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Statement of Beliefs

All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the New King James Version.  Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved. Bible text from the New King James Version is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000. (see text)

Chapter Eleven:

Genesis 1:26-28 -- Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;  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 ."  So God created man in His own image;  in the image of God He created him;  male and female He created them.  Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply;  fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

Psalm 115:16 -- The heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD'S;  But the earth He has given to the children of men.

There used to be an adage that stated:  "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush."  Today, however, it is more likely that a bird in the hand would prompt an angry letter from the ASPCA, while two in the bush would be incentive enough to restrict most human activity for miles around.  We live in an askew, upside down culture that champions the rights of owls, eagles, condors and crocs while systematically murdering its own, defenseless unborn.  People lose jobs because some worrisome individuals (who, themselves, are obviously unable to secure proper employment, or else they would surely have better things to do with their time than elevate plants and animals over people) declare an entire forest off limits to industry for the sake of a few birds.

Matthew 6:26 -- (Jesus speaking) (paralleled in Luke 12:24) "Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns;  yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?"

Apparently not anymore -- at least not as far as many animal rights activists are concerned.

Matthew 10:31 -- (Jesus speaking) (paralleled in Luke 12:7) "Do not fear therefore;  you are of more value than many sparrows."

The word of God clearly shows we are more valuable than birds...

Matthew 12:12 -- (Jesus speaking) "Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep?"

...and sheep, too?!?!  So why do many today become incensed when someone wears fur or leather?  One might think from the behavior these people exhibit, that these animals were our equals, possessive of a full complement of rights, guaranteeing them life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  Where in the word of God are such rights for animals (or for people, for that matter) ever proclaimed?

Psalm 8:6-8 -- (of David) You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands;  You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen -- Even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.

No, I don't see any mention of "animal rights" here.

Genesis 9:2-3 -- (the LORD speaking to Noah and his sons) "And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea.  They are given into your hand.  Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you.  I have given you all things, even as the green herbs.

That seems pretty inclusive to me:  "green herbs", "every moving thing that lives", "all things".

Genesis 3:21 -- Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.

Oh oh!  Don't let the animal rights people hear about this!!  And, for that matter, better not let them know about all the animal sacrifices demanded by God from Genesis through Malachi;  I'm sure they'd protest most vociferously.  Also, you may wish to try keeping it under your hat about Jesus driving the demons out of a man and into some pigs (chiefly Matthew 8:28-34, Mark 5:1-7, Luke 8:26-37), and His causing a fig tree to wither (chiefly Matthew 21:18-20, Mark 11:12-14, 20-21).  Such blatant disregard for these poor, helpless, defenseless pigs and fig tree would not go over well in many liberal circles today, where the only poor, helpless and defenseless creatures it's acceptable to ignore and harm are their own unborn children.

In Exodus 21:28, the LORD God instructs Moses that a bull that gores a man or woman to death, must itself be stoned to death.  The same passage also expounds human accountability for the conduct of animals they possess (chiefly Exodus 21:29).  In Genesis 9:5, the LORD relates to Noah and his sons that anything that takes the blood of a man will be held accountable -- whether man or animal.  Nowhere does the word of God even imply that men are to be held accountable for the blood of animals with their own blood.  Quite the contrary, God's word clearly evidences that men are of far greater worth than animals.

Leviticus 24:17-18 -- (the LORD speaking) "'Whoever kills any man shall surely be put to death.  Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, animal for animal.'"

The taking of human life requires the life of the one who took it.  The taking of an animal life requires only physical restitution to the one who owned the lost animal -- a replacement of the animal which had been lost.  And, in case anyone missed it, or hadn't been paying attention, the LORD God repeated it a few verses later:  "'Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a man must be put to death.'" (Leviticus 24:21)(NIV)

Clearly, the word of God teaches proper stewardship of the earth and that which dwells upon it, but today the responsibility has been taken to the extreme in that, in many cases, the man-given rights of plants and animals have supplanted the God-given order of creation.  The twenty- second chapter of Deuteronomy, verses six and seven, contains possibly the best illustration of man's responsibility to the other life around him.  In this passage, neither extreme animal protection, nor extreme animal depletion is advocated, but rather a proper balance of both.  One may take the young, but be sure to let the mother go.  It is the degree of responsibility by which man's stewardship of this earth will be measured:  Proper use without abuse.

Indeed, the life on this planet, both plant and animal, was given to man for his use -- whether as food, clothing or any other beneficial utilization.  It is a gift and a responsibility from the LORD our God, and one over which He is ultimately sovereign.

Revelation 8:7-12 -- The first angel sounded:  And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth.  And a third of  the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.  Then the second angel sounded:  And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.  And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. Then the third angel sounded:  And a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.  The name of the star is Wormwood.  A third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the water, because it was made bitter. Then the fourth angel sounded:  And a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them were darkened.  A third of the day did not shine, and likewise the night.

I've occasionally wondered how environmentalists react to passages like those quoted above from the Apostle John's endtime prophecy of the beginnings of the earth's destruction.  A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up...a third of the sea turned into blood, a third of the living creatures in the sea died...a third of the waters turned bitter....  It clearly isn't an environmentalist's dream -- nor anyone else's, I would imagine -- but it's God's plan, and it's coming -- perhaps soon.  No amount of preservation will prevent or delay it.  God doesn't respect the endangered species list or clean water act.  He made everything, and He's going to ultimately destroy them, despite man's best efforts to maintain them.

Why do I mention this?  Does this eventual and ultimate destruction of this planet, in any way, relieve us of our obligation to properly care for it?  Not at all.  I mention this only to place the subject in perspective, as too many today act as if what he have must remain intact at any cost, and that no human sacrifice is too great a cost to pay for an insurance of that integrity.

This world and all that's in it will soon pass away, and that perspective, above all others, must counterbalance any and all decisions made regarding its use.  Eventually, perhaps tomorrow, assuredly soon, it will all pass away.  The earth is transitory.  Mankind is not.  While it is our responsibility to properly care for the creation which God has entrusted us with, we must never lose sight that these things were created for us, and not we for them.  As consistently shown throughout the word of God, mankind is of far greater value than any plant or animal.  Those who would lead us to believe otherwise speak neither truth nor reason.

Chapter 10

Chapter 12