Should Christians Celebrate Earth Day?

Should Christians Celebrate Earth Day?

All around the world individuals, governments, conservation groups, school children, and groups will be celebrating Earth Day on April 22. The question is: Should Christians participate in these celebrations given that Earth Day is largely secular?

Is this the most important thing for me to focus on as a Christian? No, not at all. There are so many more important parts of the Christian life, but that doesn’t detract from the fact that this aspect of life is also worth of our thoughts and efforts.

So, should Christians celebrate Earth Day? It is my opinion that since Earth Day is a secular holiday that fails to honor God as the creator of ALL things, we should avoid joining in celebrations or commemorations that call attention to earth independent of honoring God who created it all. Also, Christians do not need one day out of 365 to honor God by enjoying His creation. We can honor God EACH day by being good stewards of God’s gift, and by enjoying that gift each and every day; all while thanking God for it.

Let’s look at what the Bible says about the earth. In Genesis 1:1 it says: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth; And in 1:31 it says: And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good.

God not only created the earth, He created all life. Man was placed on the earth, by God, to be its caretaker. That’s what it says in Genesis 2:15: Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.

But God also instructed the man to enjoy what He had created. Let’s read what Genesis 1:28-30 says: And God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to everything that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so.

How are we to interact with the earth? We are to respect it, in the same way Adam was told to cultivate it. Christians are stewards who are answerable to God. We need to exercise reasonable conservation and avoid litter and pollution. The land and our environment are both a gift from God.

Part of interaction with the earth is to also enjoy it! That’s right, enjoy it! Plant gardens, surf, climb mountains, sky dive or parachute (if you dare), ski, swim, or just enjoy a pleasant evening on the deck watching the fireflies. The earth was given to God’s people to enjoy. I like the way John Piper talks about “Desiring God” in his book by the same title. He wrote, “The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.” With the right heart attitude, which is giving glory to God, we should enjoy God’s gracious gift of the earth.

Psalm 118:24 says: This is the day which the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

In response to the cultural revolution of the 1960s and 70s, religious Americans began choosing sides. The Right claimed God, the Left claimed green, and then many Christians found themselves estranged from the environmental movement. Soon, environmental policy went to the courts and was inherited by politicians, leaving conservative Christians on the margins. Just as theologically conservative Christians mostly sat out of the civil rights revolution, thay have also sat out of the environmental revolution.

Christians continue to sit on the sidelines while millions die annually from preventable, water-related diseases. Most are children. We serve the One who created everything, called it “good” and asked humans to care for and protect it.

Caring for creation isn’t primarily a political, social or economic issue; it is a moral issue the people of God have been called to address. If we desire to remain true to God’s Word, Christians need to rediscover the scriptural basis for Creation Care, and propose solutions most Christians are comfortable with.

It’s time for Christians to reconcile ourselves with environmental issues. To abandon these issues, I believe, shirks our God-given responsibility to care for His planet.

So what should a Christian’s perspective on Stewardship of the Environment be?

Why should a Christian care about the environment? Here are some of the main reasons:

1.     The earth is the Lord’s and everything, the world and all who live in it (Psalm 24:1).

Although we have graciously been given this earth to live in and have dominion over, it is not ours. It is God’s. When I live and act in a way that shows disregard to that which God has created, I am not honoring Him.

Many think of tossing bulging bags of trash into landfills that dot the countryside and mountains, and we use products that seep toxic chemical waste into rivers, lakes and oceans.

2.     Dominion should not equal destruction.

      Remember what Genesis 1:28 said: “Be fruitful and increase in number. Fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

Increase. Fill. Subdue. Rule.

We have been entrusted with a high sacred calling to rule over the earth and all that is in it. What a responsibility!

Sadly we have taken this mandate and used it as justification to do, well, whatever we want. In order to satisfy the appetite of our society to have more and have it cheaper and faster, we greedily use up precious natural resources, fill the air, water and soil with dangerous toxic chemicals, raise animals in cruel and harmful ways, consume and then toss our “stuff” into landfills where it will possibly sit for hundreds of years.

The word “dominion” means to exercise control. I firmly believe that this earth and its resources have been given to us to have authority over and to use for the benefit of the human race. But rather than taking this as permission to do as we like, we ought to view this authority as a privilege.

The longer I study nature, nutrition, the human body, gardening and how things grow, the more in awe I am of our indescribably kind and intelligent Creator. In my own life, understanding and appreciating His creation more since moving back to the Midwest, has created a much deeper love and respect for God. I increasingly long to be more mindful of all He has given me to steward, and this earth is one of those things.

3.     We should have a multi-generational vision.

Not one of us knows when the Lord will return. It could hopefully be in the next few years. It could be fifty years from now. I long for Christ to return. Yet should He tarry, what will be left for the future generations? I want my children and grandchildren and great grandchildren to have an earth that is still inhabitable, as long as God wills it to be so; meaning, until He allows what it says in the book of Revelation will happen in the end of time. This requires us to think beyond ourselves. To consider what will remain past our lifetimes. What legacy will we leave for our children and the generations to follow?

I celebrate Earth Day every day, not just because I am some hippie who wants to save the dolphins, the trees, the rivers, the icecaps, the rainforests and the topsoil. But not just for the sake of saving them, and not just for the sake of humanity. I want to save them because they are an expression of our glorious and an important part of His loving provision for His people.

If I am to eat, drink and do all that I do to the glory of God, as it says in First Corinthians 10:31, then it follows that my lifestyle and actions should also have the goal of bringing glory to God in the ways that they impact His creation.

Living greenly and caring for the environment are good, moral things to do. It is irresponsible to pretend that this world doesn’t matter.

But it is also sinful to believe that my efforts, or the efforts of collective humanity, are the answer to the creation’s ills. If, as Paul writes, “the creation groans for redemption, part of our work as disciples is to see our efforts as part of that groaning, that yearning, for Christ’s return. The work of discipleship is to ask God’s Spirit to continually transform us, and to help us hope and work for the coming of God’s kingdom. Can picking up trash be a dual act of repentance and hope?

The fate of this planet is NOT the most important issue facing mankind. Ultimately, this decaying system will be replaced with a New Heavens and Earth anyway. Rather the most important issue facing mankind is: Will the individual choose to acknowledge his Creator and be reconciled to Him through the Lord Jesus Christ?

For Christians, the most important concern is that of sharing with others the Good News about the Creator, the Lord Jesus Christ, who came to earth to redeem His creation from the curse of sin.

We need to beware of the tendency to worship and serve created things, as can happen with some “Earth Day” activities. Instead, we should give glory and honor to the Creator and return to the authority of His Word.