Implications of the Cultural Mandate in Light of our Identity as Royal Priests

We discussed in class certain aspects of the cultural mandate – the commands that God gave to mankind at the creation of the world. I’d like to highlight two pairs of verbs that God commands in the first chapters of Genesis. He tells Adam in Gen. 1:28 to “subdue and rule” the earth and later, in Gen. 2:15, “work and keep” it. These two pairs could be summarized as “reigning” and “serving.”

The book of Exodus depicts a scene where God says to Israel that they will be a “kingdom of priests” (Ex. 19:6). Peter later riffs on this idea and calls the people of God a “royal priesthood” (1 Pet. 2:9). Finally, in the book of Revelation, this identity is fully realized, as the elders fall down and sing a new song about how God’s people have been made a “kingdom of priests” that will reign and serve (Rev. 5:10).

If we as God’s people should understand our identity as a part in this royal priesthood, originating in the Garden and being fulfilled in eternity, how should that affect our role in entrepreneurship? I will try to argue that in all our entrepreneurial efforts, we too ought to reign and serve.

1. Reign: We don’t often think of ourselves as “reigning” as Christians. Doesn’t Jesus tell us to expect suffering and persecution? I think we may take this command as a command against passivity – a command to act. Christians should be the domineering force in the world for light. If we really are the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13), then we ought to preserve the world that is quickly wasting away due to sin. Our action – our reigning – looks like participating in the world around us. We don’t turn a blind eye to real issues in the world when it comes to entrepreneurship. Our entrepreneurial minds ought to affect the way we conduct business.
2. Serve: With everything else in mind, serving must be at the heart of our businesses. We don’t create companies purely because we want to make money. We shouldn’t desire to live a life full of selfish gain full of vanity. Rather, our efforts should go towards a greater purpose. In all that we do, eternity must be in perspective. This world offers very little, and that which is does offer rots away quickly. We ought to offer the greatest gift of all – the Gospel – one which does not rot.

Reigning and serving are not simply “nice ideals” to have in a business purpose statement. They are the foundation for our God-given identities as royal priests. Live into this identity not just on a Sunday, but in every aspect of your life!