2013 1st Quarter Lesson 10 Stewardship and the Environment

7/29/2019 2013 1st Quarter Lesson 10 Stewardship and the Environment

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Lesson 10 for March 9, 2013


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And of His fullness wehave all received, and

grace for grace(John 1:16)

The earth is the Lords,

and all its fullness, theworld and those who dwell

therein (Psalm 24:1)

Everything is Gods; the Earth

and its wealth, the

vegetation, the animals, us

and everything we own.

By His grace, God allows us to

administer what is His. We

are GODS STEWARDS.

1. Stewards of the

environment.

2. Stewards of health.

3. Stewards of possessions

and gifts.


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When God created the man,

what did He make Him steward

of? (Genesis 1:26)You have made him to havedominion over the works of Yourhands; You have put all things underhis feet, All sheep and oxeneven

the beasts of the field, the birdsof the air, and the fish of the seathat pass through the paths of theseas (Psalm 8:6-8)

After the earth with its teeming animal and vegetable life had

been called into existence, man, the crowning work of the Creator,and the one for whom the beautiful earth had been fitted up, was

brought upon the stage of action. To him was given dominion over

all that his eye could behold; for God said, Let Us make man in

Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over

...all the earth.... So God created man in His own image; ...male and

female created He them. Genesis 1:26, 27E.G.W. (Patriarchs and Prophets, cp. 2, pg. 44)


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Here is clearly set forth the origin of the human race; and the divine record is

so plainly stated that there is no occasion for erroneous conclusions. God createdman in His own image. Here is no mystery. There is no ground for the

supposition that man was evolved by slow degrees of development from the

lower forms of animal or vegetable life. Such teaching lowers the great work of

the Creator to the level of mans narrow, earthly conceptions. Men are so intent

upon excluding God from the sovereignty of the universe that they degrademan and defraud him of the dignity of his origin. He who set the starry worlds

on high and tinted with delicate skill the flowers of the field, who filled the

earth and the heavens with the wonders of His power, when He came to crown

His glorious work, to place one in the midst to stand as ruler of the fair earth,

did not fail to create a being worthy of the hand that gave him life. The

genealogy of our race, as given by inspiration, traces back its origin, not to a

line of developing germs, mollusks, and quadrupeds, but to the great Creator.

Though formed from the dust, Adam was the son of God. Luke 3:38

E.G.W. (Patriarchs and Prophets, cp. 2, pg. 44)


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As stewards, how should our relationship with animals be alike?

But we must not forget that the life of the animals is less

worthy than the life of human beings for God.

That is why God allowed man to kill animals for diverse

reasons,

For dressing: Genesis 3:21.

For sacrificing (until Jesus death): Exodus 29:38.

For feeding: Leviticus 11:3.

We must be kind-hearted to

them.

If you see the donkey of one

who hates you lying under itsburden, and you would refrainfrom helping it, you shall surelyhelp him with it (Ex. 23:5)

We must care about feeding

those animals we are in

contact with.

You shall not muzzle an ox whileit treads out the grain (Dt. 25:4)

We must not be cruel to them.

A righteous man regards the lifeof his animal, but the tender

mercies of the wicked are cruel(Pr. 12:10)


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How does Sabbath help us in

being better stewards of the

Creation?

God designs that the Sabbath shall direct

the minds of men to the contemplation of

His created works. Nature speaks to their

senses, declaring that there is a living God,

the Creator, the Supreme Ruler of all. The

heavens declare the glory of God; and the

firmament showeth His handiwork. Day

unto day uttereth speech, and night untonight showeth knowledge. Psalm 19:1, 2.

The beauty that clothes the earth is token

of Gods love. We may behold it in the

everlasting hills, in the lofty trees, in the

opening buds and the delicate flowers. Allspeak to us of God. The Sabbath, ever

pointing to Him who made them all, bids

men open the great book of nature and

trace therein the wisdom, the power, and

the love of the CreatorE.G.W. (Patriarchs and Prophets, cp. 2, pg. 48)


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How are we responsible for taking care of our bodies

before God? (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

The importance of caring for the health

should be taught as a Bible

requirement. Perfect obedience to Gods

commands calls for conformity to the

laws of the being. The science ofeducation includes as full a knowledge

of physiology as can be obtained. No

one can properly understand his

obligations to God unless he understands

clearly his obligations to himself as Gods

property. He who remains in sinful

ignorance of the laws of life and health,

or who willfully violates these laws, sins

against God

E.G.W. (Counsels to parents, teachers and students, cp. 40 Health and efficiency, pg. 295)
http://www.google.es/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=CV4KovKrtNREgM&tbnid=ZDDmFfOtcYABCM:&ved=0CAgQjRwwAA&url=http://www.ibukstore.com/jose-caruci-nutricion-salud-epub-p-75362.html&ei=Ri8zUbK0IsG60QW4r4D4DA&psig=AFQjCNGGS9jp2f1cIJy2pNJywqXla7EFAg&ust=1362395334603666


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What can you learn about being steward of

the possessions and gifts God gives us?

Read the verses we used before (Psalm 24:1; John 1:16) and compare them to

the parable of the talents that Jesus told (Matthew 25:14-30)
http://huellasdecuatropatas.blogspot.com/2010_10_01_archive.html


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The Creator of all things, He is the original proprietor. We

are His stewards. All that we have is a trust from Him, to be

used according to His direction.

This is an obligation that rests upon every human being. It

has to do with the whole sphere of human activity. Whether

we recognize it or not, we are stewards, supplied from God

with talents and facilities and placed in the world to do a

work appointed by Him.

Money is not ours; houses and grounds, pictures and furniture,

garments and luxuries, do not belong to us. We are pilgrims,

we are strangers. We have only a grant of those things that

are necessary for health and life.... Our temporal blessings aregiven us in trust, to prove whether we can be entrusted with

eternal riches. If we endure the proving of God, then we shall

receive that purchased possession which is to be our own

glory, honor, and immortality

E.G.W. (The Adventist Home, cp. 60 Stewards of God, pg. 367)


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God gave Adam and Eve control over the whole creation, but that was not an unlimited

control. The human control was limited so they could not do anything they wanted to;

the prohibited fruit is an example of that. In addition, humanity was placed at Eden to

serve and to protect the Garden, not to exploit it and destroy it.

The nations were angry, and Your wrathhas come, and the time of the dead, thatthey should be judged, and that Youshould reward Your servants the prophetsand the saints, and those who fear Your

name, small and great, and should destroythose who destroy the earth (Revelation 11:18)

Finally, we must consider this,

why should we care about the

environment if Jesus is coming

back soon?

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2013 1st Quarter Lesson 10 Stewardship and the Environment