GMOs: An Agricultural Tower of Babel?

(Updated with what is now paragraph 6 on 1/7/12)

There are many out there that feel anything we do to increase production and efficiency, thereby apparently reducing price, is a good thing.  Others put forth that the only way we can feed the world and produce enough food is by genetically engineering it.  But is this correct as the true total cost, including subsidies and increased health costs, of the food we eat is yet to be tallied.  Also, from what I can find the issue with food is not a quantity issue but a distribution issue so making more at any cost is not the answer.  However, more importantly we need to ask if the producing of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) pleases God or is it an Agricultural Tower of Babel?

Now I have probably already tipped my hand as to where I stand on this subject but if God’s word is sufficient for all of life, and it is, it must say something about this topic.  Of course you will not find a passage such as 1 Agronomy 1:1 that says “Thou shall not make GMOs” but this does not mean that God does not speak to this area of life, He does.  God speaks to every area of life, either directly or in principle.

I realize that when one speaks to the topic of food there will be those that say that what we eat and what we produce is an area of liberty and we can basically do as we please.  Some may even go to Peter’s vision in Acts  10:9-16 to say that we can eat all things.  Well, first the passage in Acts is not dealing as much with what one has for dinner as dealing with religious preconceptions about what was clean or unclean, to say that Peter can indeed eat and fellowship with the Gentiles who were considered unclean by the Jews.  The “liberty” card is usually used whenever ones toes are being stepped on and one becomes uncomfortable.  While we do have liberty it is all within the confines of God’s order and commands so we need to be careful of where we proclaim liberty.

To see what God’s plan was from the beginning one needs to go back to, well the beginning, Genesis 1:25-27 and Gen 2:5,15 to see that God placed man in a garden to care for what God provided.  God could have easily made the garden to care for itself and produce in abundance all that Adam and Eve required but God decided, in His infinite wisdom, to have man cultivate and till the soil.  He placed man not so much as lord over the land but as a steward of God’s provision, as caretaker and overseer of it.  While this call was prior to the fall it did not change after it.  What changed after the fall was man’s relationship with the soil as it was going to now, in a sense, fight back and not produce as man would have liked.  God did not tell Adam to go out and try and manipulate the ground, the foliage or the animals but to care for it to bring forth what God wanted from the soil even with the curse that was placed on it. 

So what does man do today but try and avoid the curse anyway they can.  I spoke on some of this in my last article on work.  We create food, if you can really call it that, which is modified so as to be able to produce more crops by being pesticide resistant and in the process nutrient deficient.  Man, instead of simply dealing with the various issues created by the curse through hard work and natural methods has tried to be God and create new organisms.   At the heart of much of this is a desire to avoid work and the trials of it and to be as God. 

As I mentioned the Tower of Babel in the title of this article, I should add that it is, among other things, a picture of man seeking to use technology to create their own heaven, their own redemption.  Gen 11:1-5 speaks of the technology used, that of brick and mortar, and the passage even speaks of them being baked.  Now we may not think of bricks and mortar as a technological advance but it truly was.  Man was seeking to use what advances they had before them to make a name for themselves (Gen 11:4) and in a sense find redemption on their own.  They sought to make something of themselves and avoid being scattered.  However, God would put a stop to that and He can do the same with us.  God can bring down the technological tower we have created and rely on.  At issue is not necessarily a matter of avoiding technology, as that is often difficult, but it is a matter of what we do with that technology.  It is a matter of what we rely on, God or self.

But what of those that farm and have worked to make mixed breeds of animals and plants?  Is this a form of genetic manipulation?  This is dealt with in Joel Salatin’s book Folks, This Ain’t Normal (Pg: 225-239) as he shares how genetic engineering deals with manipulating “kinds” whereas the natural mixing of breeds and plants is keeping kinds together.  God created “kinds” (Gen 1:11,12,21,25) and we should not seek to make, to be as God, and create new kinds. 

This tendency to want to be as God is not new as we see it in the Garden, at Babel and we see it still today. When we manufacture, manipulate and modify the natural order that God has provided we in essence seek to be as God.  Being creative is an innate attribute we have as a creation made in the image of God. However we need to realize the limits of that creative desire and understand that simply because we physically can do something that does not mean we should.  Adam and Eve could physically eat of the tree but they were not to so we too need understand our limits and be careful that we do not turn our call to dominion into a call to be as God.  

Does all of this mean we simply need to accept the thorns and thistles that make producing food difficult?  In one sense yes as they will exist in some manner until Christ’s return.  But I think we can, by the sweat of our brow, fight those incursions that make the ground unfruitful.  We need to do so in a manner that aligns with God’s order and in a manner that magnifies Him and not us.  We need to make sure that all we do honors God’s creation and is not in the end simply more of a curse, as we are finding with the genetically engineered food substitutes that have been created.

Let us seek to be reliant on God and what He provides.  One of the results of the curse on the land is to remind us of our reliance on Him for our redemption.   Let us be content with the trials we face due to the curse.  Not that we are to be complacent but understand that we cannot avoid the curse and must work within the confines God has set before us.  God has provided all we need to live for His glory and we need to come to grips with that.  Can we create technology to better glorify God, well that is a topic for another post but in short yes as long as we understand the difference between using technology and being dependent on it. 

So, yes the genetic engineering of our food is indeed an Agricultural Tower of Babel and it will crumble.  The question is how long will it be until God pulls the tower down and how much damage will have been done in the mean time.  Should we not instead work to pull the tower down and thus reveal our reliance on God and not on ourselves? 

Previous Posts in this Series:

Christians and the Care of God’s Creation
God, Work and Redemption

God, Work and Redemption

I want to preface what is to come, in this series, with a few books I have been reading that have given me much food for thought, pun intended.  Two of them are by Joel Salatin: “Everything I Want to do is Illegal” and “ Folks, This Ain’t Normal.”  Another book I am almost done with that has given me much to think about as I try and work through how we are to deal with technology and man’s attempts to “make life easier” is "Surviving Off Off-Grid" by Michael Bunker.  I think these are worthwhile books to read as we too often are so ingrained in a way of thinking that we need to be jolted out of our slumber and these books may help do just that.  Will you agree with all they say, maybe not, but these are books that may help you to look at things differently, and that is what we need today.   Also, both authors have a Christian worldview that sees all that is around us as God’s creation and that God has a way He desires for us to interact with it, a view I would pray we would all seek to posses.

When we look at any area of life we need to do so with God’s word as our standard, our filter, and this includes when we interact with God’s creation and our required stewardship of it.  When I speak of God’s word I mean not only His inerrant word but also His all-sufficient word.  If one does not see God’s word as sufficient for all of life then one will not seek to see what God says about every area of life and thus will end up setting up areas that are not judged by the only infallible rule of life, His word.  To make God honoring decisions we need to see what God’s word says about every area of life.  

I thought I would start with looking at the issue of work because so much of what we have to deal with today is promoted as being “required” so as to reduce our work, save time and increase our ability to spend more effort in recreation.  I need to mention here that the idea of saving time is misleading as we all have 24 hours and we invariably fill up every minute.  Thus, seldom do we actually save time but instead just rearrange the use of the minutes, now back to the subject of work.  The world seeks to tell us we need this device, that program or some other modification to our life because it will reduce our work and benefit us by giving us time to do any number of other “more” enjoyable activities.  Due to this propaganda, for most things I do not think this is too strong a word, we need to understand the biblical concept of “work” so as not to be taken in by the many claims of the world and its offerings.

To begin with work is not in and of itself evil.  Man was created and given dominion, stewardship, over the garden (Gen 1:26-31) that God created.  God calls what he had created, including the work of dominion, very good thus we see that work at this point is not what we think of it as today, but is instead good.   Work is not a result of the fall, as most treat it, but is a creation of God and is His means for man to care for His creation.  However, when man fell work became burdensome as God’s word reveals in Gen 3:17-19.   Adam would indeed keep working but in contrast to before the fall work would now be what we know it as today “WORK.”

We all too often look at work as just that, work, something to avoid.  But have you ever contemplated why God chose work to be so hard because of the fall?  It was not simply as some form of punishment from an indiscretion but instead was, and is, to be a reminder.  It is to be a reminder of the state of our nature and a reminder of our need for redemption.  For the believer then there is hope in the midst of the toil of work.  Knowing this does not mean that work will be easy, as our flesh desires it to be, but it does let us know that as we work we can find joy as we contemplate that God is reminding us of all He has done, is doing and will do, in our lives.  Thus, we should not avoid work but embrace it and seek to redeem it by having an attitude of remembering what it signifies.  In our toil work lets us see our rebellion against God, our reliance on Him for redemption and it also reminds of the glorious hope that is before us.  For me this is convicting as I often grumble at work not being as easy as I would like it to be instead of taking the toil and looking at it as I should, a vivid reminder.  While we should seek to be efficient and work as best we can, so as to glorify God, even then we need to realize work in our fallen state is meant to be tiresome and troubling so as to remind us of our sin and Christ’s work.  That is where true peace and joy in the midst of work comes from, when we recognize why work is as it is.

When we think of joy and peace we all too often define them by the world’s standards and thus we cannot find joy and peace in the midst of our toil and trials.  Let us not forget that Christ in going to the cross found joy in knowing what was ahead (Hebrews 12:2.). He suffered more than we can ever imagine by taking on the sins of His people but His joy was in knowing He was glorifying the Father.  We need this attitude of joy in our work and for me that is very convicting.  It is in having a right view of work that will allow us to make right choices and not let promises of pleasure and rest dictate the decisions we make. Having a right, biblical, view of work, joy and peace will allow us to take what from a worldly perspective is a hard route and see our situation as one that sanctifies us and thus most glorifies God.

We are to be serious about the work God has for us and should not be complacent in our endeavors, seeking just to get by. When we work we are to do so for His glory because of what He has done in us and is doing through us in our work..  The world can only toil at work thus its instinct will be to avoid work but we as believers are to know that work is our destiny and we need to see God’s hand in it.  What a joy that is.

Having a right view of work is imperative so as to inform our every decision for God’s glory.  However, the world seeks to set before us an alternate reality, an alternate path to take. One where work is sought after to be non-existent and where recreation is the goal of all we do.  We are sold this worldview in everything from vacation getaway plans, such as “time-shares,” to fast food offerings all of which are to save us time, effort and increase pleasure.  We fall for this advertising that seeks to make us feel as if we can avoid work and it’s toil because our sin nature wants to forget about our sin, neglect God’s redemption and not realize there is only true freedom in what God offers.  The world wants us to believe that true happiness can only be found without work and promotes the concept that work is evil.  We as believers need to remember that while work may be hard and tiresome it is not evil.  It is, as we have already seen, in reality a great reminder of what God has done, is doing and will do in our lives.  It is the avenue God has given us for dominion and stewardship of His creation and we need to partake of work as God defines it, hardships and all, so as to experience the peace and joy only God brings when we are seeking to glorify Him.

I started with the topic of work as I think it is at the core of many of the wrong decisions we make with regards to the care of God’s creation.  For example man crowds the animals God has provided us into unnatural surroundings known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) as this is our way of saving time, work and as we are often told, to be more productive.  However in doing this not only do we treat God’s creation, the animals and the land, poorly we also create food that is not conducive to good health and thus makes us less able to work as we need to and thus not glorify God as we ought.  Also, by our not wanting to work we have allowed the melding of science and “nutrition”, even though it is not really nutritious, in such a way as to make substances that are called food and are sold to us as being able to reduce our work and leave more time for recreation.   Again, when we lose sight of the biblical meaning of work we make decisions that not only are bad for us they negate the glorification of God in our relation to the work God has for us.

So, there are some thoughts on work and how it relates to creation and areas such as food.  If you take anything from this I pray it is to see that work is a gift of God.  Yes we have to deal with the affects of sin in our work but by the work of Christ we can find joy in the midst of our toil.  While we should seek to be more efficient as we work I pray we would always weigh our motives by biblical standards.  Let us see if our goal is to be better stewards of God’s creation, for His glory, or if it is to avoid the work God has for before us.   Let us make sure we do not buy into the world’s view of work but cling to God’s view.  Always seeing in work a reminder of our sin, a reminder of God’s work in redeeming us and a reminder of the future peace to come at His return.   Let our view of work be a stark contrast to the world’s and let our lives live out that difference in our thoughts, words and actions.

More to come on other areas relating to our interaction with God’s creation.

This is a sermon delivered 12/25/11 on this subject: God, Work and Redemption

Previous Posts in this Series:

Christians and the Care of God’s Creation

Christians and the Care of God’s Creation

Let me start by saying I have not always held the views I will put forth here.  But as I have grown in my understanding of God’s word and seek to be obedient to all of it, it has become increasingly clear to me that we as Christians should be the most diligent people caring for God’s creation.  In this care for God’s world, yes it is His, we do not do as the environmentalists and elevate the creation over the creator but instead seek to be the best stewards of what is God’s that we can be because that is what pleases Him.  We are to care for, be a steward of, His creation so that it can be used for His glory and that does not happen if we simply see God’s provision as ours to do with as we please.  God is most glorified when we see His grace in providing all that He does is firstly for His glory and then our good.

For too long the Christian community has taken its cues for how we are to relate to the world around us from the Rush Limbaugh’s, Sean Hannity’s, Ann Coulter’s and so many other “conservative” radio personalities rather than from God’s word.  We have rightly seen the error in the environmentalist movement but instead of asking what it is they are reacting to we have taken an equally wrong swing in the other direction.  Instead of seeing the call to subdue and have dominion (Gen 1:26-28) as a call to care for, grow and cultivate creation for God’s glory and our good we have instead often taken the idea of dominion as a free pass to damage, abuse and destroy and that does not glorify God or do us any good.  We need to not discard the concept of dominion but instead need to see it for what it was intended from the beginning, as stewardship with a mind that sees all as belonging to God and thus of value.

This stewardship we are to provide extends not only to the animals, foliage and land God has placed around us but also to our bodies and how we treat them.  If you think clearly, and biblically, on this I think you will find they are inter-related.  In all of this we are to seek to be the best stewards we can be; not to stop some theoretical end of the world but to bring glory to God as we show the world how we revere God and what He has graciously provided.  If we take God’s sovereignty seriously we should not only think that God has created that which is around us but that He has created it to work and live together as He designed it.  When we seek to modify this God ordered symbiosis we in essence say we know better than God and in the process seek to be God.

Is that not at the heart of much of what we do, that is to say God meant to do such and such but stopped short and we need to finish what He could not do.   I realize it is not always easy to see where our actions are trying to be as God and where we are seeking to work according to God’s purposes.  But there are areas that where it is much more clear such as in man’s attempts to genetically modify that which God has placed among us and thus seek to create new kinds.  This work of modifying what God has designed oversteps our bounds of stewardship as we attempt in our sin-tainted wisdom to create what God could not, or at least by our actions we say God could not.

So over the next few months or so, as time provides, I will be writing on a number of areas from care for the land to sustainable agriculture and whatever area comes to mind, all from a biblical perspective.  Since God’s word is applicable and sufficient for ALL areas of life I believe God wants us to live as such.  This view of life needs to flesh itself out in more than what we deem as spiritual, since at the end of the day all of life has a spiritual aspect, but needs to be applied to the physical as well.

Other Posts in this Series:
God, Work and Redemption