"And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness: and let them have dominion.... 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.... And the Lord God took the man, and put him into
the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it." ―Genesis
1:26, 28; 2:15
Suggested Reading: Genesis 2:8-15
We also are uniquely made in that God has given us dominion, or vice-regency, over all creation. God has created us for this purpose (Gen. 1:26, 28).
Man
was created to be a caretaker of God's creation, to exercise dominion over it in
subjection and submission to God. We must understand the total picture of
creation here. Man does not suddenly appear on the scene and assume dominion
over creation. He appears as one who is under the dominion of God; he therefore
exercises dominion he has been given by God.
So
there are two levels of dominion: God rules over all, including humanity; and
humanity rules over the rest of the created order. God created man to rule over
all the resources of the earth to reflect God's own wise and perfect rule over
man.
This
rule includes delegation, for God gives dominion to man. The rule also
includes reflection, for
God's perfect government is reflected in man's rule over creation. God offered
man enormous responsibility when He made him vice-regent over the created
order.
Many
tasks derive from this role, such as protecting and caring for the environment.
We are responsible for managing all the resources in the world. Therefore,
selfish spoiling of the environment, including failing to explore the world in
which God has set us or ignoring scientific research about dominion over our
resources, is contrary to God's will. God commands man to subdue the earth and
bring it under his dominion. No biblical believer should be afraid of scientific
inquiry, provided that inquiry is made in subjection to the Word of God.
Those
of you who are called to science should be grateful to God for the privilege of
serving in this sphere, providing, of course, that you bring both yourself and
your vocation into subjection to God.