Tony Campolo wrote, “God saved us in order that he might rescue all of creation. The earth is groaning and waiting for the sons and daughters of God to be redeemed and filled with the Spirit. Why? So that they can invade the planet and rescue it from the demonic destruction that has played havoc with the atmosphere, the ecology balance, all the things we see around us. Our call is to be God’s agents, to rescue not only the human race but the whole of creation.” (Tony Campolo, “Why care for creation?” TEAR TIMES, summer 1992.) That paragraph is filled with balderdash and a generous portion of hogwash! But then Campolo wrote it and that is his specialty. We are to “reach” not “rescue” the human race. Only God can rescue and He provided “the way” in salvation through Christ (John. 14:6).

 

Tony (An American Baptist who does not profess a New Birth experience) doesn’t seem to know that the earth did not get this way because of “demonic destruction” but because of man’s sin of disobedience that resulted in the curse. Moreover, Christians are not commanded to reverse the effects of the curse. God will do that for He said in Rev. 21:5, “I make all things new.” While Christians should not be slobs, we do not have a mandate to clean up the earth and universe. However, it is grandiose fanaticism to suggest as Tony did in the above article that ”Our call is to be God’s agents, to rescue not only the human race but the whole of creation.” In fact, we have no responsibility for the sun, moon, stars, etc., since our sphere of influence and responsibility is confined to the earth. Tony and his EC crowd worship creation not the Creator!

 

Rob Bell wrote, “A Christian is not someone who expects to spend forever in heaven there. A Christian is someone who anticipates spending forever here, in a new heaven that comes to earth. The goal isn’t escaping this world but making this world the kind of place God can come to….To make the cross of Jesus just about human salvation is to miss that God is interested in the saving of everything. Every star and rock and bird. All things.” (Velvet Elvis, pp. 109, 110, 150, 161). Do they all think they can undo the curse God placed on the earth? Or that He has told them to? According to II Peter 3:10, God is going to destroy everything and remake it without advice from Rob Bell and his cronies.

 

Dr. David Cloud quoted Jeffrey Whittaker’s experience at Brian McLaren’s “Everything Must Change” tour at Goshen College in Indiana, in May of 2008. “The very first session was titled ‘Focusing on the Wounds of Our Planet.’ They sang a song based on Francis of Assisi’s poem ‘Brother Sun, Sister Moon’ and watched a DVD by the Sierra Club ‘exposing the immoral mining techniques used by energy companies in West Virginia.’ Then they were treated to a song that cried out against ‘our rape of Mother Earth.’ The second day’s session began with another environmentalist song that said mining is a ‘scar cut across the face of Mother Earth.’ They were constantly reminded that ‘catastrophic consequences due to global warming are upon us.’ Another session opened with the ‘Hymn of Remorse,’ which bewailed the supposed desecration of the earth. ‘We repent for covering your colorful earth with gray cement…for cutting down trees…for scarring your earth…Lord, have mercy, can we be restored? What of the lands of tribes and nations who lived here first…the noise of traffic is drowning out the songbird’s song….’” (“A Pastor Reports on McLaren’s ‘Everything  Must  Change Tour,’ ”June  2, 2008, http://herescope.blogspot. Com/.)

 

What unmitigated drivel! However, that’s what happens when men get away from the Word of God.