Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts. They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They will tell of the power of your awesome works, and I will proclaim your great deeds. They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness. The LORD is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made (Psalm 145:3-9)

Having just returned from the tree-blessed Pacific Northwest, I’m still in awe of these treasures from the hand of our Creator.  No wonder that after people, trees are the most often mentioned living thing in the Bible.  While they are indeed a pleasure to the eye, I’m more impressed by the work that all trees together accomplish and the benefits they provide for the remainder of the earth’s biosphere (the realm in which the living things of the earth exist). Understanding how important trees are to all of life, we may decide to change the old adage to “a tree is man’s best friend.” Here’s a list of some of the things trees do for us:

• Provide oxygen
• Moderate temperature
• Enhance rainfall—yet prevent erosion
• Collect and absorb dust and other atmospheric pollutants
• Protect the earth from rapid climate change
• Produce and protect healthy soil
• Provide food
• Provide shelter and/or cover for many animals and birds
• Provide protection for thousands of species of
sun-sensitive plants
• Provide healing products
• Provide building products
• Provide paper products
• Provide wood
• Provide fuel
• Provide sensory stimulation and the experience of beauty
• Provide living fences that hold back drifting sand and snow
• Reduce light intensity from the sun
• Provide privacy
• Protect watersheds for communities
• Produce a sense of rootedness and community

One of the joys of examining the book of God’s Works is discovering the evidence of the Creator’s unmatched intelligence and incredible ingenuity. When one examines the miracle of the tree and its function, it’s hard to believe there are scientists who deny the existence of a Creator.

The first amazing fact about the tree’s physiology is its critical part in the carbon cycle. In essence, the tree takes in sunlight, gases from the air, and water, and it produces wood, leaves, fruit, and other elements critical for all life on earth. This is the process of  “photosynthesis,” a scientific term from Latin, which means “to put together with light.” And that’s exactly what happens in trees. They’re put together with light!

A greatly simplified description of the process is this: Tree leaves are green because they contain a vital substance called chlorophyll. This chlorophyll receives sunlight and mixes it with carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and water that has been drawn up from the ground through the roots, trunk, branches, and stems. This mix is turned into the carbohydrate glucose, a simple sugar. This sugar becomes the food for the tree, which through its God-given mechanisms manufactures all its critical structures—mostly wood and leaves. In the process of doing all this work, the living factory happens to produce atmospheric oxygen as a byproduct. Blessed be the tree!

So as we putter through each day breathing out carbon dioxide and flooding the air with it from our motorized vehicles, factories, and stoves, the trees and other green plants are “breathing” it in and then “exhaling” oxygen. In a sense, trees and you and I are a team that, through give and take, support each other in our work—work that can give praise to our Creator.

Trees also demonstrate God’s lavish provision. Not only do they build their own structure and give all living things oxygen, they also produce a surplus of carbohydrates in the form of sweet sap, healing leaves and oils, and nourishing fruit, nuts, and seeds. The wood we use for our homes, our furniture, our fireplaces, our paper, and thousands of other products is the result of the work of this amazing living machine.

According to Encarta, these gifts from the tree and other photosynthesizing organisms are so abundant that about 170 billion metric tons of extra carbohydrates are produced each year. That’s a total of 30 metric tons for every person on earth! Included in this is the approximately 100 billion cubic feet of wood harvested annually from the world’s forests.  If we are careful and don’t over-consume or harm forest ecosystems, there’s no reason we cannot keep our trees and our tree products

The LORD] makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains.  They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work.  He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate—bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.The trees of the LORD are well watered,  the cedars of Lebanon that he planted (Psalm 104:10-16).

In my last post I suggested that we ought to be seeking our Creator’s “good earthkeeping seal of approval.” How have we done as earthkeepers? In many ways and places, not too well. Consider the unique island of Madagascar off the east coast of southern Africa as it was described by G. Tyler Miller, adjunct professor of human ecology at St. Andrews Presbyterian College. In his book Living In The Environment, Miller writes the following:

Because of [Madagascar’s] astounding biological diversity, this Texas-sized island is considered a crown jewel among Earth’s ecosystems—a biological superpower. . . . An estimated 160,000 species [are] unique to this island, mostly in its vanishing eastern rainforests. Unique species include 80% of its 10,000 flowering plants (including 1,000 orchids), 66% of the world’s species of chameleons, 800 butterfly species, half of the island’s birds, and all its reptiles and mammals. Madagascar’s plant and animal species are also among the world’s most endangered, mostly because of loss of habitat from slash-and-burn agriculture on poor soils fueled by rapid population growth. Since humans arrived about 1,500 years ago, 84% of its tropical seasonal forests and over 66% of its rainforests have been cut for cropland, fuelwood, and lumber, leaving blood-red gullies and streams and vast eroded fields and hillsides. Madagascar is now the world’s most eroded country.

This picture of loss could be added to hundreds more that would graphically illustrate how we have failed to care for the natural world our God has entrusted to us. Even though there are many instances in which people have become aware of the damage they were doing to forests and have dramatically reversed harmful deforestation, the broad picture is still one of serious forest degradation worldwide. It may not be surprising to followers of Christ that the world in general disregards biblical mandates and foundational principles, but the truth is that the church is also responsible for the care and protection of God’s good earth.

This often-ignored responsibility was first popularly noted among evangelical Christians by Francis Schaeffer, who wrote a significant book about the issue in 1970. It was titled Pollution And The Death Of Man: A Christian View Of Ecology. It was a challenge to the church to apply biblical principles to the world’s environmental crises—including the state of our forests. Here are some of Schaeffer’s insights:

A truly biblical Christianity has a real answer to the ecological crisis. It offers a balanced and healthy attitude toward nature, arising from the truth of its creation by God; it offers the hope here and now of a substantial healing in nature of some of the results of the Fall arising from the truth of redemption in Christ. In each of the alienations arising from the Fall, the Christians, individually and corporately, should consciously in practice be a healing, redemptive factor—in the separation of man from God, of man from himself, of man from man, of man from nature, and of nature from nature. A Christian-based science and technology should consciously try to see nature substantially healed, while waiting for the future complete healing at Christ’s return.

While the church is still slow in recovering our understanding of our lost stewardship mandate, there are some effective things being done by a number of people, organizations, and institutions that are taking both revelations of God (His Word and His works) more seriously these days.

Realizing our stewardship role as children of God, how then should we live in relation to the earth’s trees and forests? I don’t think it’s out of order to suggest these activities for followers of God’s Word:

• Learn more about trees in order to appreciate their role in your life.

• Remember the trees’ relationship to people as mutual creations of God.

• Remind yourself regularly of your responsibility to be a good earthkeeper.

• As a voter, be more aware of your government’s forest policies.

• As a consumer and/or stockholder, become informed about corporate practices regarding your nation’s forests.

• Join with the trees in praise of your Creator.

God created man in his own image,  in the image of God he created him;  male and female he created them.  God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground” (Genesis 1:27-28)

When you are surrounded, as I have been for the past two weeks, by some of earth’s most magnificent trees, it is hard to keep in mind that many areas of the world that once were clothed and carpeted by trees and forests are now denuded and desertified. One reason is that we have forgotten what has been entrusted to us. The principle of responsible care of the earth is found first in the words of the Old Testament. There we find that God is the Creator of the earth (Gen. 1), He is the owner of the earth (Ps. 24:1), and He loves the earth (Ps. 145:9,13). Further, God clearly delegated to us the responsibility of dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:27-28; Ps. 8).

As theologian Francis Schaeffer pointed out early in the 1970s, however, while God has put the earth in our hands, such oversight is still under His greater dominion and care. The logical conclusion of these truths from Scripture is that God, who made, owns, and loves what He created, has in His love permitted people to manage and use the material creation. He is the Landlord; we are His caretakers.

That role is pictured beautifully by the Greek word for “steward”: oikonomeo. This is the same word from which we get the word economy. Economics was originally considered to be the practical operations of a household in which the steward oversaw the production, distribution, and consumption on the landlord’s estate. If we recovered that same understanding of the personal relationship of the steward to the landlord, and the steward’s responsibility to the landlord, we’d more likely handle our Landlord’s material goods in a much more responsible manner.

The Bible is unique among virtually all other ancient scriptures, partly because its beginning chapters so clearly state the foundational purposes for mankind (Gen. 1:26–2:15). One can paraphrase the mandate like this: The creation was very good (Gen. 1:31), and it was perfectly prepared by God to be given over to people so they could develop all its potentialities to the glory of God and to the benefit of all creatures in keeping with the will of God.

More specific direction was given in Genesis 2:15 where Adam was instructed to “tend” and “keep” the Garden of Eden. The extended meaning of the two Hebrew words used here is extremely rich and telling: “Tend” (abad) means to till, work, serve, work for, and/or make self the servant of. “Keep” (shamar) means to have charge of, guard, save life, protect, preserve, observe, refrain, abstain, and/or celebrate. While this command was given in relationship to the Garden, most Christian theologians emphasize that such control was to be extended by Adam and Eve and their descendants to the whole earth.

In essence, the Genesis mandates clearly spell out our role as keepers of the earth—stewards of the true Landlord. One could say that we should be working for God’s “Good Earthkeeping stamp of approval.”

This post is a revised excerpt from Dean’s Discovery Series booklet “Celebrating the Wonder of a Tree.”  You can follow this link to find the booklet online.  You may also obtain a copy or two without charge by following the ordering guidelines on the RBC Discovery Series site.

Praise the LORD from the earth, . . . Mountains and all hills; Fruit trees and all cedars.  (Psalm 148:7 & 9)

I’ve found that I have good company in my love for the creation: Colonial theologian Jonathan Edwards is considered to be America’s first true intellectual. While Edwards studied the Word of God with great fervency, he also studied almost as intensely the works of God in the creation. As a preacher and an avid naturalist, Edwards explained the meaning of the creation with these words:

“When we are delighted with flowery meadows and gentle breezes of wind, we may consider that we see only the emanations of the sweet benevolence of Jesus Christ. When we behold the fragrant rose and lily, we see His love and purity. So the green trees and fields, and singing of birds are the emanations of His infinite joy and benignity [kindness, graciousness]. The easiness and naturalness of trees and vines are shadows of His beauty and loveliness. The crystal rivers and murmuring streams are the footsteps of His favor, grace, and beauty” (Observations, p.94).

In commenting on Psalm148:9, the great English preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote:

Western red cedar

Fruit trees and forest trees, trees deciduous or evergreen, are equally full of benevolent design,and alike subserve some purpose of love; therefore, for all and by all, let the great Designer be praised. There are many species of cedar, but they all reveal the wisdom of their Maker. When kings fell them,that they may make beams for their palaces,they do but confess their obligation to the King of trees, and to the King of kings, whose trees they are. Varieties in the landscape are produced by the rising and falling of the soil, and by the many kinds of trees which adorn the land. Let all, and all alike, glorify their one Lord. When the trees clap their hands in the wind,or their leaves rustle in the gentle breath of Zephyr, they do to their best ability sing out unto the Lord (The Treasury Of David).

Would it be unthinkable to imagine these great men of God dropping to their knees if they had had the privilege of entering the awe-inspiring forests of the Pacific Northwest, where behind me as I write massive Douglas firs reach for the sky? They were the furthest thing from pantheists, but they would no doubt have felt as I do that some of the greatest “cathedrals” in the world can be found in wilderness areas far from great cities where grand church spires point to the heavens. 

As in ancient times, many today fail to distinguish between the tree and the tree’s Creator. Towering firs, cedars, spruces, and hemlocks are not part of God—that’s a pagan, pantheistic belief. Trees were not made to be worshiped—as did the Druids—but they do help us in our worship. When we walk into a forest, we are properly awed to be surrounded by all the other creatures God loves, cares for, and rejoices in. And they in turn praise Him merely by doing what He made them to do. Wherever His work is being faithfully carried out by His living creatures, wherever trees honor the Creator in whatever mysterious way they “clap their hands,” there is indeed a cathedral.  If when entering a forest you recognize its trees as fellow worshipers, it has to lift your own spirit in praise.

How long has it been since you have identified with the writer of lyrics to “How Great Thou Art”:

When through the woods
And forest glades I wander
I hear the birds
Sing sweetly in the trees;

When I look down
From lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook
And feel the gentle breeze;

Then sings my soul,
My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art!

[Hear Sandi Patty sing it on YouTube. 
Crank up the speakers!]

[Photos taken in past few days here on Orcas Island in Washington State.  Click on the photos to see them larger.]

Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all the depths; fire and hail, snow and clouds; stormy wind, fulfilling His word; mountains and all hills; fruitful trees and all cedars; beasts and all cattle; creeping things and flying fowl; kings of the earth and all peoples; princes and all judges of the earth; both young men and maidens; old men and children (Psalm 148:7-12).

The first two photos in this post are my view as I write this: at Bluebell Springs, my brother and sister-in-law’s place on Orcas Island in the upper Puget Sound.  At my back, Mt. Constitution rises to the highest point in the San Juan Islands. Over my head, hummingbirds are sipping sweets from the clematis vines on the arbor, and barn and emerald-green swallows are making insect intercepts over the lawn and pond that would astound even F-22 Raptor pilots.  And framing it all are the towering firs, cedars, and hemlocks—set off here and there with big-leaf maples and red alders and the whole scene color-splashed with stalks of flowering foxglove.

Vistas like this make me unafraid to declare that I’m a creation lover who sometimes even hugs the rough old bark of a tree! 

But how high does the God of heaven want us to climb in our view of the the natural world—of tree and the forest? It’s clear that we’re not to worship trees, but how much respect does the Bible teach us to show for non-human expressions of God’s creation?  Since the birth of the age of science, Western civilization has more or less thought of the elements of the material creation as little more than resources for human consumption.

This attitude has helped create many crises within the natural environment.  Deforestation and disregard for the forest ecosystem are just a couple of the many problems created by a purely utilitarian view of nature. Certainly God made trees for our enjoyment and our use. The Bible clearly puts the life of man above the life of the creation itself—knowing, of course, that without keeping His creation healthy we could not live. And I think we’ve lost sight of God’s affection for field and forest by exalting our human needs—and wants. Listen to the heart of the psalmist:

[God] sends the springs into the valleys; they flow among the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. By them the birds of the heavens have their home; they sing among the branches. He waters the hills from His upper chambers; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your works. He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and vegetation for the service of man, that he may bring forth food from the earth, and wine that makes glad the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread which strengthens man’s heart. The trees of the Lord are full of sap, the cedars of Lebanon which He planted, where the birds make their nests; the stork has her home in the fir trees. The high hills are for the wild goats; the cliffs are a refuge for the rock badgers. . . . O Lord, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions (Ps. 104:10-18,24).

The psalmist went on to exclaim, “May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works” (Ps. 104:31). David told us even more about God’s attitude toward His creation when he wrote: “The Lord is good to all; He has compassion on all He has made. . . . The Lord is faithful to all His promises and loving toward all He has made” (Ps. 145:9,13 ). The book of Psalms ends with five songs that form a great musical crescendo of praise. We could assume that only people can give praise, but the Bible speaks of all nature giving praise to the Creator of the universe.

Psalm 148 exults:

Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all the depths; fire and hail, snow and clouds; stormy wind, fulfilling His word; mountains and all hills; fruitful trees and all cedars; beasts and all cattle; creeping things and flying fowl; kings of the earth and all peoples; princes and all judges of the earth; both young men and maidens; old men and children (vv.7-12).

From this we understand that God cares for, rejoices over, is good to, has compassion on, and loves what He has created. When we enter the woods or merely rest in the shade of a tree, do we sense God’s pleasure? Do we have the same experience our forefathers had when they were surrounded by God’s material creation?

In closing consider this reverie of Martin Luther:

In the true nature of things, if we rightly consider, every green tree is far more glorious than if it were made of gold and silver. . . . God writes the gospel, not in the Bible alone, but also on trees, and in the flowers and clouds and stars.

[Click on the photos to see them larger.]