Gen 1:27-28 NRSV
27 So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth."
Gen 2:15 NRSV
15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
Gen 9:1-2 NRSV
God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth."
God called humanity to be co-creators. God placed Adam in the garden to be steward over it. God told Adam, and later Noah, to "fill the earth." Certainly, "fill" means to expand over the earth and populate it, but it means much more. Humanity is the glory of God. By filling the earth with co-creators in a loving relationship with God, the earth becomes filled with God's glory!
Unfortunately, Adam rebelled, and then Cain. Instead of expanding and glorifying God, Cain was entrenched in a city and glorified himself. After Noah came the people of Babel. Instead of expanding and glorifying God, they entrenched in a city and glorified themselves. God brought the Israelites into existence to be a light unto the world, but they also turned inward and glorified themselves. Even today, the Church is told to go into the world and fill it with God's glory, but how many of us have huddled in our worship communities and placed our comfort ahead of glorifying God? History doesn't repeat itself, but it rhymes.
Additionally, humanity has not proven reliable partners as co-creators with God. Instead of using the resources God has entrusted us toward ends that glorify and honor God, humanity has used resources to oppress others and create autonomy. Economic injustice has been the norm throughout all human history.
When we answer the call to co-creator stewardship, we do ministry. Ministry is defined as acting in response to God. Ministry is not defined by what we do. It is defined by who we are doing it for. The call to co-creator stewardship has not expired or been superseded. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:4-6:
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. NRSV
This is a basic Trinitarian call to ministry. Exercise of spiritual "gifts" for building up the body of Christ is the call of the "Spirit." Kingdom "services," or carrying on the works of Christ, are the call from the Son. Doing varieties of "activities" or "working" is the call of God the Father. We are all called to all three, but most of us will concentrate our energies on creation stewardship.
We are called to be stewards of creation in a world of economic injustice and rapid globalization. What should our response be? It seems a good place to start might be to ask what we mean by economic justice.
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