The Oldest Profession

“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

If I were to ask you – what’s the oldest profession there is, how would you answer?  If you said farming, that would be correct.  That was Adam’s occupation.  It was the natural outgrowth of their need for food.  It was also the first responsibility God gave them.  In the garden God made them stewards of His creation.  Genesis 2:15 – “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and to take care of it.”   That’s the responsibility that goes with being made in the image of God. We are His representatives, responsible for the care of His creation.  That’s really what God was saying in Genesis 1 when He said to our first parents, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.  Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”  Making us rulers was not God saying, “You can do whatever you want with my creation…”  Being a ruler is not about having your way. When you rule over anything that makes you responsible for the care of that thing… in this case God’s creation.   We are stewards of God’s creation.  That means it belongs to Him not us. We are responsible to him for how we work it and take care of it.

This has really been driven home to Linda and to me since coming to Germany.  Back in Texas we had two garbage cans – one for recycling and one for garbage.  Here we have four kinds of garbage cans – one for paper products, one for biodegradable items, one is for both plastics and aluminum products and then one is for just plain garbage.  That is kept in another place.  They are very serious about this… we were putting the wrong things in the wrong containers when we first came and the sanitation services were refusing to take the can until we sorted things out properly. Some of the plastic and glass bottles we take back to the grocery store and recycle there to get a deposit returned.  All the rest of our glass products we take down the street to a bin where we have one compartment for brown glass, another for green glass and a third for clear glass.  I think I posted a picture on the blog.

My first reaction was, "wow" that's a lot of work.  The truth it that it hasn't been hard at all.  some of you from America might think we have become members of the Green Party or have become too
serious about global warming.  To all that I would say "No."  Whether you believe that global warming is real or not - that is not the issue.  The issue is that as believers in Jesus God calls us to take care of His creation.  The issue is being one of God's stewards of this beautiful world.  God is very serious about creation.  In Romans 8 He tells us that the liberation of creation is part of His plan for our redemption.  “The creation waits in eager expectation for the Sons 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 the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.”  Romans 8:19-21

My point is this – when we enjoy the natural world around us with a walk outside or a swim in the ocean… when we produce and use food as well as other products made from this earth, as well as when we recycle, or don’t waste things – we are part of God’s creative and redeeming work – working and caring for His beautiful creation.  We are part of the oldest profession… carrying out the first job God gave us.