When God said, “Let us make man…and let them have dominion”, the only understanding the first two humans could possibly have had of how to have dominion like God would have been how he handled the adversary’s daily destruction of his work of creation.
-
-
-
-
-
Those who God entrusts with dominion have proven themselves capable by their obedience to his basic instructions to the first human. It is not until we accomplish all of these that we can in reality have dominion in any arena, as small as our body and as large as the universe.
-
1) Be fruitful, i.e. be productive. Be a good worker. Make good things happen, in both the earthly and the heavenly/spiritual domains. Interestingly, God gave this same instruction to animals.
-
-
“For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.” (Psalm 18:39)
“And God created…every living creature that moveth…and God saw that it was good. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful..
Life on earth is interconnected in what is called the biosphere. We all depend on every species being fruitful in good works in their particular niche such as trees producing oxygen and flowers, and bees pollinating flowers and making honey, and bears breathing oxygen and eating honey, and microorganisms aiding digestion in intestinal tracts and…
It does make you wonder how evolution could happen in such an interdependent system when we all suffer when any single element of the ecosystem is harmed.
Most representations of the man and woman in the Garden of Eden picture them wandering around aimlessly. That’s not what the Bible says. Anyone who has ever been put in charge of anything can tell you that it is hard work. Being fruitful, or working hard, is just as much a New Testament command as it was an Old Testament command. And in my experience as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, personal accomplishments are essential to good mental health.
“brethren, be not weary in well doing. And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed…admonish him as a brother.” (II Thessalonians 3:7-15)
2) Multiply, i.e. procreate to continue God’s creation of mankind. Again, God gave the same instructions to animals. It is entirely possible that God only made prototypes of the animals, just as he only made prototypes of humans, or that so many were destroyed during every evening’s blitz that they had to be bred back from the edge of extinction.
“And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly…And God blessed them, saying…multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
“And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare…” (Genesis 4:1)
We also multiply spiritually.
“in Yahweh’s Appointed Savior / Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.” (I Corinthians 4:14-16)
3) Replenish the earth, i.e. engage in activities to fill up the earth. This establishes that, indeed, a massive catastrophes killed off most of the first creations during Creation nights.
“And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.” (Genesis 9:1)
The New Testament writings commanding God’s people to fill the earth with people who have heard, therefore have the opportunity to believe and receive eternal life, are not new or unique to Christianity.
“Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel…and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.” (Psalm 72:18-19)
4) Subdue the earth. To subdue is to bring under control.
Civilization depends on a stable food supply through agriculture, and this requires clearing undesirable plants out of fields, channeling essential water resources with dams and irrigation systems, and protecting the crops from predators, all the while being conscientious of protecting the land for future generations.
Everyone is not a farmer, but everyone has a piece of territory to subdue – our own bodies. Simply battling against one’s own “lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life” never ends in this lifetime.
“But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (I Corinthians 9:27)
The methods for having dominion – self control and influence over others – can be understood in terms of man’s three dimensions – body, soul, and spirit.
The body is controlled through technology that can sustain or destroy the body, like beneficial or harmful drugs, and power sources for peacetime energy or weapons.
The soul – emotions and intellect – is controlled through meeting its needs in healthy or dysfunctional relationships with others through education, politics, philosophical arguments, psychological techniques, entertaining distractions, and peer pressure.
The spirit is controlled through involvement in spiritual, religious, paranormal, extraterrestrial, and openly or covertly demonic domains.
“And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” (Isaiah 8:19-20)
Partial or temporary dominion can be exercised by a servant who has been granted some authority.
“And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had...thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.” (Gen 24:2-4,53)
People who seek mastery at any level recognize the need to access power that transcends their own human limitations. The only way to get power and authority is to get it from the one who has it. This is reflected in religion, of course, but also in other areas of life such as:
- The spiritual side of martial arts.
- Alcoholic’s Anonymous first three of twelve steps acknowledging the individual’s need for a higher power,
- All versions of mysticism promoting everything from self-improvement to world domination by discovering and tapping into the god within.
- Ancient rulers’ claims of descent from and apotheosis to a god, like Augustus Caesar.
- Rulers’ claim of divine right, like Louis XIV, the Sun King.
The Finished Works of Christ: What They Mean For Us: our healing, deliverance, prosperity, victory, joy, peace, and everything else we need in life is already finished and ready for us to claim.
I put it to you that this belief system is a cheap escape from personal responsibility to prove that one has indeed joined identity with the Christ by becoming oneself a holy, righteous, chosen servant of God taking dominion over whatever territory has been assigned by the Father.
“a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee.” (Hebrews 1:1-9)
Righteous is far more than simply staying out of trouble.
Righteousness has always been defined, in God’s eyes, as restoring a right relationship with God by acting in accordance with what pleases God. It’s a marriage relationship. You can go through the ceremony and say the words “I do”, but unless you actually “do” and consummate the marriage you are not in a marriage relationship and it is legally nullifiable – it never existed.
“When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory…Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For
- I was an hungred,
- I was thirsty,
- I was a stranger,
- Naked,
- I was sick,
- I was in prison,
Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when…?
And the King shall answer…Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren – acted in my likeness – ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:31-40)
Kingdom Come 