Humans and Pets

“When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body. Not all flesh is the same: People have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another.” (I Corinthians 15:37-39 NIV)

In 2011, Americans spent more than 60 billion dollars on their pets.  In recent years, pet insurance, pet spas, and businesses allowing pets on their premises have become increasingly common.  It makes sense as more people refer to their pets as their children and include them in family pictures and even in their wills.  

Just this week, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) tweeted the following on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: "If we are 2 honor Dr. King today, we must continue 2 seek justice for EVERYONE who is disadvantaged"  The organization has long sought to equate animals with humans.  A number of years ago after a truck carrying live fish crashed along a California highway, it petitioned the government to erect a memorial in memory of the fish killed that day.  

In explaining to the Corinthian Christians the resurrection of the dead, Paul says there is a distinction between humans and animals, and that it is a God-given distinction.  Today, that distinction is increasingly blurred. Many have elevated the status of animals to that of humans, and sometimes even higher.  

The danger in this is we lose sight of the order of creation as the Lord made it.  In all that He created, God gave humans supremacy (Genesis 1:24-28), and He created humans in His own image.  To demonstrate loving respect for animals is a good thing, but to elevate them to the status of human beings is a distortion of God’s will.  

Today, recognize that God gave us animals as a source of pleasure.  He did not intend them to be put on the same level as human beings.  We are the only ones created in His image.  Thus, the needs of humans always take precedence over the needs of animals, whether it be the baby in a womb, a refugee from a war zone, or a neighbor next door.  

© Jim Musser 2014