THOUGHTS IN REGARD TO ANIMALS

What does the Creator think of His creation?  Does He regard it?  What about the animals?

The writer of Genesis said that God looked upon His creation and said, “Good.” 

Though Jesus does not talk about the future of animals, his occasional references indicates a concern of God for all His creatures.

 Matthew 10:29 
“Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. 10:30 Even all the hairs on your head are numbered. 10:31 So do not be afraid; you are more valuable than many sparrows.”

Matthew 6 
No one can be the slave of two masters:  he will either hate the first and love the second, or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn.  You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.

That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, nor about your body and how you are to clothe it.  Surely life means more than food, and the body more than clothing.

Look at the birds in the sky.  They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not worth much more than they are?  Can any of you, for all his worrying, add one single cubit to his span of life?  And why worry about clothing?  Think of the new flowers growing in the fields: they never have to work of spin; yet I assure you that not even Solomon in all his regalia was robed like one of these, Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith?

So do not worry; do not say, what are we to eat?  What are we to drink?  How are we to be clothed?  It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things.  Your heavenly Father knows you need them all.  Set your hearts on his kingdom, first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well.  So do not worry about tomorrow:  tomorrow will take care of itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own.

St. Paul indicates that the work done by God through the Cross of Jesus Christ was for more than the redemption of man, but involves the renewal of all creation.  While we do not have final answers, even in the writings of St. Paul, we know that the whole of creation looks forward to renewal in  the “New Heavens and New Earth spoken of by St. John the Revelator.  Isaiah also looked for a renewed earth with animals under the leadership of the Messiah.  John's vision of the new heaven and new earth is solidly anchored in the pastoral tradition of Isaiah 11 as is Paul's view that all creation awaits renewal from the "cursed earh."

Colossians 1:21
For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross—through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven. 

Romans 8:18
8:18 For I consider that our present sufferings cannot even be compared to the glory that will be revealed to us.  For the creation eagerly waits for the revelation of the sons of God.  For the creation was subjected to futility—not willingly but because of God who subjected it—in hope that the creation itself will also be set free from the bondage of decay into the glorious freedom of God’s children. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers together until now.  Not only this, but we ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he sees? 8:25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with endurance. 

Isaiah 11:1 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s1 root stock, a bud will sprout from his roots.  The Lord’s spirit will rest on him a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom,a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord.  He will take delight in obeying the Lord. 

He will not judge by mere appearances, or make decisions on the basis of hearsay.  He will treat the poor fairly, and make right decisions for the downtrodden of the earth.  He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and order the wicked to be executed. 
Justice will be like a belt around his waist, integrity will be like a belt around his hips.  

A wolf will reside with a lamb, and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;  an ox and a young lion will graze together, as a small child leads them along.  A cow and a bear will graze together,  their young will lie down together. 

A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.  A baby will play over the hole of a snake; over the nest of a serpent an infant will put his hand. They will no longer injure or destroy on my entire royal mountain.  For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty, just as the waters completely cover the sea.