If you hang out in the circles where people “think green,” you’ll probably hear the phrase, “environmental stewardship.” It refers to careful use of natural resources and the protection of the natural environment. The idea is that we have been given the natural world as a gift. We need to use it carefully and treat it gently so that we don’t wreck the beauty or waste the natural resources that we have.
God has given each of us power in the Holy Spirit. It’s a scary thought that we have the level of power that is in the power of God, but He has given it to us to use. Paul tells us that, “God gave us a spirit… of power” (instead of a spirit of fear) (2 Timothy 1:7). Jesus told His disciples, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit as come upon you” (Acts 1:8). And Paul told the Corinthians, “For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power” (1 Corinthians 4:20).
Having the power of God may seem risky, but He expects us to use it. When we pray, the power is translated in faith, and we can move mountains (Matthew 17:20). When we bless someone, the blessing is empowered by the power of God within us. When we trust God, it’s the power of God within us that enables us to do what He is requiring of us. We’re not made to do this Christian life on our own.
I’ve met a fair number of powerful and powerless Christians over the years. One of the things I realized is that powerful Christians have power – it’s not just the power for good or to advance the Kingdom of Heaven. It’s power. So they can empower sinful things and the kingdom of darkness if they choose to do so.
It’s like I told someone recently: “When you have the power of God to bring things into the light, you also have the power of God to hide things from the light.” It’s why far too many well-known Christian leaders have fallen spectacularly – they had to power to influence people for Christ, but they also had the power to cover up their sin, sometimes for decades.
It’s like stewarding the environment. We can choose to waste the resources God has given us on this earth. Or we can use them responsibly, preserving some areas for their beauty and harvesting other areas – responsibility – for our own needs and the needs of future generations. The choice is up to us.
In the same way, the way we use the power God has given us is up to us. We can hide it, afraid of its power and what God will do if we misuse its power (see Matthew 25:18, 24-25). That will make us into powerless Christians. We can use God’s power to advance our own standing. We can use it to tear down the people we don’t agree with or even manipulate others around us. Or we can use the power within us to build up the people around us, to honor and encourage others and bring them closer to Christ; to rebuke in love; to build God’s kingdom here on earth – on earth as it is in Heaven.
