“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” Genesis 2:15
Throughout history, humans have declared their ownership of a place by erecting an image of themselves. It may be a symbol, a picture, or even a statue. Everyone passing by this image would know that someone powerful owns the land they are walking on.
When we look at our text today, we see that God put a man in the garden, a man who was made in His image. Yes, of course the man’s mandate was to work the garden and to take care of it, but it is also clear that God, by doing this, made an unprecedented declaration: all this belongs to Me.
Does God’s original declaration still stand in a fallen world? Does the presence of men and women still declare, “the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it” (Psalm 24:1)?
In our sin, we try to take credit for the earth. We propagate the lie that “the earth is ours, and everything in it.” We couldn’t be more wrong.
Yet, out of unimaginable love, God sent His son to pay the price for our rebellion. Now, those who call themselves Christians can once again declare, through faith, that God is the all-sufficient ruler of everything. Every time we act like God, every time we obey His word by faith, there is an echo of an unbroken world, a world as it was created to be, and a world that will one day be made new.
Let us walk by faith, and not by sight.
Father, thank You for not only letting us walk in Your beautiful world, but paying the price for all the times when we walk in it, and in the bodies You created, as if we own them. Please help us to reflect Your perfection as much as possible, through our faith-fueled obedience. Amen.
Thought: Have you been acting like God, or acting as if you are God? There’s a big difference! Think about how you’ve been taking God’s credit, and confess it to Him. Then, ask Him to show you how you can be more like Him today.
By Thomas Pujol
used be permission
FURTHER READING
RECEIVE These Devotionals Daily by email: FOLLOW THIS Link to Subscribe