December 16, 2017 - - Job 38 Climate Change and Christian Faith

Have you seen the treasury of snow,

Or have you seen the treasury of hail,

Which I have reserved for the time of trouble,

For the day of battle and war?

Has the rain a father?

Or who has begotten drops of dew?

From whose womb comes the ice?

And the frost of heaven, who gives it birth?

The waters harden like stone,

And the surface of the deep is frozen.

Job 38:22-24, 28-31 NKJV

Hmm, I have some questions for the people of this age.

So many people are wringing their hands about climate change. It is the money pit of our age, the "hot" conference topic for world leaders.

Hasn't the climate ALWAYS changed? Digs in the deserts across Africa show these used to be lush with growth. What about ice ages?

The Bible shows us that Job was familiar with the ice age. Normally the Middle East did not have ice and snow. Those who believe in a young earth, like I do, understand that God created the heavens and the earth. There was a world-wide flood around 2354 BC (as the Jewish Calendar names it 1656 anno mundi or am. Anno Mundi means year of the world, it references creation which was the start, about 4010 BC by our reckoning.) This flood created the ideal conditions for an ice age. Young earth creationists think this ice-age (in fact the only ice age our planet endured) lasted less than 1,000 years.

This ice age, written about here in Job and other places in the Bible, point to the fact that God is in charge of our planet, the cataclysms of history and also the climax of history which will be when Jesus is revealed to all the earth as the Savior of Mankind and the Just Judge of the living and the dead.

Does this mean Christians should not be concerned about pollution--garbage, waste, emissions from cars and factories etc? Not at all. Christians are stewards of the planet. Christians must work to care for creation. It does mean, however, that human should not be so filled with ourselves that we think we are in charge of all that happens in climate change because of our actions. We can make regional differences.

Remember your history, in the UK London-during the time of the industrial revolution-used to have pea-soup fogs and accompanying these were the soot and slime of pollution. As manufacturing processes were better regulated, the fogs and the soot slime that accompanied it were greatly reduced.

All the speculations about climate change and mankind's influence on it are distractions. Our truest and most important purpose is to love God and love the people He has put into our lives as we live in obedience to His Word. This is the most important work of our times.

Your Word, O God, teaches us that those who rule their spirit, who govern their thoughts and actions, are better than those who are mighty. In fact, it is a tribute to the powerful work of the Spirit in the life of believers when the followers of Jesus turn from perversity and evil teachings of this present dark age and instead live in faith-filled trust and obedience to You. Renew in us, O God, the commitment to the Great Commission. As Christian communities are planted near and far let there be a deepened commitment to caring for others and living as good stewards of this planet all for the glory and honour of Your great and awesome Name. Amen.