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I will take a risk as I start part two of this series, ‘Made for More Than Scrolling.’ I’m going to agree with Chuck Schumer—a Democratic senator from New York. Before you get too concerned about liberal drift at Make It Clear Ministries, don’t worry, I disagree with his politics. But I agree with something the senator said during a commencement speech. He said the key to a meaningful life happens Monday and Friday. Each Monday, you need tasks that give your week purpose. You need a career, a calling, a job that serves others, employs your gifts, and fulfills you. Then, on Friday, you need a family and community to fill up your weekend and the rest of your time away from the office. You need to have people you love, flesh-and-blood you will die for, and a community that defines you.
The senator is not offering something new in this commencement speech. Perhaps he found a smart way to express it, but the idea that work and family define our lives goes back to the creation mandate in the Bible’s opening chapter.
As we explored this mandate in Part 1, we learned a little bit about what it means to be made in God’s image. Because we are made in God’s image, we are relational beings, like Father, Son, and Spirit. Our highest good and noble pursuit as an image-bearer is communion with the Trinity.
But beyond the privilege of knowing God, His image-bearers are also given specific tasks to undertake. Those are given in Genesis 1:28. “God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that creeps on the earth.”
Those are God’s first recorded words to his image-bearers. They can be divided into two simple yet overwhelming responsibilities: make more image-bearers and subdue the earth. Said another way, have children and work.
Lots of sociologists, environmentalists, and politicians would say it was irresponsible for God to command His image-bearers to “fill the earth.” They wring their hands at the world’s growing population—quickly approaching eight billion (worldometers.info)—convinced that all those people are bad for the environment and a deterrent to human flourishing. God doesn’t see it that way. He loves the babies. He celebrates them so much that He’s made them essential to His calling for His image-bearers. To love and rear children—to pass on the seed of Adam and the image of God—is an expected, normal part of life. It fills the earth with God’s image, increasing His reputation and prominence, revealing His creativity through each divinely designed man and woman.
Now, the last paragraph needs more understanding. Humans are called to “be fruitful and multiply,” but that is not all they are called to do (we will get to the second part of their responsibility in a minute).
God has an extraordinary purpose and calling for singles or married couples that never bear children. You will recall that some of the most significant image-bearers in the Bible did not “be fruitful and multiply.” For instance, John the Baptist, who Jesus said was the greatest of those born of women, never had children.
Neither did the apostle Paul, who wrote much of the New Testament. Then there was Jesus;
the most significant human being who has ever lived. He neither married nor had children. Singleness is only a problem if it is chosen for selfish reasons. A childless marriage is only concerning if the husband and wife do not want kids because they know they will have to sacrifice at the most or “give up” some things at the least for their children. If singleness is chosen for kingdom purposes, it is a gift because it frees the individuals from distraction. Their time can be fully devoted to the work of the kingdom (see I Corinthians 7). And if a childless marriage happens because of infertility, a focus on missions, or another similar reason, it is not dishonoring the Lord. Churches should encourage and help couples in those circumstances, not constantly ask them why they do not have children.
Remember, singleness is a gift, not the expectation. God intends that most men and women will marry and have children. And when they do, they must devote themselves to rearing these little image-bearers “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph 6:4). Parents must dedicate their time and energy to these image-bearers. God calls them to sacrifice, provide for them, defend them if necessary, and teach them what it means to glorify God. Too often, our devices—cell phones, tablets, and laptops—distract us from our children and grandchildren, who are a primary calling in our lives.
Let me be clear – cell phones, tablets, and laptops can be toys, weapons, and tools. It depends on how they are used by those who wield them. Some spend too much time using them as toys for games and silly communication with no eternal value. Others use them as weapons to troll, giving biting, hurtful, and de-edifying words that destroy. And some use them as tools to add value to people and build God’s Kingdom for eternity. Finally, maybe more than we think, there are those who use the devices for all three… toys, weapons, and tools. Sad and tragic.
These tools are to care far more about the theology our children are learning from us than the bad theology and secular worldview that’s saturating the Internet. It’s to pray for them, be patient with them, point them to Jesus, and not be frustrated when our family monopolizes our time and attention. Being present with our children and for them through our leadership is how we should spend the remaining years. Then, when our children and grandchildren are older, we are called to support them again and eventually help them as they become parents.
I want the remaining years of my life to be fervent in fulfilling creation’s mandate by investing my time in caring for the new generation of image-bearers. When I grasp the high calling of “be fruitful and multiply,” I am less enticed by the appeal of technology and its propensity to distract from this high calling.
After God tells His first image-bearers to “be fruitful and multiply,” He gives them a second responsibility: “subdue [creation]; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that creeps on the earth” (Gen 1:28).
God, in His sovereignty, delegates domination over creation to mankind. The world He creates does not immediately manifest all its extraordinary capabilities. Trees do not automatically turn themselves into paper. Oil had to be pulled from the fields where God placed it to empower this morning’s commute. As His image-bearers, we are given the extraordinary responsibility of drawing out the immense capabilities of God’s creation. We cannot create anything new, but we can combine elements of creation into tools, clothes, foods, stories, books, and so much more. As we integrate creation while being good stewards of it and expanding its potential for the good of our fellow image-bearers, we are fulfilling the role God has delegated to us.
As I come to the last season of my life, the days and years I can “subdue and have dominion” have begun to fade. My strength, mental sharpness, and endurance aren’t what they once were.
For that reason, I need to be even more focused on the area of creation that God has given me to steward. As a leader serving others, I work primarily with words, shaping and organizing them into messages. I subdue the creation by wrestling with the English language, using it to communicate with my fellow image-bearers. And I want to do it correctly, clearly, compassionately, courageously, consistently, and cheerfully. It is an honorable and high calling to subdue language (or at least attempt to) and use it to bring glory to Christ. The more I comprehend how important this task is, the more passionate I will be to get up each morning and devote myself to my calling and not be distracted by the mindless scrolling to that which my phone calls me.
Mentoring the new generation of image-bearers and properly using creation. That is how God calls each of us to spend our days. A complete understanding of what that looks like in our lives can be one of the most effective ways to escape the magnetism of social media and smartphones.
*Adapted from a sermon by Corey Williams
