animals are groaning
Before I was a Christian, I wasn’t really an animal person. I thought they were cute, but they weren’t for me. Especially cats, for some reason. I don’t know why, but I just hated them back then. But all of that changed the day God brought a random mouse into my apartment, something I never had despite living here for years. And with the mouse came a sudden urge to adopt a cat to get rid of the mouse, something I really wasn’t prepared to do, but I did it. It’s been almost two years since I brought her home, and through her, I started to see the love that God has for all of His creation.
And along with that love, I started to see the hatred that some Christians have for animals. And look, I get disliking the way people treat pets as children and the issues with pet idolatry, but what I can’t get is treating animals as soulless beings that will just cease to exist in death. To me, this is an insane view to have, considering that not even the wicked cease to exist, nor do Satan or his angels, despite their sin (Matthew 25:41, Jude 1:6, Revelation 20:10).
Animals are innocent, and have been since the beginning (they never ate from the tree!), they have the breath of life, just like us (Genesis 1:30, Genesis 7:15), and they, along with all of creation, are waiting to be freed from bondage due to being subjected to the sin of man (Romans 8:18-22). Plus, we see that animals go to the place of the dead, Sheol, when they die (Psalm 49:14).
And, I know some people say animals go to heaven, and while the Bible does show some animals are in heaven, like in Revelation 19:11-16, I can’t see any verses that speak to earthly animals going there, or if those animals in heaven are animals from earth. Either way, animals will be with us in the millennial kingdom as seen in Isaiah 11:6-9.
Also, all creation brings God praise, including animals, as seen in Psalm 148. And this praise isn’t just in function, it’s in a way God can clearly understand. Why wouldn’t God ensure that He understands His creation or that it can praise Him? Even when it’s through a meow, a chirp, a roar, or a squeak, or the sounds that stars, trees, and grass make. (Remember, even the rocks will cry out if we don’t.) Animals praise God, animals love God, and animals have a relationship with God as we do (Job 12:7-10). No, they aren’t made in God’s image, but neither are angels, and yet they praise, worship, and have a relationship with God like us as well.
So the next time you see a cat, a dog, a mouse, or even a roach, think about how this is a creature that God made, a creature who didn’t choose to be subjected to the sin of man, a creature that loves God, and one day wants to see the world be made new like us.
