing comes; something exists, therefore something always was.

b. The Biblical explanation is reasonable and consistent with Scientific facts.

c. We either believe God created, or He did not. If He did not, He does not exist at all; nothing has any purpose and nothing makes any sense. If there is a God - creation is possible, and rational.

d. Anthony Flew (famous atheist who has debated many - including Thomas Warren) recently said: “Some form of intelligence or first cause must have created the universe. A super-intelligence is the only good explanation of the origin of life and the complexity of nature.” (Especially the complexity of DNA.) He doesn’t accept the God of the Bible - but he professes to believe in some intelligent first cause! “Does God Exist?” Mar/Apr, 2005). If some other God exists - evidently does not care enough about His creation to reveal Himself!

Body:

A. Creation indicates Lordship

1. By speaking - (on the third day) God separated the land from the waters and grass, herbs and trees - all producing after their kinds (1:9-13).

2. God spoke the lights in the firmament into existence - fourth day (1:14-19).

3. God “said...created...” sea creatures and birds - produced after their kind - fifth day (1:20-

23).

4. God spoke - earth creatures - “each according to its kind” and man - sixth day (1:24-31; evidently woman on the same day, 5:1-2).

5. Other passages that show His Lordship: Ps. 33:6-9; 100:3;  Heb. 11:3; 2 Pet. 3:5-7.

B.  Creation indicates stewardship

1. Steward - primarily denotes the manager of a household or estate (oikos - house; nemo - to arrange). Joseph was a steward in Egypt (Gen. 41:46-49).

a. Ownership is necessary before there can be stewardship

b. We own nothing - God owns everything. (Legally we are owners; actually we are stewards of what belongs to someone else).

2. God owns:

a. The beasts, cattle, birds (Ps. 50:10,11)

b. The world (Ps. 50:12; Job 41:11)

c. Life, breath and all things (Acts 17:24,25).

3. We are stewards of time (Prov. 27:1; Lk. 12:18-21; Jas. 4:13-15)

a. God has loaned us - 86,400 seconds a day, 8,760 hours a year, 168 hours a week - He allows no overdrafts, and no borrowing. We must use them as they come (Col 4:5 “Walk in wisdom toward those who are without, redeeming the time.”)

b. Many who intended to prepare to meet God at the eleventh hour, died at ten-thirty!

c. How much time do we spend in: reading the Bible (1 Pet. 2:2), teaching others (Mt. 28:19,20), worshiping God with others (Ps. 34:1-3; 122:1).

4. We are stewards of money (Dt. 8:17,18; 1 Tim. 6:7).

a. “There is more said about giving than about faith, repentance, confession, baptism and church organization combined...If we had been talking as much about money for the last hundred years as we have baptism, we would have evangelized the world” (Rust as A Witness, V.P. Black). Sixteen of Christ’s parables deal with money!

b. Under the Law, the Israelites gave a tenth to the Levites and the Levites gave a tenth to the priests. (There were other gifts also - some say 30% was given to work of God.)

c. Imagine Jews converted to Christ - a superior law, superior promises, superior mission - and them rejoicing that God did not set a percentage - so we will reduce our giving!

d. You can’t take it with you - but you can send it ahead!

e. We can serve God and use money, but cannot serve money and use God (Mt. 6:24; Lk. 16:13)

5. We are stewards of our bodies (“The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness. The world and those who dwell therein” Ps. 24:1.)

a. The Christian is God’s by creation and re-creation (1 Cor. 6:19,20).

b. Some use good health - to serve money, pleasure and self.

c. Some say “God wants me to be happy” as an excuse to disobey Him. He wants you to be saved!

Concl.

A. Song: How Great Thou Art

B. Story of art collector.