I want to look at some things pertaining to creation, and God’s plan for creation, and the role we play in Gods plan coming to pass.  

Jesus says in John 15 no longer do I call you servants, but I call you friends because a servant doesn’t know what his Lord is doing, and I have made known to you everything I heard from the Father.  

Jesus says a servant is someone who doesn’t know what their Lord is doing.  When you don’t know what God is doing, How He does it, you end up living as a servant, and not a son.  You end up lusting after the kingdom, instead of waiting patiently for God to bring forth His Kingdom.  We can very easily become confused concerning the gospel, and what it’s all about, and the role we play, if we dont know what God’s been doing from the beginning.  With Beckie and me.  It can quickly turn into chaos if we dont know what the other is doing.  Theres times when I come home and she’s not there.  If i dont know she’s already fed the dogs, I can easily set about to feed the dogs again, not knowing she’s taken care of that already.  

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.
Gen 1:27  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Gen 1:28  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

Gen 2:15  And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
Gen 2:16  And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Subduing the earth and taking dominion are directly connected to God putting man in the garden to dress it and keep it.  The tending of the garden is how the earth would be subdued, and Adam would take dominion.

Gods not talking about pulling weeds, and tilling the ground, when He put Adam in the garden of Eden to dress it and keep it.  Immediately after God put Adam in the garden to tend the garden, Genesis says God told Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  

When we think about subduing the earth and taking dominion over creation, we can say it’s about making the animals sit and obey, and commanding the seas to be still.  We can think of Tarzan controlling the monkeys.  Or crocodile Dundee making the dog heel.  We have videos of the dog whisperer, and people who can make the animals do what they say, but thats a very juvenile way of thinking of dominion.  God’s after a far greater weight of glory than you being able to make the animals listen, or you being able to calm the seas.  The tendency is to think of things like subdue and dominion from power structures, where you take something by force, or bring something to heel.  But that’s not God’s way.  We’ll get to this again later but Jesus was subduing the earth, and taking dominion over all of creation on the cross.  Jesus was tending the garden on the cross.  

Image and Likeness 

Father, Son, and Spirit said let us make man in our image after our likeness.  Theres a distinction being made between image and likeness.  God made us in His image, so we can bear about in our bodies, His likeness.  Adam was made in the image of God, but he wasnt bearing God’s likeness yet, because his physical body wasnt glorified with immortality.  The glorified man Jesus is the first human to be in the image of God, and also bear about in his body the likeness of God.  

God created us in His image so we can be the bearers of His likeness.  God made man in his image, for us to be His temple; the place where He finds His rest, so that in Him inhabiting our earthen vessels, we bear about in our bodies His likeness; His immortality.   

The word image means to be an icon or an idol.  The idea of an icon or idol, is they were a replica of some god, and they were made to be inhabited by whatever god they represent.   It was a temple so to speak, an earthly tabernacle if you will.  An earthen vessel was made, and the idea was for that vessel to be inhabited by the god whose image it was made in, and through that, the vessel would be the bearer of that god’s likeness in the earth.  It’s like with a visitation.  In order for there to be a visitation from the god, there would need to be a vessel for that god to indwell.  And then through the indwelling of the vessel, they could visit there likeness upon the earth.  We know theres only one God, that’s why Paul calls them dumb idols.  They were made in the image of something that is not a god.  

Earthen vessel … When God made us in His image, He made us in his image as an earthen vessel … God fashioned our bodies from the dust of the ground.  explain earthen vessel …. Go into creation, God spoke everything into existence, and then He made man from the substance of everything that was already created.  Paul says the first man Adam was earthy.  If you look at the mineral makeup of the human body it’s almost identical to the mineral makeup of the earth.  

Theres a reason God made us from the ground He already created …. that in us being made an earthen vessel, made from the substance of creation, when we bear about in our bodies Gods likeness; it ministers His likeness to all of creation.  God created mankind in His image, to be the bearers of His likeness, and through bearing His likeness, there would be a ministration of life by God, through mankind to all of creation.  We have a ministration to all of creation.  It’s the ministration of God’s likeness.  Where because we are vessels made from the substance of creation, when God brings forth the likeness of His immortality in our bodies, His likeness will be visited upon all of creation.  Gods plan was always for heaven to invade the earth…. The plan was always for heaven to be made manifest in the earth, and the way it would go down is by heaven first making a home in man as an earthen vessel.   

Even with the earthly tabernacle Moses fashioned according to what he saw in heaven.  That earthly tabernacle was made to be inhabited by heaven, by the presence of God, and through Gods presence manifesting in the temple; the earthen vessel, it was a ministration of light and life to the people. 

So Adam was supposed to tend the garden, by not eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and eating from the tree of life instead,  and through that he would bear the likeness of Gods immortality, to the rest of creation ….

Fast forward to Romans 8.  These verses are talking about what God had in mind in Genesis

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groans and travails in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

2Co 5:2  For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
2Co 5:3  If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
2Co 5:4  For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.

Could just as easily say, “ all of creation groans and travails in pain desiring for man to take dominion and subdue the earth. 

Adam didn’t tend the garden …. Adam wasn’t bearing the likeness of Gods immortality.  Adam ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and his earthen vessel became the temple of death.  Adam was bearing the likeness of sin and death, and that was a ministration of death to creation.  Adam subjected creation to vanity.  The first man adam not only didnt tend the garden, but he planted thorns and thistles in the garden, when he subjected creation to death.  

We say creation is groaning in pain waiting for the manifestation of the Sons of God, and we say it like creation is waiting for us to do our job/do what we’re supposed to do.  As if we’re holding up the show, and if we’d just get our act together, creation can be delivered.  

But, the apostle Paul says all of creation is groaning, waiting for the manifestation of the Sons of God, and Paul says we are waiting with them, both of us groaning, not desiring to be found unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality be swallowed up of life.  

Certainly we can see the love we have for one another grow, and be a blessing to people, but all of creation isn’t groaning in travail waiting for the body of christ to be more loving.  We can all love people perfectly, and thats not going to heal the volcanos, or make the hurricanes and tornados still.  It’s not going to cause the animals to stop warring and fighting and eating one another.  We can all love perfectly and it’s not going to deliver creation from the pangs of death.  

The apostle Paul defines the manifestation of the sons of God here, as the glorification of our physical bodies.  He says both us and creation are waiting for the redemption of our bodies.  Why?  Because when we put off corruption, and put on incorruption, creation will be delivered from the pangs of death, along with us.  

Look at conversation in Genesis from perspective of father talking with the eternal Son, Christ Jesus … Jesus is the last Adam, he was put in the earth to tend the garden …. To subdue the earth and take dominion …. To be fruitful and multiply … Jesus says unless a seed falls into the ground and dies it abides alone.  Jesus was the firstborn from the dead, that he might be the first born amongst many brethren …. That he might be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.  

Jesus comes as the last Adam to do what the first Adam didn’t do … he came to subdue and take dominion by tending the garden … Theres a lot of different images we have of jesus tending the garden, so it can be subdued to His life …… go into fig tree, as picture of Jesus, cursing the fig tree…. Jesus was tending the garden when he cursed the fig tree …….… Adam and Eve tried to cloth themselves in fig leaves … tree of the knowledge of good and evil looked good for food, it promised Adam and Eve it could decorate them in the fruit of life.  Fig tree Jesus curses had leaves … go into seasons of fig tree and when it has leaves it should have fruit.  Just as the tree of the knowledge of good and evil looked good for food.  The fig tree looked good for food.  It promised Jesus fruit ….. Jesus cursed the fig tree, he was cursing the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  He took an axe to the root, it didnt look like it died initially, because it died from the root up.  

Why couldnt fig leaves cloth Adam and Eve.  I mean fig leaves are big it seems as if there would be some coverage.  How could they still be naked ….. I can be wrong about this but naturally speaking I think they were covered.  A person can have a shirt and shorts on and not be clothed in God’s life.  The reason Adam and Eve were still naked, is because they were meant to be decorated in the fruit of God’s life.  Adam and Eve were meant to be clothed in the fruit of God’s life, not fig leaves.  So the fig leaves may have given them some physical coverage, but it could never remove their shame.  The fig leaves could never purge their conscience from the death they saw in themselves ……… 

On the cross Jesus was tending the garden.  He was taking dominion and subduing the earth.  He heard the same voice eve heard questioning the Fathers integrity towards His life, but he didn’t partake of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, He committed His life into the Father’s hands.  Paul says God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself.  God was doing a work through Christ so creation could be restored back to His likeness.  

After part about Jesus … you want to know what dominion looks like and what subduing the earth looks like.  You want to know what it looks like to tend the garden

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Rev 22:2  In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Rev 22:3  And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:
Rev 22:4  And they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
Rev 22:5  And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.

Creation isnt waiting for us to tend the garden. Creation isnt waiting for us to take control of the earth.  Jesus already tended the garden.  He took an axe to the root of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil … and both us and creation, are waiting for the return of Christ, where his likeness, the likeness of his immortality, is made manifest in our earthen vessels, and we put off corruption and put on incorruption, by his doing, and thus all of creation is delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.