FEATURE
HOW TO PUT CREATION ON
THE MISSIONAL MAP
But what about those who, for various
reasons, believe creation care is either
insidious, irrelevant or incidental?
How can we preach in such a way as
to reveal the integral place of creation
care more clearly, and in a manner
that equips and builds up the body of
Christ for works of service and to full
maturity (Ephesians 4:12,13)?
Our first port of call must be the Bible.
What does it say about creation? In
our role as preachers and teachers
we know we need to value the text
in its own context; to seek to
be as aware as possible of
our own biases; to try
to keep the biblical
overview in mind
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at all times; and also to allow the Holy
Spirit to reveal truth as we study and
teach. In view of all this, what is often
needed is to encourage a re-reading of
Scripture with new openness as to how
creation fits into the narrative. For
example, it is helpful to explore classic
passages like Genesis 1 and 2, drawing
out the implications of ‘ruling’ in
creation (1:26–28), when set alongside
the nurturing job of a gardener
(2:15) – Adam’s essential vocation.3
Recognising that we can only ‘rule’ in
creation because we bear God’s image
as perfected in Jesus
Christ – he ‘who made
himself nothing,
taking the very
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nature of a servant’ (Philippians 2:7,
NIV) – and that the climax of the
creation narrative was not humans,
but the Sabbath, breaks down the
all too common anthropocentric
interpretations of these texts.
Additionally, when preaching on the
Noah story we might major on the fact
that God’s rainbow covenant is made
with ‘all life on the earth’ (Genesis 9:12–
17, NIV), not just the people. Looking
at God’s abundant nature, described
so beautifully in Psalm 104, might also
help us to remember that he cares for
all his creatures. Recalling that John
3:16 does not say, ‘For God so loved
the people…’ could provoke fruitful
discussion, while Revelation 21’s
description of God ‘making everything
new’ rather than replacing the earth
might help us to think about the role of
creation in eschatology.
09/01/2015 14:36:05