Stewardship and the Natural World
Is the world just a resource to use up, or a gift to look after? Learn how Christians see themselves as stewards of creation, and what that means for how they treat the planet.
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Whose world is it?
Is the natural world just a resource to use up, or a gift to be looked after? Most Christians believe humans are stewards: caretakers of a world that belongs to God. Learn what that means and how they act on it.
Creation and dominion words
Four ideas run through Christian teaching on the environment:
Use it or care for it?
People treat the natural world in very different ways.
Name it
What does Christian stewardship of the earth mean?
- Caring for creation on behalf of God
- Using up resources as fast as possible
- Owning the earth for personal profit
- Ignoring the natural world completely
Match the term
- Creation
- Stewardship
- Dominion
- Commodity
- The world, believed to be made by God
- Caring for the world on behalf of God
- The authority God gives humans over creation
- Something treated only as a resource to use
In the beginning
The book of Genesis, chapters 1 and 2, teaches that God made the world and called it good, then gave humans the task of caring for it. Genesis chapter 1 verse 28 speaks of dominion: some read this as ruling over nature, but many Christians read it as responsible stewardship, looking after creation for God.
Caring for creation
Which THREE are ways Christians show stewardship of the earth?
- Recycling and reducing waste
- Using less energy
- Protecting forests and wildlife
- Polluting rivers to save money
- Wasting resources on purpose
A steward acts
Put the steps of a Christian acting on stewardship in a sensible order.
- They see creation as a gift from God
- They feel a duty to care for it
- They change their daily habits
- They join others working for the environment
- They help protect creation for the future
Complete the idea
Christians believe the world is a _____ made by God, not just a _____ to use up. Being a _____ means caring for the earth for God. The book of _____ teaches that creation is good. So many Christians try to reduce waste and _____ the natural world.
True or not?
Tap the TWO statements that are true about stewardship.
- Stewardship means caring for the earth on behalf of God.
- Genesis teaches that God made the world and called it good.
- Christians believe the earth is only a commodity to use up.
- Stewardship means ignoring pollution and waste.
- The natural world has no value to Christians.
How it helps
- Recycling
- Using less energy
- Protecting forests
- Sharing resources fairly
- Reduces waste and saves resources
- Cuts pollution and slows climate change
- Saves habitats and wildlife
- Helps the poorest and future generations
Choose as a steward
Choose the response that shows good stewardship.
- A factory could dump its waste in a river to save money. Stewardship suggests...
- A Christian wants to reduce their impact on creation. They could...
- Someone says the earth is just a resource to use up. A steward might reply...
Why care?
Put this Christian argument for caring for creation in the right order.
- God made the whole world
- God called the creation good
- God gave humans the task of caring for it
- Treating it only as a commodity is wrong
- So Christians act as stewards of the earth
Explain the teaching
Explain Christian teaching on caring for the natural world.
- Explain what stewardship means
- Give one teaching from Genesis about creation
- Give one way a Christian can care for the environment
- Explain why the natural world matters to Christians