Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
This passage of scripture tells us that after God created man upon the earth, he gave him dominion over it, thus making Adam the official steward of all that was created on this planet. This dominion was not to be administered or exercised independent of God, but instead under the supervision of The Godhead. From time to time as Adam met with God, he would be given instructions for perpetuating the existence of the human family upon the earth, and on various occasions he would be called to give an account of his stewardship.
However, sacred history records the sad fact that Adam's dominion was wrested from him by the deceptive work of our adversary, hence the reason why, when a general counsel was called in heaven, consisting of the chief stewards of the the many inhabited worlds out there in the universe, satan showed up too, for Adam was long dead, and as the self-styled prince of this world, he thought he would invite himself, not to receive instructions from God, but to accuse both God and man before the general counsel of stewards. Let's read:
Job 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came also among them. 7 And the Lord said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
Jesus Christ however, came along and rescued us together with the earth from the iron grip of satan by His death on Calvary, and it is solely because of this singular accomplishment by Christ that we now have hope of the second dominion, when God shall once again make all things new. This aspect of Christ's sacrifice is not nearly understood as it ought to be, for although Jesus came to save us from our sins, yet eternal salvation without a dominion, will set us back further than when God originally created the heavens and the earth for man. Let's read:
Isaiah 53:10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
The consummation of the Christian's hope will take place when Christ comes to take us home to the earth restored to its Eden beauty, and it is at this time that the Bible tells us that we shall reign as kings and priests unto God. It therefore behooves each of us to be faithful stewards, being willing to take instructions from The Eternal God, so that we can be prepared to rule with wisdom and discretion in the second dominion that God is preparing for those that love Him. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which confirms this blessed hope to our hearts, and it our desire that the appropriate response of loving and faithful service to God may be our experience from this day forward. Let's read:
Revelation 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
May God add his blessing to the study of His word so that we will be prepared to serve in the second dominion. God bless!