Do Animals Go to Heaven?

The Bible does not specifically speak to this subject. However, it does not say that there won't be animals in heaven. In fact, there is probably good reason to believe that there will be based upon the fact that when God created a perfect world in Genesis, a part of His creation included animals. So to reason that there will be animals when God re-creates the world (2 Peter 3:3-13) is not such a stretch.

However, that being a possibility, the Bible teaches that only human beings were created in God's image and have a soul that lives on after physical death. This is why the Bible places infinite value on human life and why God's law in the Old Testament demanded the death penalty for the murder of another human life. Animals were not created in God's image and do not, as such, have an eternal soul. Because human beings are created in God's image, we possess a sanctity of life unlike any other living thing in all creation. This is one reason why human sacrifice was strictly forbidden in the Old Testament. However, under the Old Covenant, animal sacrifice was God's prescribed way--for animals have no living soul.

Animals are a wonderful gift from God. They bring much joy into our lives, and that is part of God's design. I am thankful for the "pets" that I have had in my life and for the wonderful memories of them. My life has been enriched because of those experiences. However, I do not anticipate seeing those same pets again in heaven as I do friends and family members who have passed from this life to the next. As a personal opinion, I do believe that there will be animals in heaven and that we will enjoy pets who never grow old, never get sick, never go blind, never make a mess where they're not supposed to (!), and who never die. Our enjoyment of animals in heaven will be full, complete, and infinitely satisfying . . . as a part of God's design.

God's Firstborn

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” Colossians 1:15 (NIV).

This is one of the great verses in the Bible which teaches us about Jesus Christ. It is a part of a wonderful passage on Jesus, but this one verse often gets a lot of questions. The Greek word for “image” is the word from which we get our English word “icon.” It means, “copy” or “likeness.” Jesus Christ is the perfect image-the exact likeness—of God and is in the very form of God, and has been so from all eternity. By describing Jesus in this manner, Paul emphasizes that Jesus is both the representation and manifestation of God. Thus, Jesus is fully God in every way.

The Greek word for “firstborn” can refer to one who was born first chronologically, but most often refers to pre-eminence in position, or rank. In both Greek and Jewish culture, the firstborn was the ranking son who had received the right of inheritance from his father, whether he was born first or not. It is used of Israel who, not being the first nation, was however the preeminent nation (cf. Exodus 4:22; Jeremiah 31:9). Firstborn in this context clearly means highest in rank, not first created for several reasons: 1) Jesus cannot be both “first begotten” and “only begotten” (cf. John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9); 2) when the “firstborn” is one of a class, the class is in the plural form (cf. v. 18; Romans 8:29), but “creation,” the class here, is in a singular form; 3) if Paul was teaching that Jesus was a created being, he was agreeing with the heresy he was writing to refute; and 4) it is impossible for Jesus to be both created, and the Creator of everything (v. 16). Thus Jesus is the firstborn in the sense that he has the preeminence (v. 18) and possesses the right of inheritance “over all creation” (cf. Hebrews 1:2; Revelation 5:1-7, 13). He existed before the creation and is exalted in rank above it. As supreme over all creation, Jesus has all the priority and authority ... including over the spirit world (see Colossians 1:16).

Colossians 1:15 is a bedrock verse of Christianity. In fact the whole passage from verse 15 to verse 20 is perhaps the fullest description of Jesus' authority and divinity in the Bible. As a Christian, I find it encouraging to know that I'm not just following a prophet of old or a great moral teacher from ancient times. I'm following the God who wrapped himself in human flesh: Jesus Christ.

I'm curious, what implications do you think these things have on those of us who claim to follow Jesus Christ? I welcome your comments....

Credit: some of the above thoughts have been adapted from John MacArthur

The Unforgivable Sin

You’ve probably heard of “the unforgivable sin” before. Does such a sin exist? If so, what is it and how can you avoid it? You can find “the unforgivable sin” in three places: Luke 12:10, Mark 3:28-29, and in Matthew 12:31-32. In the latter Jesus says, “And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” Luke 12:10 classifies the sin as “an eternal sin.”

The religious leaders accused Jesus of blasphemy, but ironically they were the guilty ones when they looked Jesus in the face and accused him of being possessed by Satan. The unforgivable sin means attributing to Satan the work that the Holy Spirit accomplishes (see Matthew 12:22-30). Thus it is a deliberate and ongoing rejection of the Holy Spirit’s work and even of God himself. It indicates a deliberate and irreversible hardness of heart. The sin is unforgivable not because it is worse than any other, but because the person who is guilty of it will never ask for or seek forgiveness. Why? Because the person who rejects the prompting of the Holy Spirit removes himself/herself from the only force that can lead him or her to repentance and restoration to God. A person who fears having committed “the unforgivable sin” shows by their very concern that he/she has not sinned in this way.

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A Prayer to Begin Your Day

I like reading books on leadership and church development and I like reading books that speak to the soul. One of my favorite authors for the latter is Richard Foster. He has written several books that speak to spiritual formation. He writes with both simplicity and a sense of the profound. His book entitled Prayer: Finding the Heart's True Home speaks to me deeply. Each chapter is on a different aspect or kind of prayer and each chapter ends with a sample prayer. Here's one you might find helpful as you begin your day tomorrow. It comes from the chapter entitled, "The Prayer of Relinquishment."

Today, O Lord, I yield myself to You. May Your will be my delight today. May You have perfect sway in me. May your love be the pattern of my living. I surrender to You my hopes, my dreams, my ambitions. Do with them what You will, when You will, as You will. I place into Your loving care my family, my friends, my future. Care for them with a care that I can never give. I release into Your hands my need to control, my craving for status, my fear of obscurity. Eradicate the evil, purify the good, and establish Your Kingdom on earth.

For Jesus’ sake, Amen.