What place do animals have in the world?
Have you ever thought about that? I love animals; I always have. When I worked at a pet store, I enjoyed caring for the birds, reptiles, and amphibians. On adoption days, it was hard to get my work done because of all the dogs and cats to play with.
But have you ever stopped to think about the function of animals in the world? What do they do? Why are they here? How should we treat them? Why do they sometimes seem to act like us? Why do we want to take them in as pets?
Animals have a special place in many people’s hearts. And it seems they always have. Perhaps this is because they have always shared our spaces. Maybe it’s because we use them for food and labor and appreciate them.
Regardless of the reason, we know how they got here. We read in Genesis 1:24-25:
And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 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.
Genesis 1:24-25, NIV
Picking up the pattern for most creation, this day opens with the divine command of “And God said…” Unlike the vegetation produced on Day Five, animals are called “living creatures.” We define plants as alive, but regardless of that scientific designation, we can agree that animals are alive in a different way than plants or microscopic organisms.
And when the Lord created these animals, it wasn’t using our scientific nomenclature but something far more practical: domesticated and wild. These are still rather generic and demonstrate that every animal is covered by this creative act of the Lord.
While I point out nearly every week that Genesis 1 wasn’t written thousands of years ago to combat modern evolution, there is still a direct affront to modern evolution. All these animals were produced (and reproduce) “to their kinds.” This means these animals didn’t change or evolve from one type (or kind) to another. They were created, and they recreate within the boundaries the Lord gave them.
The Lord’s summary of His creative work on Day Six is also like other days: it was good. The Hebrew word we translate as “good” means having desirable or positive qualities. It is complete, whole, beautiful, and well.
We are not to worship nature, but we can certainly see animals and marvel at the Lord’s creativity. Our discovery of DNA tells us how much these animals have in common. We have much in common with them, too, but we’ll get to that. This shouldn’t be a surprise because they have a common creator. There’s an order and balance to the Lord’s universe—certainly at this point (before Genesis 3).
Look at all the animals around us. Look at how diverse they are. We have changed some breeds (dogs, for example), but see how beautiful the animals are. See more of the handiwork of our Creator.
Next week, we’ll see the pinnacle of the Lord’s creative act.
Life Meets Theology 