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? - Matthew 6:26
In this oft quoted verse by Jesus, the subject He was addressing was man’s worries and anxieties. What to eat and what to wear are often concerns that can eat away at our self-assurance. But what I choose to address in this verse is the last question posed by Christ. Referring to the birds of the air, He implies emphatically that we humans are of greater value than the simple birds of the air. Christ reiterates the value of humanity compared to the sparrows again in both Matthew 10:31 and then confirms His words in the Gospel of Luke - “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” - Luke 12:6-7.
My point in drawing attention to these words of Christ is to declare the value of human life over that of other earthly life forms whether they be animal, insect, or otherwise. Christ Himself makes it clear that mankind is of greater value than any other life on earth! The Gospel was written for man, not animals. Salvation has been purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ for man, not for animals! Now, that being said, allow me to perhaps assuage the feelings of those who ostensibly hold that animal lives are as equally valuable as human lives and in some cases of greater value than human lives. Both views are in error.
One of God’s initial commands to man in the garden of Eden was to be a good steward of all the earth. “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.’” - Genesis 1:28 God certainly didn’t intend for man to pollute the waters and the skies of the earth, nor did He intend for man to go on a ecocidal vendetta with the intent of killing every animal and plant life form on the planet. So yes! Trophy hunting for animals would go against the laws of God. The random killing of animal life for sheer pleasure is not an example of good stewardship. Neither is the abuse of or deliberate neglect of the health and safety of animal life. So the concerns of “animal lovers” are legitimate concerns, and should be taken seriously when parsed in reasonable terms. However, there is no violation of God’s law when the killing of animals is done to provide food for human beings, regardless of what PETA or any other animal rights activists say. “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.” - Genesis 9:2-3.
There are many reasons to protect animal and plant life on our planet, with sustainability being one of the primary. But human life, precious human life, starting with conception and ending with death at God’s chosen time and place take precedence over all other life forms. This precludes and proscribes infanticide, homicide, genocide, and all their murderous variations! “You shall not murder.” - Exodus 20:13. All live matter, but human lives matter more to our Heavenly Creator.
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