January 3 I Monday

Genesis 7-9

Matthew 3

“The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.”  —Genesis 2:15

In the beginning, God said, “Let Us make mankind in Our image, in Our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground” (Genesis 1:26). There are two distinctives from text. Firstly, we were created in God’s image and in His likeness. Secondly, we were created with a purpose that we might have dominion and stewardship over creation. We were to do this as a reflection of God’s image, where we would rule as He would rule, and in dependence upon Him. 

      At the creation of man, Genesis 2:7 says, “The LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” God formed a man from the dust of the ground; in the Hebrew, it goes, “God formed Adam from the adamah.” This is like God reminding man, “You came from creation. Yes, I breathed into you a living being—a soul. You are not just dust.” Then, Genesis 2:8 continues, “Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there He put the man He had formed.” God put the man in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. In other words, we were formed out of creation in order to take care of the creation.

      From all of this, we learn that God created Adam and Eve with the capacity to create, make things and innovate technologies. Some of us, when we hear the word “technology” think of it purely in digital terms. In John Dyer’s book From the Garden to the City: The Redeeming and Corrupting Power of Technology, he defines “technology” as, “the human activity of using tools to transform God’s creation for practical purposes.”

      In the realm of gardening, we have shovels to move soil, we have plows to prepare the soil and we have irrigation systems to water the crops. When humanity would run into problems, they come up with solutions, technologies that would help them function within creation as they subdue, cultivate and take care of the earth. Man created numerous tools and technological innovations to cultivate and tend the garden. Altogether, Adam and Eve were created with the capacity to cultivate and care for creation, all the while reflecting the creativity, the ingenuity and innovation of their Creator. 

Prayer: Lord God, You are creative, ingenious and innovative. Thank You for creating humanity in Your likeness with the ability to create and innovate. Praise You!