Subdue and Have Dominion

“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.”

What are we to do with this section from Psalm 24? It is a Psalm written to glorify God and to magnify his holiness. However, how can we consider these first two verses? As we look at the world around us, as we consider the way that we are called to “subdue and have dominion” over the earth that God has entrusted to us, we must always remember that we are merely stewards of this good land that God has given to us. As evangelical Christians, we understand our primary objective is to glorify God and to fulfill the Great Commission. However, I would challenge us to consider how it is that we are glorifying God in the way that we are managing the creation over which God has given us dominion.
I’m not writing to advocate tying ourselves to trees in Oregon or to suggest selling our SUV’s and buying hybrids. I only hope that in considering our responsibility to conservation and protection of the earth, we be always reminded that “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” What can we do daily to glorify God, not only in our Christian life and witness, but in the way that we steward His creation. To rightly determine our roles, we must divorce our thoughts and understandings from the political power play that is depicted in environmental concerns and search for truth and God’s will, not the will of a political party or activist group. Are we working to take the same care of God’s earth as we do our own homes?