Living sustainably in a doomed world,The prophetic voice of the Church and why it is important in heralding in restoration.
- Abigail Lynch
- Mar 14
- 11 min read
2025 has already brought with it a world on fire from war, injustice, racism, biodiversity loss, economic instability, poverty, water poverty, wildfires, and more. To top it off scientific research shows the global trajectory towards extinction. We live in an age of great doom, with misinformation, apathy, disillusion, and fear. Today some of the political powers in the West that say they are chosen by God and speak for God have gone back on their green energy commitments, social justice, free movement, and more.
Large companies are reinvesting in fossil fuels ignoring the cry of the earth and that of God. Society seems to be blinded by its love of money, so much so that we now have brought EarthOverShot Day (see Appendix 1) into August using up the natural resources for the world in a year by this month, not considering our children’s children and what impact it has on the community of earth we are called to be a part of. What a doomed view of the world we see and because of this the church finds itself in a time of great wilderness, crying out in a desert land for our eyes to be opened. Just as John the Baptist was called to herald in the day of the Lord the Church is to herald in the day of restoration, Shane Claiborne recently stated ‘ I keep thinking of the prophets- how fiercely they advocated for the most vulnerable people in the land, and how fearlessly they spoke truth to power. We all need that prophetic courage right now.’ [1]Shane clearly states the need for the Church to stand up at this time of doom and the integral part it needs to play now.
Living sustainably today, speaking up for those who are enslaved, and caring for the earth and its main inhabitants is not just a matter of living well but a powerful display of the voice of truth in a seemly doomed world, The earth is the LORDS and all that is on it will praise their God and God will dwell with them. The Church’s actions show the hands of God to the world God loves and every day the Church has a choice to choose reconciliation in God or fear in the world.
Going back to the beginning in Genesis, God wanted a dwelling place for God to show love and have a people a place together in God's divine dance the Hebrew concept for creation is Kabbalah which is the place for receiving joy. Before the creation of the earth before time itself, there was God, and God filled the heavens/cosmos. There was no place where God did not exist. It was at this beginning that God wanted, had the desire to create a world to dwell, rest, and take pleasure in and that all would have Kabbalah[2]. To create a dwelling place Shevirat haKeilim[3] had to occur which is the shattering of the vessel. God withdrew from the cosmos from a part of the universe, drawing in breath, and God would make a world there. A void was formed, dark and empty, and then God said, “Light be and light was!” The light entered this void and formed and out of this light all the cosmoses. This dwelling place is what the scripture refers to when speaking of the heavens. All of creation has come from the dwelling place and gets its life force from the dwelling place. However, God's limitless could not be contained by the vessel and therefore the vessel had to shatter. The Church is to be the mirror of the image of God however we can see from this world we are not quite there yet and therefore God alongside us is not finished, the shattered vessel in Genesis is reformed by the Church whom are the living stones of the temple. (1 Peter 2:4-5) Then we shall see the rest of God here on the earth, that is the kingdom of God revealed. This doomed world we see now is the broken vessel, a vessel that has intrinsic value the Church must ‘Take your Bible and take your newspaper, and read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible’- Karl Barth[4] the prophetic voice is to herald in restoration not to be swayed by the state of the broken vessel.
The Church's ultimate hope is in the LORD, who brings all things under the one head that is Christ for their glory, and God has given us a mandate to be the image of God on earth. We are to be the hands and feet putting action into our faith. 1 Peter 2:9 states ‘you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.’ This calling to be a priestly order on earth, which is to hear and move by the spirit, the prophetic voice, a living reflection of our God, not to be swept up in the culture or powers of the day that sees the earth as a resource devaluing the cosmos. Instead, the Church is to be those that understand the intrinsic value of the earth walk humbly, love mercy, and act justly (Micha 6:8) realising our connection with the soil the ‘adamah’ - soil and in living sustainably the Church is heralding in the restoration through reconciling the land, people, and God together.
The Church's prophetic voice is to be a beacon that shines in the darkness of what this age has done. Shining out, calling for us to live in God, to be responsible to the cosmos to love, care and sustain. Choosing to live as a reflection of God and heralds in restoration. J Richard Middleton goes on to an example that Isreal (The Church) is to manifest its connection with God through ‘a life that embodies righteousness and justice since these are central to the interhuman flourishing that God desire……….the life of a person or community reflects the sort of god they are committed to.’[5] Therefore The Church living sustainably reflects our view of God, and if the Church is to be the prophetic hands and feet of God to the earth to herald in restoration. The Church is to carry the prophetic voice and be the answer needed in a doomed world. It is to be like Ezekiel, call out to the dry bones to have a life again, heralding in restoration through reconciling humanity with God, the earth-our home, the garden – our neighbour, and the land – our bioregion. [6]
As we have seen here our view of God determines how we live and if our view of God is that God will do away with this world then our actions reflect that through disregard for the created earth. Some might then go on to say that living sustainably is not needed as God will take us from here to a new heaven and new earth, this earth will be done away with, so it doesn’t matter. This is a very anthropomorphic view of life, and is upheld in many Christians’ mindsets, which is a wrong interpretation of the scripture, disconnecting the Adam from the Adamah, the body of God, and all that gets its life force/ its light from the LORD. If our view of God is that God loves, cares, and sustains the cosmos then as the holy priest of God we too are to do the same. Humans are not the centre but are to be in a community on earth with the God, the land, and the people. The Church is to put into action and voice the God that cares, loves, and sustains. Matthew 25:31-46 tells us we are to be those that care for those in need and our world is in great need.
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’[7]
Consumerism is the cancer of the church[8], it speaks of individualism and does not give out from itself to the other but constantly asks us to take, take, take. If the Church continues to live in line with the systems of the world such as consumerism it is truly a doomed world. The Church in seeking to be the hands of feet of God on the earth must put their trust in the infinite God that sustains us. Understanding that the Kingdom of God is living inside us (Luke 17:20-21)
20 Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, 21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”[c][9]
The Church’s is to be the yeast in the world Matthew 13:33 “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds[a] of flour until it worked all through the dough.”[10] changing the structure of society and the world from within. The gospel is that of transformation not one that is transactional. A voice to action bringing about with it social change, ecological change, and spiritual change. The church is to be those that set up for our children’s children and living sustainably is actively considering how we walk on the earth will affect not only our children but our children's children, reminding us again that God’s love is poured out for the vulnerable not to be hoarded for personal gain.
James 2 calls the church to act and bring change and that our faith is made complete within the actions we do therefore the prophetic voice must not be just words but also actions, ‘You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did’.[11] It shows that every day we are the expression of life and love to a world in crisis, living in doom for the future. That is bringing the kingdom of God to earth, taking the shattered pieces of creation, and bringing them back together in restoration and for the glory of God. The Church is called to move away from consumption to sacrifice, from greed to generosity, and from wastefulness to sharing. Not to ask what I need but what does God’s earth require? We must refuse to turn nature into an object to be used but that we are connected to in our great dance with the creator. This counter-cultural prophetic voice stands amid the doom and says like Esther that we were called ‘for such a time as this’[12]. So that our families do not perish because of our silence.
Jesus in the temple Matthew 21v 12-17 shows us his revolutionary love and that love raged against injustice in the temple the place of God's presence. Now that the temple curtains were torn on the cross the earth is the temple of the LORD and therefore, the Church is to show this revolutionary love that rages against injustice to all that it be a house of prayer, presence, and love, not one of ego and power and dominion. This is the prophetic call that heralds restoration in a day of doom, one that living sustainably has a great impact as it is not done to be good but because we have revolutionary love, raging against the injustice in the world. Our priestly mandate is to take seriously our daily lives being an example of the restoration of God on the earth which means living sustainably even in a world that is doomed.
In conclusion, the church's prophetic voice is one of action and word, one that heralds in the kingdom of God, bringing together the shattered vessel through living a daily life of love, care, uplifting those who are hurting in a transformative way. The Church is to see the intrinsic value of all of creation, not a resource to be used but one that draws its being from the dwelling place of the limitless God. Some might feel that there is no point, our one action is too small to make a difference in a world that is doomed, but we are doing it for the coming King and God has the power to water and make change for every small action taken. 1 Cor 3:6 emphasizes that God is the one who makes things grow and we are to be the planter, both working towards the same goal. This scripture again shows that the Church’s everyday actions have value in this broken and doomed world. It is a prophetic sign of the King who has come, is coming, and is yet to come.
The Church is to be living stones of the temple, the dwelling place of the LORD and we are working towards restoration yesterday, today, and tomorrow. What we see happening in the world and the feeling of doom pushes the Church on to herald in the day of restoration to not treat it as a thing to run away from but to speak up for the sake of creation as Esther did. The Church is to be a place of a renewed mind, living now for the powers of this world, for capitalistic consumerism but as a living sacrifice poured out for the vulnerable The Church is therefore to be a living sign, the beacon of the limitless God, now our ultimate hope today. How the Church lives shows the God that it believes in and the scripture points to a God that sustains, cares, and loves for the earth and all its inhabitants therefore the Church is to be a mirror of this God, working to bring the shattered vessel back together, heralding in God restoration as Gods dwelling place and rest, peace and hope.
The Church living sustainably in this doomed world is a beacon of the limitless God, who wants to dwell with all that gets its life force from God and the Church is to be the representative of that now, interpreting culture through the lens of the bible. This is a powerful time for the Church, that in such uncertainty it has certainty within Christ who will bring all things together under one head for God's glory. It is a time of hope and action, a time to stand up and be heard to bring the dry bones to life, to set up for our Children’s children that they might know the God who sustains and values all of creation and has set us apart to be a priesthood to the earth.
Appendix 1
Bibliography
1. Bauckham, R . (2010) Bible and Ecology: Rediscovering the Community of Creation. Darton, longman and Todd ltd
2. Bauckham R 2012 Living with Other Creatures Green Exegesis and Theology. Paternoster, Milton Keynes UK
3. Hodson, M J and Hodson, M R, (2021) A Christian Guide to Environmental Issues, The Bible reading fellowship
4. Kressel, M (2015) 36 Days of Judiac Myth: Day 3, The Shattered Vessel 36 Days of Judaic Myth: Day 3, The Shattered Vessels – Matthew Kressel read on 6th March 2024 at 11:44am
5. Middleton, J. R ( 2014) A New Heaven and New Earth, Reclaiming Biblical Eschatology, Baker Academic
6. Mastrogiovanni, J L (2018 ) Melchizedek Our gracious king-priesthood in Christ Second Edition- audiobook 12hrs 20 mins March 2025
7. McClaren, B, ( 2024) Life after doom, Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart, audiobook 11hrs 20 mins Nov 2024-Jan 2025
8. Snyder, H A, ( 2011) Salvation means creation healed, The ecology of sin and grace, Overcoming the Divorce between Earth and Heaven, Cascade books, Oregon
9. Thunberg, G ( 2022) The Climate Book : The Facts and Solutions, Penguin press
10. Valerio, R. (2008) ‘L’ is for Lifestyle New edition, Inter-Varsity-Press
11. Rorh, R (3 Nov. 2016) The Divine Dance: The Trinity and your transformation SPCK Publishing; First Edition
12. Wizba, N (2023) The Trouble with Sustainability, The Trouble with Sustainability – viewed Jan 2025
13. Wright N.T and Bird M. F Jesus and the Powers Christian political witness in an age of totalitarian terror and dysfunctional democracies – audiobook 3h.58mins 12th July 2024
[1] Caliborne S (2025) March 6th 3:16pm(Facebook)https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1193618878797495&set=a.277333340426058
[2] Mastrogiovanni, J L (2018 ) Melchizedek Our gracious king-priesthood in Christ Second Edition- audiobook 12hrs 20 mins March 2025 chapter 5
[3] Kressel, M (2015) 36 Days of Judiac Myth: Day 3, The Shattered Vessel 36 Days of Judaic Myth: Day 3, The Shattered Vessels – Matthew Kressel read on 6th March 2024 at 11:44am
[4] On Barth, the Bible and the Newspaper | sinibaldo.wordpress.com read on the10th March at 10:42am
[5] Middleton J.R (2014) A new heaven and a New Earth, Reclaiming Biblical Eschatology Baker Academic
[6] Module 10 Living Sustainably Cres course booklet Dec 2025
[8] Cres Day To consume or to not consume? A Christians guide to Ethical Consumption during an ecological crisis. – Jo Herbert- James. 16th Nov 2024
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