When we first moved here nearly four years ago, from the building on Weems Road that had been our home for more than forty years, most of us were quite particular about treating the new building with respect and affection.  The Old Timers knew how hard it had been come by.  We had owned the property for more than twenty years.  We tried four times to build before circumstances fell into place.  Even when they did, the two year long building process was consuming for the members on our building team.  So when we first entered this building for worship in March 2003, we entered more than brick and mortar, wood and carpet – we entered the product of sweat and prayer, labor and tears, frustration and hope – of prayer and hope finally brought to fruition.

            So the first time one of our little angels kicked a hole in the wall (or at least gave it his best effort), and one adult called him down for it, and another adult said curtly to the first, “This building isn’t a temple you know,” it was with great effort of restraint that I  said, “No it’s not.  But it is a blessing from God and therefore not to be misused.”

            I don’t think I’ve done an ecology sermon since coming to Manassas 14 years ago.  That is an irresponsibly long time to be silent about something God commanded from the beginning.  The “eco” in our word ecology comes from the Greek “oikos,” or “house.”  The idea is that the entire planet is the place we have been given to live on.  That is a Biblical concept.  At creation, God instructed Adam and Eve to “fill the earth” (Genesis 1.28).  Although God planted a specific garden from which humans will start, he expected humans to settle everywhere.  I wonder what variety of habitat existed on the single continent (Genesis1.9) of an antediluvian earth, but humans were expected to settle them all.  Adam and Eve were also given the responsibility to “oversee” (v.28), “to cultivate and keep” (2.15) the oikos God had given them.

            Two themes emerge from the creation account in Genesis 1-2 concerning humans and the earth.  One is that it is here to provide for us.  This clearly anthropocentric stance is not politically correct, but it is Biblical.  The second is that we are expected to care for, to manage, to nurture the great place God has given us.  The reasons for this are many, but the main ones are:

1. We are commanded to – from the very beginning. Our ecological responsibility is part of our identity.

2. Our resources are blessings from God, and are not to be wasted.

3. The earth itself witnesses truths about God (Romans 1.20).

4. The Golden Rule (Matthew 7.12) demands that we are considerate of those without abundant resources, considerate of our children, and their children. Our irresponsibility hurts others, and thus is sin.

            My intention in this little piece is not to argue for increased use of ethanol, the evidence for global warming, or the advantages of owning a hybrid car.  But we must be thoughtful, respectful, thankful inhabitants of the oikos God has given us.

            After four years of use our Church building shows a little use – but not much.  It is used much more than our last building – but we work hard at taking care of it.  We know why we work hard at keeping it nice – it is where we live – where God has given us to live.  We understand this.  We understand it because it is simple and sensible.

            How much more simple and sensible is it to understand that we have the same responsibility to the earth?