Created to Cultivate

Our dog's name is Coco, but we could easily re name him “Smiley”.  Yes, Smiley.  We could name him that because Coco “smiles” at us every time we walk through the door of our home.  Yes, he smiles … white (or ecru) teeth and all.  His smile, in fact, is something we, as a family, have come to look forward to and greatly enjoy. 
While we will not be renaming him Smiley anytime soon (if you were to see him, you would find that Coco is also an appropriate name), the mere thought of his name reminds me that we humans name nearly everything.  We do not name things simply because we can; though some might, and, no doubt, do so.  We name because it is part and parcel of what it means to be human.  In one sense, our capacity to name is a reflection of the One whose image we bear.

One might be tempted to wonder, “In what way is naming a reflection of God's image?”  If one understands “image” as essentially meaning that we are God's representative or vice-regents in this world (as do I) then you begin to see how the enterprise of naming reflects the divine image.  Chrysostom (church father, 400 A.D.) referred to this concept of image by noting that it is “humanity's divinely ordained role to rule over the lower orders.”  This appointment of ruling is not only expressed in the privilege of naming but also in the responsibility of caretaking. It is the greatest of privileges enjoined with the greatest of responsibilities.

The privilege of naming comes somewhat more easily than does the responsibility of caretaking.  In fact, while we seem to have the privilege of naming (and renaming) down to an art-form, one might look around and argue that we have long since lost our sense of caretaking responsibilities.  The Ancient Israelites took their caretaking responsibility seriously.  They expressed their caretaking responsibility by cultivating that which was around them in a way that it might flourish.  This was seen as an act of worship in response to God’s gift of creation.  The Psalmist exclaims in Psalm 115, “The earth has been given to the children of man.” The Proverbs state one’s own righteousness is illustrated and experienced in the way he or she cares for (cultivates) beasts (cf. Pr. 12)! 

Andy Crouch, in his excellent book, Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling, reminds us that “one who cultivates tries to create the most fertile conditions for good things to survive and thrive.”  He continues by saying, “Cultivation also requires . . . sorting out what does and does not belong, what will bear fruit and what will choke it out.”  This is exactly what God’s people have done as a way of life, or an act of worship, from the beginning of time.

Together, as Pillar Community Church seeks to reflect the image of God in our community, we will strive to cultivate our culture in a way that creates an environment where flourishing is possible.  We recognize this means we will also have to identify that which chokes it out.  Then, as an act of worship before our God, we will seek ways to replace it with a vision for a community that is properly cultivated.  We have a name for this at Pillar … we call it Avodah. 

Avodah is a comprehensive view of worship that takes seriously the biblical call for God’s people to cultivate our communities (marriages, neighborhoods, business, education, politics, the arts, etc) to the glory of God!

Grace and Peace!
Pastor Biz

"Man created in the divine image is expected to imitate God in his daily life: how far he conforms to this ideal is the story not only of Genesis but of the rest of Scripture," G.J. Weham.

Pillar Community Church
P.O. Box 2288
Vero Beach, Florida 32961-2288