| Animals |
Created Date: 28-Feb-2018 |
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Last updated: 16-Dec-2023 |
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| A A A help |
Sections:
| 1 | God Cares for Animals | 2 | We are Judged on Treatment |
| 3 | Scriptural References | 4 | Wonderful Fish Example - They Recognize Us |
| 5 | Will our Pets be in Heaven? | 6 | Grieving the loss of a Pet |
God has created everything seen and unseen for His great pleasure and for all of His Creation to have a personal relationship with Him, which includes animals. Our separation, and all of His creation, from God will be restored to God's Glory and for all of us, that includes animals, that love Him will be in perfect harmony of love for God because of God's great love. This is thought is often called the purpose of all history.
| Romans 8:22-24 | 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? |
God loves and cares for His Creation which includes animals. We need to treat them with respect, dignity and care for them, where even when used as a food source which should be done without cruelty. Animals provide labor, transportation, clothing, milk, food, companionship, and also beauty.
In the Old Testament, there were dietary laws for the eating of animals, which was removed after the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Here are a few key scriptural passages:
| Genesis 9:3 | Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything. |
| Leviticus 11:1-3 (Old Testament Law) |
1 The Lord spoke again to Moses and to Aaron, saying to them, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘These are the creatures which you may eat from all the animals that are on the earth. 3 Whatever divides a hoof, thus making split hoofs, and chews the cud, among the animals, that you may eat. |
| Acts 10:9-13 (New Testament Law) |
9 On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. 10 But he became hungry and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance; 11 and he saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, 12 and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air. 13 A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!” |
| Mark 7:19 | Since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) |
Just as we are judged on how we treat others as read in Matthew 25:40, so are we judged by the way we treat animals.
It has been said that God has given the animals that serve us along with our pets that we have in our lives, to show their owners:
Domesticated and service animals are a model for us to understand God's great love to us which the animals can demonstrate.
As an example of an animal in God's service where there was bad treatment, consider the time that God used a Donkey to deliver a message in Numbers 22 to Balaam:
| Numbers 22:21-31 | 21 So Balaam arose in the morning, and saddled his donkey and went with the leaders of Moab. 22
But God was
angry because he was going, and the angel of the Lord took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now
he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him. 23
When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord
standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand, the donkey turned off from the way and went into the
field; but Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back into the way. 24
Then the angel of the Lord stood in a
narrow path of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. 25
When the donkey saw the
angel of the Lord, she pressed herself to the wall and pressed Balaam’s foot against the wall, so he struck
her again. 26 The angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn
to the right hand or the left. 27 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam; so
Balaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick. 28
And the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and
she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” 29
Then Balaam said
to the donkey, “Because you have made a mockery of me! If there had been a sword in my hand, I would have
killed you by now.” 30 The
donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden all your
life to this day? Have I ever been accustomed to do so to you?” And he said, “No.”
31
Then the
Lord
opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the
Lord
standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed all
the way to the ground. (If you have the time, then read more on this amazing and beautiful incident in the remaining verses of Numbers 22.) |
Cruelty in any form is a sin against ourselves besides the targeted person or animal which receives the cruelty.
| Proverbs 11:17 | The merciful man does himself good, But the cruel man does himself harm. |
| Proverbs 12:10 | A righteous man has regard for the life of his animal, But even the compassion of the wicked is cruel. |
| Acts 20:35 | In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” |
| Proverbs 28:16 | A leader who is a great oppressor lacks understanding, But he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days. |
| Matthew 25:40 | “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ |
Consider the following regarding God and animals:
| Communication | Genesis 7:8-9 | 8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of birds, and of everything that creepeth upon the ground, 9 there went in two and two unto Noah into the ark, male and female, as God commanded Noah. |
| Genesis 7:14-16 | 14 they, and every beast after its kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh wherein is the breath of life. 16 And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God commanded him: and Jehovah shut him in. | |
| Care and Provision | Psalm 104:14 | He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of man: that he may bring forth food out of the earth; |
| Psalm 104:21 | The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from God. | |
| Psalm 104:25-27 | 25 So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts. 26 There go the ships: there is that leviathan, whom thou hast made to play therein. 27 These wait all upon thee; that thou mayest give them their meat in due season. | |
| Job 38:39-41 | 39 “Do you hunt the prey for the lioness and satisfy the hunger of the lions 40 when they crouch in their dens or lie in wait in a thicket? 41 Who provides food for the raven | |
| when its young cry out to God and wander about for lack of food? | ||
| Jonah 4;11 | And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?” | |
| Luke 12;24 | Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! | |
| Matthew 6:26 | Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? | |
| Praise/Glory to God | Psalm 148:7 & 10 | 7 Praise the Lord from the earth, |
| 10 wild animals and all cattle, | ||
| small creatures and flying birds, | ||
| Ability to reason, | Numbers 22:12-33 | Balaam's donkey is given ability to speak with Balaam and shows wisdom |
| See Angels | ||
| Enjoy life | Job 39:13-18 | 13 “The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. |
| 14 She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand,15 unmindful that a foot may crush them, | ||
| that some wild animal may trample them. 16 She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain, 17 for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense. | ||
| 18 Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at horse and rider. | ||
| Manage them humanely | Genesis 1:26 | And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of heaven and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. |
| Proverbs 12:10 | The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel. | |
| Teach us | Job 12:7-10 | 7 “But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; 8 or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. 9 Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? 10 In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind. |
| Future | Isaiah 11:6-9 | 6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. |
| Revelation 19:11 and 21 |
This is mentioned to show horses are used by Jesus and a possible
reference to animals are in heaven and not to be confused with the
Living Creatures that surround the Throne of God. 11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. ... 21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh. |
Many of us have thought that there are creatures in God's creation that do not have the ability to discern and reason other than the basic forms of the necessities to live such as eating, sleeping, avoiding danger and reproducing. There are many examples that have caught most people by surprise with observations concerning many of the creatures of the world.
In the United States, there are many very large stores that specialize in specific areas. One store called Bass Pro Shop is one such store that has almost everything a person needs concerning recreational outdoor equipment. As of 2019, in many of their stores, there are very large aquariums, around 200 plus gallons, in the fishing department area. The Fishing Department is often on the first floor and is part of an open area that extends to other multiple department areas. This open area concept is part of the marketing and merchandising that is designed to get customers interested in more items in the store.
On one Sunday, this author was in the Fishing Department at Bass Pro Shop with a friend, when the sale representative told us that in a few minutes a specific authorized person, who feeds the fish regularly, will be coming through a door on the other side of the building which is around 30 yards away. When the Fish Feeder Person comes in, the fish will see him almost instantaneously and will all go to the nearest sides of the multiple large aquariums that are facing the Fish Feeder Person approaching them.
What astounded us was the store was very crowded and we thought that there would be no way the fish would be able to discern the difference between a person coming through a door that they recognize as their "feeder" and the many customers. To our amazement, the fish did exactly what the sales representative told us. The sales representative laughed and said he loves telling people to watch this happening. This should demonstrate the wonderful design that God has given to the simplest of His Created creatures, and they have more abilities than we imagined!
God's Creation, that includes animals, was initially made in perfection that was made subject to decay because of the fall of Adam and Eve. There are some very interesting books on mathematical questions in relation to God's Creation that point to all living creatures are destined for resurrection, which this author has heard being spoken about. The mathematical theories do not go further than resurrection and what happens after but it is a fascinating possibility that we need to know that there is nothing impossible for God. We know for human-beings, everyone is destined to be judged at either:
The further point of mathematical proofs of creation is God can absolutely construct, create and bring back to life every living creature, even when there is no soul as discussed earlier in this topic.
Human-beings are immortal and our destiny is based on our Salvation choice. The Purpose of All History is for God to be Glorified and showing His Great Love to us, where all things will be made perfect as the Creation was before.
| Romans 8:22-24 | 22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? |
In the times of the Temple sacrifices, which will resume in the Millennial Kingdom, the animals created a pleasing aroma when sacrificed which was more than burnt flesh of an already deceased animal, as it was the covering by the shedding of blood for sins that pointed to the future sacrifice that Jesus Christ made at the Cross for the permanent covering.
As a requirement for Temple Sacrifice, the identification of the animals required them to be without blemish, which also means everyone individually was known and verified by God. Jesus Christ also was without blemish and perfect.
It can be theorized that God, through the identification of the animals without blemish, means the animals were special. Conversely, when Israel came into of the Promise Land, Israel was instructed in some cities to kill all the people and animals, which meant the animals had blemishes of evil that had more than the external fur covering.
| Leviticus 1:9 | But its entrails and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall burn all of it on the altar, as a burnt offering, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord. |
| 1 Samuel 15:3 | Now go and strike Amalek and completely destroy everything that they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.’” |
While we do not know all the wonders, joys and great love that will be experienced in Eternity, the point of Eternity is God bring back all of His Creations (plural intentional) to the way He had intended, where the animals that were in our lives that were parts of our family with love will be most likely restored also to their purpose of bringing Glory to God and love for God and all of us with the pets in our lives to be part of the Love of God and God's Creation.
When we experience the death of an animal, that was our pet and loyal friend, then we should understand that since God created the animals with the capacity to be loyal and friends of human-beings, then there is a purpose for not only the animal but also all human-beings in having a pet as our loving friend to God's Glory.
God's design therefore points to all of us recognizing that God's Creation was intended to be loving and friendly with all animals. The sin of Adam and Eve changed God's Design. This is why there is the prophecy that after all of the Creation is restored to its original design in eternity, then the lion will lay down with the lamb where there is no fear but only loving companionship.
| 1 Isaiah 11:6-9 | 6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. |
What to read next?
What is Salvation? Is it is possible to lose Salvation? We have eternal life. Evolution is not real. When a Christian suffers is there benefits from it. Rewards in heaven. Do we Tithe? What does the 3rd Commandment tell us? What is Grace and Mercy? Is there a place of unending punishment and exile form God?