“Let us recognize that we are our brother’s keeper, and set to work … to make this world of ours a little bit more like home for those whom we call our brethren.”  These words from William Booth ought to resonate to the depths of the heart of every Salvationist. 

Genesis 1-2 tells not only the narrative of creation, but also the “why” of creation and for what purpose God set the world in place. This act of creation and bringing order to the chaos of life is the anchor for the hope that we find in the gospel story. God can be found amid a chaotic broken world and brings order and beauty to a restored creation through the redeeming power of the resurrection.    

As the birthright of all humanity, creation care should be of critical importance in shaping our worldview to better engage systems and practices that ensure access to resources and demonstrate good stewardship for the benefit of all inhabitants of the earth. As we care well for the garden that God has placed us in, the more fruitful it becomes and yields beauty, sustenance, shelter and a growing awareness of God’s presence.  

As a people commissioned by Jesus to go and bear witness to the good news of the gospel (Matthew 28:20), it is imperative that we understand the implications of our choices and/or lack of action in terms of creation care on our witness to those most affected by our choices—the “other.” Creation care is a gospel issue. 

Here are a few creation care principles to consider.  

Sabbath: Genesis 2:1; Exodus 23:10-12; Leviticus 26:3-4; Mark 2:27. We cannot continue to relentlessly exploit the land and arrogantly embrace a dominion mindset over a stewardship mindset for the care of creation. After God’s masterpiece of creation was finished, He saw that it was very good, and He rested. This is the model for all creation, and we would do well to embrace it both in how we live and in how we care for the earth. 

Discipleship: John 1:3-4; John 3:16; Colossians 1:16, 19-20. God, in His love for humanity and all creation, sent Jesus to earth to put an end to the sin and death that had corrupted the earth from the time of Adam’s fall. The incarnate Christ ushered in the Kingdom of God and began the process of making all things right again. This is the Jesus we follow.

Kingdom Priority: Matthew 6:9-13, 33; Philippians 4:19. Our desire should be to do everything within our power and capacity to help renew and restore creation as God’s agents here on earth. As Christians, we are citizens of a new Kingdom that is here and now. We all share a common humanity and a need for a world where peace and beauty are valued, and dignity and respect are the rule for all life.

Earth-Keeping: Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15 and 13:17; Deuteronomy 20:19-20. Creation care must model a commitment to conservation, a willingness to adjust and manage consumption and caution to overproduction and waste. This is a critically important ethic to building a foundation for creation care. 

Contentment: There is much to say about the concept of contentment in the context of our post-modern western world.  The constant drive for more, bigger, better, faster and richer puts life and the planet on an unsustainable trajectory. The influence of all this striving puts incredible pressure on the earth and all its inhabitants, and in particular, the poor and defenseless. Contentment is found in seeking and doing God’s will in life and in the care of the earth and all its inhabitants. We must then flee from those things that relentlessly exploit and degrade the planet, to then find our contentment in God’s faithful provision; that will always be enough. 

William and Catherine Booth felt God’s call to the marginalized, disenfranchised, poor and disaffected of London. William Booth would come to identify this group as the “submerged 10th.” Life for the submerged 10th consisted of poverty, unemployment, lack of resources, polluted air and water, poor access to medical care, homelessness, substance abuse, death and despair. These conditions are shockingly similar to the conditions that the majority of the world’s population live in today. This troubled William Booth that in 1890, he wrote a book to address a response to the needs of the submerged 10th, and society as a whole, entitled “In Darkest England and the Way Out.” It is from this book that The Salvation Army’s Creation Care ethic finds its roots. 

The action we take or do not take today as people of faith and Salvationists, for the sake of creation care, will have a profound impact on the lives of others whom God loves deeply. For the sake of the gospel, the earth and all her inhabitants, we dare not lose the moment. 

for further study

This article was originally titled “Good Stewards” in the April 2023 issue of Peer.

• Earthwise: A guide to hopeful Creation Care by Calvin B. DeWitt 
• Creation Care: A Biblical Theology of the Natural World by Douglas J. Moo and Jonathan A. Moo  
• Holy Living, Sustainable Living by Matt Seaman 
• For the Beauty of the Earth: A Christian Vision for Creation Care by Steven Bouma-Prediger 

Ed’s journey in Christian camping began in the pots and pans sink at Camp Elephant Rock where the Lord captured his heart for the ministry, power and influence of camp. Ed serves on staff at Camp Redwood Glen and has had the privilege to be involved with The Salvation Army’s camping ministry for many years in the Western Territory; he also serves as the Army’s National Camp Liaison. He loves to surf, flyfish, watch baseball and eat ice cream.