Let’s throw a question back at you! Imagine that someday you are engaged to be married (yeah, we know, that’s a LONG way off!) During the time that you are eagerly looking forward to your wedding day, would you neglect or beat-up the person you plan to marry just because you aren’t yet married? Hard to imagine, isn’t it?
We are eagerly looking forward to the coming of our Best Friend, Jesus Christ. Planet Earth is His creation—would you think Jesus would want us to mis-use it, neglect it, exploit it before He comes? The same God who carefully folded his grave clothes (John 20:6-7), who notes when even a sparrow falls to the ground (Matthew 10:29), who directed that the leftovers after lunch be picked up (John 6:12) wants us to take good care of His earth!
The environment is important because God’s children are important. God died for people (that includes you and me) and our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual being is affected by how we care for the earth. Our motivation for environmental care is respect for God’s creation—not worshipping some Mother Earth Goddess, or because we believe in evolution or pantheism*.
It’s true that this present world is temporary (II Peter 3:10,12) but that doesn’t mean we should destroy it!
* pantheism denies God’s personhood and makes God and nature one.
