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Animal Rights

People who harm and torture animals for the shear bizarre pleasure it gives them, are unwell mentallyand spiritually [1]. They aren’t unwell, however, simply because a group of psychiatrists says so, or because PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) deems such people the scum of the earth. The Bible, in fact, is clear: animals, big and small, were created by God. The whole creation belongs to Him. God says He takes care of the birds of the air and the beasts of the fields. If God takes care of them, then that must mean He thinks they are important to His creation. Animals must have a purpose on this earth otherwise God wouldn’t have created them. Therefore, the unreasonable, cruel and unusual treatment of animals is simply ungodly.

But the question some people have been debating for years is whether or not animals have—or should have—rights. To answer this question we need to start at the very beginning, in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. There is something God told Adam and Eve, as recorded in the first chapter, that is worth noting here:

Then God said,…let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. Genesis 1: 26

Two verses later, God blesses Adam and Eve, and again repeats his command for them to have dominion over “every living thing that moves on the earth” (Gen. 1:28). The Hebrew word translated dominion means, “to tread down, rule, and reign.”[2]

In the ninth chapter of Genesis, after the flood, God blesses Noah and his sons and tells them that all animals on the earth shall fear them. God, essentially, reiterates the very thing He told Adam and Eve. God goes on to explain His specific purpose for giving Noah and his family animals:

. . . They are given into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given all things, even as the green herbs. Genesis 9:2, 3

One of God’s main purposes for creating animal life was to provide nourishment for the human beings He had created in His own image. Human beings are to rule and reign over animal life, not the other way around. It is not ungodly for someone to raise chickens, cows, or goats, for example, for the purpose of feeding people. God ordained it to be so. Yet, if a Christian chooses to adhere to a vegetarian lifestyle, that too, is ok. According to God, He gave plant life to be used as food, as well. Whether someone eats meat or doesn’t eat meat, should not cause division or contention among Christians.[3]

Here is what is an abomination to God: human beings placing the value of animal life above human life. Animals do not have rights in the same way that humans have rights, because the Creator never gave animals equal footing with mankind. God created them for food, He says we should care for animals, and He even says animals should be given rest.[4]

However, God’s Word is clear: in no way, shape, or form should animal life be given preference over, or be considered no different than, human beings. The freedom with which people in our society refer to their pets as their “children” is something that is becoming increasingly popular and rarely receives a critical word. Whether it be in the privacy of their own homes, or in front of cameras and microphones in the media, people have become extremely comfortable—and even proud—to say they consider their house-trained animals part of their family, and no different from a child. [5]

Some people won’t even consider having a child without first keeping a house pet—aving a pet, they argue, is a good and necessary training ground for enduring the rigors of caring for a baby. Such non-biblical, heretical thinking is only one example of human beings adding to the Word of God, and attempting to reorder God’s flawless creation. Such thinking is just as shameful as someone who believes there is no difference between a newborn baby and a lab rat. [6]

Animals have a God-given purpose on this earth. Let’s honor God’s order, and keep animal life in its designated place.

Copyright 2008 All Rights Reserved “The Truth of the Matter: 101″ (Excerpt)