28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and every creature that crawls on the earth.” 29 God also said, “Look, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the surface of the entire earth and every tree whose fruit contains seed. This will be food for you, 30 for all the wildlife of the earth, for every bird of the sky, and for every creature that crawls on the earth—everything having the breath of life in it—I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 God saw all that he had made, and it was very good indeed. (Genesis 1:28-31)
This verse is a series of commands. The Hebrew verbs indicate that God was speaking to both the man and the woman giving them a blessing and commandments which involved both of them. We learn here that we have important work to do on planet Earth. Part of that work is having children. Being fruitful means multiplying the numbers of humans, which means filling more space on the earth. Humans are supposed to grow in population and fill the earth.
Earth is the habitat for both animals and humans. God commands that humans are to subdue the earth and have dominion over it. This is a positive view of humanity being on the earth. Before evil entered the world, God established that both humans and animals were to eat plants. They are not enemies with one another, because this is before humans are allowed by God to kill animals for food. Yet even in this blissful environment, humans are designated by God to rule the earth. That ruling must involve two things: taking care of the planet and farming the earth in order to provide the food necessary to sustain its whole population.
This teaches us some basic ideas about work.
First, work is good. To work is to obey God. And the work which God gave us is dignified.
Second, men and women are both commanded to do this work. They cannot reproduce alone and God intended for them to accomplish all of this work as a team. Work is not a solo pursuit, but a collaboration.
Third, humans and the civilization which humans produce do not have to be the enemy of the earth. Genesis Chapter 3 tells us why human civilization becomes a threat to our ecosystem. But “in the beginning it was not so.”
Fourth, work is caring for the planet and its inhabitants. Humans and animals need food. In order for the plants to continue to sustain us, we can’t consume everything without planting more. We have to manage land and water and crops and trees. Even if our government doesn’t regulate how this happens, we as Christians should take responsibility ourselves to live lives that demonstrate an active care for our planet!
We don’t live in the Garden of Eden anymore. Evil entered because of human sin and marred all of God’s creation. That doesn’t mean all of these things are now impossible. Jesus Christ came to reverse the curse of sin and death. Though we do not see it yet, we are promised new heavens and a new earth one day in the future. And even now we humans are being renewed in the image of our Creator (Colossians 3:10). 2 Corinthians 5:17 says that “if anyone is in Christ (one who trusts in Christ), he is a new creation.”
Perhaps being a “new creation” in Jesus Christ can renew our relationship with our environment, and train us to be better caretakers of God’s beautiful earth and all it contains. Perhaps being a “new creation” can renew our relationships with our fellow humans and inspire us to be better co-workers with one another. Perhaps being a “new creation” can renew our joy and purpose in work. I believe being a “new creation” can do all of these. We are not all farmers, ranchers or even gardeners, yet these principles apply to our work today. I would love to hear your stories of God-reflecting work!