I was offered the chance to read and review a book called “What the Bible Says About Animals”, by Jacquelyn Wilkins, and was thrilled. The book is written in a very reader-friendly, conversational style, in which the author shares her own story and viewpoint, based on numerous verses of Scripture. The book resonated with me immediately because of my own Christian beliefs and literal interpretation of the Bible, and also because of my love for animals and caring for animals my entire life.
From a young age, I questioned whether animals would go to Heaven when they die? When our dog Hank ran into a sickle bar mower and had to be put down, I was only 5 or 6 years old. In answer to my sibling’s tear-filled questions, my parents reminded us that God promises us no tears or sorrow in Heaven. They comforted us by saying if it took Hank being there in Heaven someday to make us eternally and completely happy, then they were sure God would have him there. And so, as a child, I believed.
But it was not until I read this book, “What the Bible Says About Animals” that I could understand more to support that theory. The author shows by quoting Scripture that animals do have a soul, they have a spirit, and they are eternal beings that were created by God to direct our thoughts and hearts back to Him. The purpose of existence of animals on this earth mirrors our own: to bring God glory through His perfect creation.
I have had a beloved horse die….three times now in my lifetime, and faced some tough internal questions about why God would allow that to happen. The first one was a beautiful black yearling colt that got an irrepairable leg injury when I was just sixteen. He had his whole life ahead of him, and I had such high hopes for his future, and planned to train him myself….but he died. Heartbroken, I prayed and asked God why. All I could think of was that the colt had done nothing wrong, and I blamed myself for the negligence that led to his death. But God led my thoughts to His Son, a perfect sinless man who took the sins of the world on His shoulders and died on a cross for no fault of His own. And the death of my colt brought me closer to understanding God.
The author of this book has laid out verse by verse proof that God loves animals even more than we do. And if He created them, cares for them, loves them so infinitely, it is with certainty that we can believe they will be in Heaven.
Our only concern then, should be to make certain that we are able to join them in Heaven someday. The Bible says that Heaven is a real place where believers will spend eternity in the presence of God our Creator. To do so, we must confess our sins, believe in our heart that Jesus died for us and was resurrected to offer us eternal life in Heaven. And our salvation is a free gift we accept by believing.
Though physical death may claim our loved pets, eternal life through Jesus Christ offers us hope for eternity, surrounding the One who loves us best, alongside the ones we loved so much on this earth.
If you would like to order your own copy of What the Bible Says About Animals, please do so. It will be a blessing to you!
