God's Creation

[April 15, 2011]   --"God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’
And it was so. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day."- Genesis 1: 29-31

The hamburger you had for lunch is a sign of humanity's separation from God. Regrettably this is the message of Genesis 1. As God created the world, it was the intent that both humans and animals would nourish themselves solely with plant life. For humans, fruits and vegetables were set aside for our consumption; for animals, grass and leaves. This, of course, is how it was supposed to be, but amidst the traumas of the fall of Adam and Eve, was the unfortunate consequence that animals and humans now became one anothers' food. If things were as they should be, McDonald's would serve peaches and pears, and steakhouses would be an unknown thing. But things fell apart after God set up the world, and creatures began to feed on one another.

Now, do I bring this up because we should now all be vegetarian? No. I bring it up to illustrate the regard with which God set aside creation.
Now, the problem that often exists as the world of faith intersects the world of our daily lives, there is an "ought-to-be," and an "is." Just because it should be this way does not mean we can live as if it were so. But it does mean that we can revere and respect creation. It does mean that we can remember that the animals that we delight in eating, and which I delight in eating too, are God's creatures, created intentionally by God. We should remember that the world in which we live is not ours, it is God's. God made it. God designed it. God shaped it. And it is not currently as God intended it to be. Creation, all of creation, is very good. It is not just a resource or a tool, it is a gift from God.

Prayer: Holy God, we thank you for the gifts of your creation. Help us to live within it with dignity and respect. Help us to see all that is with reverence, joy and awe. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

[text from file received from Phil Blackburn, First Presbyterian Church]