Then God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the livestock and over all the earth, and over every crawling thing that crawls on the earth.” So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 1:26-28

God created mankind with a purpose in mind; take command of the natural world and rule over it. Man and woman alike were given this task and purpose. But what is the lesson there? How do we carry out that purpose, especially as believers who know live under the reign of Jesus?

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Ephesians 1:18-23

Where the first man Adam brought death to the natural (1 Corinthians 15:27) , Jesus brought supernatural life. His rule supersedes ours, so the actions we take to subdue this world are really just the actions of stewards doing their best to care for the world as his loyal subjects.

That means however we treat this world and its residents must show the compassion, grace and kindness that Jesus modeled for us and the humility of knowing that it never belongs to us, we have temporary custody of it as we await Jesus’ return.

Ethan Kirl