A few decades ago, when scientists spoke about the large-scale environmental pollution caused by humans leading to irreversible climate change, most people treated these warnings as merely academic topics or dismissed them as nonsense. Looking at the world around us today—the melting of glaciers, the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, and even the recent massive flash floods and mudslides in Nepal—people are witnessing with their own eyes and suffering from various disasters brought about by climate change. Only a very small minority still refuse to accept that climate change is real. These groups that continue to ignore the reality of climate change often do so with a self-deceiving mindset, for the sake of their own convenience in daily life, or worse, to continue the unchecked exploitation of natural resources for huge profits.
On the other extreme, radical environmental activists in some countries have interfered with and disrupted large-scale animal husbandry and agriculture. Their starting point may be well-intentioned—to raise awareness about environmental protection and preserve a habitable planet for future generations—but their radical methods end up harming the livelihoods of hardworking farmers and ranchers. The environmental movement has also greatly promoted vegetarianism in recent years, and even the rise of veganism. These vegetarians or vegans adopt their diet for the sake of the planet. There is no denying that meat production consumes more resources and energy compared to fruit and vegetable production, so eating less meat or no meat at all does indeed help make better use of the earth’s limited resources. However, it is worth noting that intertwined with veganism is also a certain reverence for nature or Mother Nature (or Gaia, the earth goddess).
Christians certainly cannot treat nature as a deity to be revered; this is exactly what the Apostle Paul condemns in the book of Romans. “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen” (Romans 1:25). Christians worship and revere only the one true God who created the universe. Indeed, the power of nature can be awe-inspiring, but it is only a small part of God’s wonderful creation. Therefore, precisely because this earth was created by God, and because God, right after the completion of creation, entrusted Adam and Eve and their descendants with the responsibility of managing the earth and all living creatures, Christians should pay attention to environmental protection issues. “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground'” (Genesis 1:27-28). Before humanity fell into sin, humans and the rest of creation coexisted in a harmonious and beautiful relationship. But from the moment Adam and Eve sinned, sin entered the world. The curse of sin affected not only humans but also the entire earth. “For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Romans 8:19-22). Since then, humanity and nature have coexisted in a state of disharmony. Human selfishness and insatiable desires have led to the exploitation of natural resources. Yet, even after humanity’s fall into sin, God can still use this sin-affected natural world to meet human needs. The Promised Land given to Israel is one example, but the condition was that Israel had to live according to God’s Word. When Israel obeyed God, they indeed experienced the abundance of the land. God personally created a habitable place for them. However, when Israel rebelled against God, they experienced great famines and various disasters on that same land.
Today, the climate change problems the world is experiencing are, on the one hand, the result of human sin and failure to manage the world properly. On the other hand, they are also a warning from God to this world that does not believe in Him. Unless God permits it, sea levels will not rise; unless God permits it, climate change will not occur. ““Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness, when I fixed limits for it and set its doors and bars in place, when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt’?” (Job 38:8-11). But God allows these disasters to happen as a warning to the world. Therefore, the issue of climate change first reminds us, including Christians, whether we have been good stewards managing the resources God has given us through nature. Moreover, it should point people toward God, because it is a warning from Him to the world. Christians ought to reflect on how to bear witness to God’s love and power in the context of climate change—to help affected people through loving actions, and further help people understand that God is in control and that they need to repent and turn back to God. John Houghton, a pioneer in climate change research, made the United Nations and many governments in the world aware of the severity of the issue. His reverence for God and his firm belief in the redemption of Jesus Christ drove him to persevere in this work to the very end. This is worthy of our emulation.