Reflecting God's Kingdom in how we treat animals

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=110 BGCOLOR="#999933" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="040006e0ddwnfv.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFFFFF" FACE="Arial" ><B>Sage - Oxford's Christian Environmental Group</B></FONT><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#FFFFCC" FACE="Arial" ><B>     |    </B></FONT><B> </B><A HREF="index.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Sage Oxfords Christian Environmental Gr"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> Jennifer Brown's Bible Studies- Number 1</div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=190 BGCOLOR="#CCCC99" TEXT="#080000" background="041bec00esnpes.png"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="8c99dd10.jpg" border=0 width="157" height="209" ALT="Horse" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=370 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>Reflecting God's Kingdom in how we treat animals</B></div> <div> <B>Introduction</B></div> <div> Unfortunately, many people see animals as nothing more than a resource: a source of food, material for clothing, a form of labour or worse. Certainly there are biblical examples of animals being used for some of these purposes, John the Baptist wearing clothes made of camel skins, for example, and God permitting the eating of meat following the flood story in Genesis. But just because God has permitted it does not mean that it is what he desires, or that this is representative of what life will be (or is) in God's Kingdom. As Christians, we have a responsibility to seek God's will and to live by it, and this includes how we respond to issues of animal welfare.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Bible Study</B></div> <div> Although it is best to look at biblical passages in context, rather than looking only at isolated verses, it is sometimes necessary to look at individual passages in the light of other passages from other parts of scripture (reading Old and New Testament verses together, for instance) to gain a sense of the `big picture' on an issue. The passages below have been selected to enable us to consider what the relationship should be between humans and animals in God's Kingdom.</div> <bR> <div> Read these passages:</div> <div> Genesis 1.1-31</div> <div> Genesis 9.9-16</div> <div> Exodus 23.4-5,12</div> <div> Psalm 84.3-4</div> <div> Jonah 4.11</div> <bR> <div> What do the above passages tell us about God's attitude towards animals? What do they say about what our attitude towards animals should be?</div> <bR> <div> Read these passages:</div> <div> Genesis 9.2-3</div> <div> Isaiah 11.6-9</div> <div>  </div> <div> What do these passages tell us about the contrast between the world in its `fallen' state and the world as it will be in God's Kingdom?</div> <bR> <div> Think about what we mean when we say in the Lord's Prayer, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6.10). Are we taking part in God's Kingdom, as described in Isaiah 11.6-9, in our treatment of animals? What about our treatment of one another, particularly the poor and those in developing nations? Do we live in such a way that we do not hurt or destroy?</div> <bR> <div> How can we live in a way that shows God that we mean what we say when we say the Lord's Prayer?</div> <bR> <div> <B>Conclusion</B></div> <div> The relationships that currently exist between humanity and animals, and indeed between predatory and prey animals, are not necessarily a reflection of what those relationships are or will be in God's Kingdom. As Christians, we pray that God's Kingdom will come to exist here on the earth, and we are called to help bring that about by living as much as possible as though God's Kingdom was already here. Our relationships with one another, with other peoples of the world and with animals are probably the best measure of how seriously we are addressing that task.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Prayer</B></div> <div> Lord, God, we want to be part of your Kingdom. We want to live in that place where the wolf and the lamb, the leopard and the kid can all live together in peace. Where no-one hurts or destroys another. Give us the strength and the courage to live a Kingdom life; and let your Kingdom come on the earth. Amen. </div> <bR> <div> <B>Some useful references</B></div> <div> Regenstein LG. Replenish the Earth. SCM Press, London, UK, 1991.</div> <div> Linzey A. Animal Theology. SCM Press, London, UK, 1994.</div> <bR> <div> © Jennifer Brown (2006)</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>