Is the commandment to multiply, and replenish the earth in effect today?

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Accepted answer

A commandment is in effect until it is fulfilled. God has not told us it is fulfilled, so it is in effect unless we believe it to be fulfilled to His satisfaction.

Personally I don't believe it to be fulfilled. All the "over population" we see is simply a mismanagement of resources. There is plenty of livable earth and resources available. Not that replenishment requires exhaustion of resources, but our level of waste is appalling, and better urban planning could improve the living conditions where population is high.

I believe the commandment to have domion over the earth includes a stewardship to care for it, which clearly we can do better. Perhaps that is why the two commandments were given together. As we do better with our stewardship to care for the earth we can do better to replenish the earth.

Searching around for any Christian statements on the commandment to multiple and replenish in modern times I found the following:

We declare that God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force.

-The Family: A Proclamation to the World
The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints September 23, 1995

As well as the Catholic church stance on birth control:

. . . it is always intrinsically wrong to use contraception to prevent new human beings from coming into existence.

Wikipedia summarizes other Christian views on birth control, which go both directions. Of course Birth control isn't exactly what you asked, but they are related.

No doubt someone could find links to contradict me. I guess it comes down to your personal beliefs.

My personal belieft is we are each to have as many children as we can reasonably support and care for. I have four children. My wife an I believe any more and we would not be able raise and care for them effectively (but that may be a failing on our part). I have friends with 6 or even 8 children who do quite well as taking care of them.

As an aside: It continues to be important that we specifically as Christians multiply and replenish the earth, and raise our children as good Christians to be a force of good in the Lord's work. To stop having children because one believes the world to be flawed is to give up hope of improving the world. Children raised up with good Christian values are the greatest hope for a better tomorrow.

Upvote:-1

1 Cor 7 says, pretty clearly, that getting married (let alone having a family) is no longer in effect.

1 Cor 7:8-9 (NIV)

8 Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do. 9 But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

Obviously, if we want to (need to) get married, we should. However, it's good (or even better) to stay unmarried!

There are many commands given to people back then that are commands for that time. Read Leviticus for examples of that. That was the old covenant. We, as recipients of the salvation of Jesus, are no longer under these old commandments. These old commands no longer are required of us.

This is one such command.

"Further evidence!" I hear you cry. Fine, fine. Here:

Acts 15:28-29 (NLT)

28 “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these few requirements: 29 You must abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. If you do this, you will do well. Farewell.”

Those are the commands we have on us today.

"Not enough" "We want more!" OK, fine. Here.

It's been said that every command that we should follow is found in the New Testament. If it's not in the New Testament, then it's a command that we no longer need to follow.

"That makes no sense!" I hear you say.

The problem with the Old Testament is that these commands were given directly from God to his people so that they will know how to live until the coming of the Messiah.

Well, he's come. In the present time (since the Pentacost after his resurrection), we have his Holy Spirit. This resource is available to all of us. It's because of this that we have so few commands placed on us.

Having said that, if the Holy Spirit is moving you to have a family and multiply--then you better comply!

But don't take Old Testament commands as commands that are currently in effect unless they've been repeated by Jesus or the apostles in the New Testament.

Upvote:1

The commandement to multiply and subdue the earth was not given to Adam and Eve. In Genesis 1:28 as you noted this commandment was given before/on the 6th day. This means the commandment was given to spirit beings male and female and not to flesh beings not yet created from dust at that time. What Adam and Eve got was a curse and not a blessing, sweat for male to get food and pain for women at child birth. The further curses was not to eat from the tree of life and that women's desire was for man. They were in no position to receive such a command blessing for what they did did not warrant blessings. You cannot surely bless someone for disobeying you. In Malachi God said take your lame offerings to your gorvernors and see if they will be pleased with you. Therefoe since God does not change He was not pleased in any way with disobedience. For listening and odience please God Job 36:11. As for Noah and Abraham I agree with you.

The other measure to know whether someone is going to heaven or not, will leave in prosperity or poverty or have seen God is whether they completely adapt and adopt equal rights and that no emphasis is put on curses as the Yoke and curse was broken by Christ on the cross. Isiah 10:27 God fulfilled his promise. All spirit male and female was equal at creation without curse. ceteris peri bus at creation before the 7th day.

I will be happy to hear from you

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