Man tends to be so anthropocentric that he rarely considers the full outcome of his original sin against God and all the rest of Creation at the outset of human history.
Jesus and I’m sure all of the Apostles were fully aware of it.
At Romans 11:19-22, Paul states it plainly: “…creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.”
The Source Of Bondage
Today’s experts explain away the desperate condition of our planet and all its inhabitants (animal and human) with explanations like ‘global warming’, ‘deforestation’, ‘loss of habitat’, ‘over-fishing’, ‘poaching’ and so on and so on. These things may be true as immediate causes, but they are only a comfortable way of overlooking and blaming away the root cause of the decay of our beautiful planet. At the bottom of it all lies depravity, in the form of human greed.
It is the desire for ‘more, more and yet, more’ that lies at the root of all the things that are wasting our world – from industrial overreach, destructive farming practices, chemical emissions, chemical fertilizers, chemical herbicides and pesticides to wars and waste disposal. This curse starts with every one of us as individuals (as it began with Eve), and it goes all the way through to today’s mighty nations and corporations, whose impact is so large.
The Hope Of Liberation
After Jesus finished His 40 day fast in the wilderness of Judea, the Devil came to tempt Him – hoping to have the same success with the Son of Man as he had had with the world’s original inhabitants. He posed 3 temptations –
- bodily pleasure – “Make these stones into bread”;
- egotism – “Prove yourself by publicly testing God’s ability to save you from death”;
- materialism – “Bow to me and I will give you all the kingdoms of the world” – and you will not need to die for it. (Matthew 4:1-11)
All of these tests, Jesus waved aside with direct reference to scripture. But in the third attack note that Satan offered “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor”, if Jesus would bow down and worship him. Here, Satan was actually within his rights – and Jesus knew it. Adam and Eve, by accepting Satan’s offer and going against the word of God right at the beginning, had in fact handed the world over into the Enemy’s hands.
Jesus’ response was again to quote scripture – the passage in Deuteronomy 6:13 where God calls on His people to worship Him alone. We are indeed forever indebted to our Savior for His strength, wisdom and steadfastness in this crucial encounter. We cannot doubt that without that, the world would have been brought to an abrupt end.
And so the whole of creation “waits in eager expectation” for mankind to get its act together and complete The Great Commission ordained by Jesus:
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Matthew 24:14)
The Story Behind The Artwork
This piece is very dear to me: it is called ‘Murphy’s Garden’.
Murphy was my gardener – and I must say he was a much better gardener than either the Kunekune pigs or the Arapawa/Damara sheep that I have currently. He knew his place, and he didn’t eat things he wasn’t supposed to eat.
As well as keeping the pasture in shape, Murphy used to mow the lawn, and I came home one day with my Mom from shopping (about 2005/6), to be greeted by this scene. Fortunately I had my camera with me.
Gemma the white border collie and a bunch of white ducks in the foreground. Beloved Staffy cross dog Flynn half hidden by the fence at left, and Murphy himself, centre stage. Offered for fun and because of its wonderful, magical atmosphere.
Olympus OM1, c 2005/6. For more details about the work and products, click on the image.
Damascus Road News 