We’re in Good Hands

As we have seen in previous posts, biblical shalom involves wholeness, delight, and a sense of meaning and purpose for all of God’s creation. Shalom is the way things are supposed to be.

Another way of thinking about shalom is to see it as a beautiful four-faceted diamond – peace with nature, peace in society, peace with ourselves, and peace with God. Let’s take a third and final look at peace with nature.

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Psalm 104 is a glorious hymn of praise to God the Creator. Please take the time to read this psalm before you read any further.

Although there are brief references to angels and humanity in this psalm, the central theme focuses on the world of nature -- plants and trees, birds, fish and wild animals. The psalmist portrays nature as a radiant garment that God wraps around himself to demonstrate his glory.

Biblical scholars indicate that Psalm 104 was beautifully designed with stanzas of varying lengths that describe the celestial and nautical realms, the earth’s foundations, the orderly cycles of life governed by the moon and stars, the richness of life on earth, and God’s sustenance of creation. Each of the days of creation recorded in Genesis 1 is carefully covered by the psalmist. The chapter concludes with words of praise for God’s glory and notes that God rejoices “in his works” (v. 31).

God’s pleasure with the world of nature is powerfully illustrated in this psalm. His continuing care and maintenance of nature is also established by the psalmist’s words: “These [the animals] all look to you to give them their food at the proper time” (v.27). God, who enjoys his creation and sustains it on a daily basis, has promised to send his Spirit and to “renew the face of the earth” (v. 30).

This reference to God’s renewal of creation is also repeated in the last book of the Bible. In the last chapters of Revelations (chapters 19-22), the Apostle John announces the second coming of Jesus Christ, the judgment against the defeated Satan, and a grand vision of a new heaven and a new earth. The promise is clear: what God originally created in the Garden of Eden and Adam and Eve’s sin subsequently destroyed, will be restored to its fullness when Jesus returns. The concept of redemption must be understood in its full biblical sense. God’s strategy of reconciling creation through his son, Jesus Christ, involves the restoration of the physical world as well as the redemption of the souls of his people.

God has promised to re-create “a new heaven and a new earth” (Revelations 21:1). He has promised not to annihilate the physical creation, but to redo it as he originally intended it to be. Shalom with nature will once again be fully restored. God’s care for our physical surroundings and for all living creatures will be abundantly evident in this restoration.

So What?

• One way we can join God in rejoicing in his creation is by caring for it, by being good stewards of our environment. I am very pleased that several of my grandchildren are pursing training in the environmental sciences. Followers of Jesus should be at the forefront of this discipline. 
• Let’s thank the Lord daily for the gift of his creation and the fact that “we are in good hands” – not Allstate’s, but God’s! Let’s also thank the Lord for his promise to re-create a “new heaven and a new earth” when Jesus comes again. We have a great future ahead of us!