To Till the Ground (Part 1)
"This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground." Genesis 2:4-5
In the first days of creation, the earth was either not yet planted or what was planted did not grow because God had not caused it to rain and because there was no man to till the ground. From the beginning, God's plan for the earth depended on the stewardship of mankind and, apparently, without man to tend it, God would not even allow the plants of the earth to grow. Agriculture was intended as mankind's preeminent occupation, one to which he was inherently suited -- an occupation entirely in accord with his nature.
That the occupation of agriculture is inherently in accord with mankind's nature is evident even in his formation. He was formed from the dust of the ground -- the very same dust that would be soil for plants and provide food for man and animal. Mankind and the garden designed for him share the same biological foundation -- dirt. Without it seeds will not root or grow and with it God apparently chose to form mankind. We share the essential nature of the ground and the life we were formed to tend.
Mankind is more than mere plant or animal. Though we all share the life of God, only of mankind is it ever said that God, "breathed into his nostrils the breath of life." Though his form was earth-bound, man's life was God-breathed. And to which of the plants or animals has God ever given concrete responsibilities -- for responsibilities require the exercise of will. Only to mankind has been given the responsibility to tend and to keep life beyond ourselves and only mankind has been given a will to choose whether or not to cooperate with or destroy the nature he is so inextricably a part of. All other life forms act responsibly more out of nature and instinct than out of will.
What exactly were the original parameters of mankind's earthly responsibilities? Toward God, mankind's primary responsibility was to believe and obey. In the believing process, it was expected that man would fellowship with God and comprehend His essential nature -- His love. If mankind ever failed to believe in the perfection of God's love, he would begin to believe in something else and that God's instructions were somehow selfishly motivated. Man's obedience was rooted in his faith in God. As long as he believed, he would obey. Disobedience was mankind's willful expression of lack of faith in God.
Toward the earth and all that lived on it, mankind's sole responsibility was to tend the garden that God had planted and which God had placed him in. These two things would measure the march of mankind's maturity -- by how well he cultivated the earth and by how well he cultivated his relationship with God. He was told to tend and keep (or cultivate and guard) the garden. But inherent in this tending and keeping was the command to honor with his obedience the loving character of God. In this respect, the occupational venue in which mankind's maturity would be tested and grow was the cultivation of agriculture -- the husbandry of plant and animal.
Michael Hennen
Saturday, January 17, 2009
