Recently there has been a fair amount of attention given to the release of The Green Bible,a version of the Bible which focuses on the necessity of caring for the earth and "saving" the planet from enviromental disaster.On the surface this seems to be a noble endeavor. Who can deny that this world has been profoundly effected by the abuses of mankind through pollution and related abuses? This site has written about what is called enviromentalism(April 27,'08) in the past but there are few things that still need to be said regarding this subject.
Traditionally, the cause of "saving the enviroment" has not been a priority for Bible believing Christians. Enviromentalism, until recently, has had and still does have a counter-culture,pagan, "new-age" aura to it.Rarely do you find zealous enviromentalists involved in traditional Christianity.There are two reasons for this. One, is that too many enviromentalists appear to do what is written of in Romans 1:25, they worship and serve "the creature rather than the Creator".The second reason for this deals with questions pertaining to priorities.Editors from HarperOne who are publishing The Green Bible are quoted as saying: "the most important problem our planet is facing is that our planet is dying." If indeed this statement is true,does anyone really believe this is the most important issue the world is facing? The publishers issued this statement: "The Bible carries an important message about caring for the earth." Oh really,where do you actually see this written of or alluded to in the Bible? The reality is that the Bible is first and foremost about Jesus and what His Redemption means to us and to those who accept Him.When you are truly convicted and begin to follow Jesus,you become a new person. Although you will still sin,you will no longer think primarily of yourself; your world view will change,you will gain a greater degree of compassion for others,and,the world around you.Real Christians,who read their Bibles,should have enough love for God's creation that they would not knowingly ever do anything to harm it.In fact,they will do things that will care for and preserve this beautiful earth. They'll do so because they recognize that "the earth is His and He made it." They'll do so because of a changed heart that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
So, what are we getting at here,that The Green Bible is evil and should be shunned? No. The problem lies in the premise of The Green Bible. It's about "saving" the wrong thing.It should first be about the saving grace that comes through faith in Jesus,that must be the number one priority of any Bible that is ever published.
Traditionally, the cause of "saving the enviroment" has not been a priority for Bible believing Christians. Enviromentalism, until recently, has had and still does have a counter-culture,pagan, "new-age" aura to it.Rarely do you find zealous enviromentalists involved in traditional Christianity.There are two reasons for this. One, is that too many enviromentalists appear to do what is written of in Romans 1:25, they worship and serve "the creature rather than the Creator".The second reason for this deals with questions pertaining to priorities.Editors from HarperOne who are publishing The Green Bible are quoted as saying: "the most important problem our planet is facing is that our planet is dying." If indeed this statement is true,does anyone really believe this is the most important issue the world is facing? The publishers issued this statement: "The Bible carries an important message about caring for the earth." Oh really,where do you actually see this written of or alluded to in the Bible? The reality is that the Bible is first and foremost about Jesus and what His Redemption means to us and to those who accept Him.When you are truly convicted and begin to follow Jesus,you become a new person. Although you will still sin,you will no longer think primarily of yourself; your world view will change,you will gain a greater degree of compassion for others,and,the world around you.Real Christians,who read their Bibles,should have enough love for God's creation that they would not knowingly ever do anything to harm it.In fact,they will do things that will care for and preserve this beautiful earth. They'll do so because they recognize that "the earth is His and He made it." They'll do so because of a changed heart that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
So, what are we getting at here,that The Green Bible is evil and should be shunned? No. The problem lies in the premise of The Green Bible. It's about "saving" the wrong thing.It should first be about the saving grace that comes through faith in Jesus,that must be the number one priority of any Bible that is ever published.
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