The New Heaven and New Earth

March 22 Lesson #1 (part 2 of 3) 

So, Where are We Going?

The Bible tells us that God will create a new heaven and a new earth (Is 66:22; 2 Pe 3:13; Rv 21:1). The Bible is pretty specific what it means for humans, but what does this new heaven and new earth mean for animals? Does God create a place for animals in His makeover of creation? Or does God completely ignore His original creation and the animals He carefully designed and placed there? Genesis Chapter 1 verses 24-25 tells us that God not only created animals but referred to this part of His creation as something "good".... Did He do so for the short term only, knowing that death awaited His creatures; or was it an indication of His long term plans for ALL of His creation?  The Bible specifically addresses people! We need to understand God's plan for us before we can understand His plan for animals, especially, our pets. If God addressed the question of pets in the Bible, many would spend a large part of their time addressing that topic instead of evangelizing a world in need of a Savior. We need to be mindful that the Bible message is focused on saving people from the consequences of sin. Anything noted here in my personal opinion, not church doctrine. So, lets begin at the beginning...  

The Bible tells us that God considered His creation as something "good."
24 And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, according to its kind." And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good."

But, when Adam and Eve sinned by disobeying God's command not to eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, doing so turned everything upside down, and all of creation suffered serious consequences. 

Genesis 3 tells us that when Adam and Eve sinned they brought a curse upon all of creation, which included all living things. But the animals affected by this curse did not participate in Adam's sin against God, so then would they, after being declared "good" by God, suddenly suffer death and eternal extinction by no fault of their own? Again, the Bible was written for the sake of man, regarding sin and redemption. It is silent regarding the faith of animals--directly, anyway, but I believed their future is implied (again, it's an opinion, not doctrine). The intent of this blog was to look across God's creation, from the Alpha to the Omega, from the beginning to the end. It was created to look at that very question and examine the far reaching consequences of sin and God's redemption of man and His entire creation (yes, including animals). In several places, the Bible teaches that there will be a new heaven and a new earth (here are two references: 2 Peter 3:13 and Rev 21:1) that will replace the current creation corrupted by sin; which also raises the question for all animal lovers: do animals have a place in the new earth--especially, our pets? Read on and decide for yourself. Hopefully you too will be comforted by my conclusions, as I was. 

 Lesson #1 (part 2 of 3) continue by scrolling down.
"Who Are We? Where  are We Going" in the index.