"CARE OF THE EARTH" ALTTR AUDIO SABBATH SCHOOL STUDY: LESSON 2 - WEDNESDAY JULY 6, 2016 (

TRANSCRIPT

Hello Brothers & Sisters……. I hope that you are blessed today…… My name is Andrae B. Ricketts, and this is the ALTTR AUDIO SABBATH SCHOOL LESSON STUDY for LESSON 2, Wednesday July 6th 2016, titled, Care Of The Earth…….. As usual…. Lets pray before we begin.

The foundational text for this study is Genesis 2:15……. And it reads: “then the LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it”.

In this verse we learn an important principle concerning the care that God desires for us to have for our environment. Before sin, God gave Adam and Eve Dominion, or Mastery over this planet, which includes the environment. But as Man rebelled against their Master….. God…… The environment began to rebel against Mankind as well.

The animals that once humbly obeyed Adam and Eve, now lived after their own desire, some becoming the bitterest of enemies to man……Food did not grow as it used to…. Now Adam had to toil in the fields, to grow food that was once available to him whenever he desired…… Even the weather acted against man’s best interest.

Ellen G. White says, in her book (EDUCATION) pages 26-27 “Among the lower creatures Adam had stood as king, and so long as he remained loyal to God, all nature acknowledged his rule; but when he transgressed, this dominion was forfeited. The spirit of rebellion, to which he himself had given entrance, extended throughout the animal creation. Thus not only the life of man, but the nature of the beasts, the trees of the forest, the grass of the field, the very air he breathed, all told the sad lesson of the knowledge of evil.”

Today, man is still experiencing the effects of the first sin in regard to the environment. Now more than ever we have been experiencing the worst natural disasters that man has ever seen…. Because of this Man has used modern technology to protect themselves against the dangers found within the environment, but these technological advances are also used to exploit the environment.

Only if the world knew what we as believers understand. Technology is not what will protect the environment from failing or even protect us from. If they only knew that a simple, wholesome lifestyle, where people do not step on the treadmill of unbridled consumerism, goods-getting, and production of waste, is what’s killing the environment. A call for respect of creation, restraint in the use of the world’s resources, reevaluation of one’s needs, and reaffirmation of the dignity of created life is what will protect and even save it.

The biblical teaching of the care that we should have for the environment is a part of the Gospel….. Let us preach this message to a world of people that are looking for answers……..

Well, it was a pleasure to speak with you as always… God bless…….. and remember…..

ALTER YOUR MIND, ALTER YOUR FUTURE