Since reading the Bible through in my teens, I have hoped that God might at least raise my pets. Most everyone believes there will be animals in the new earth, so why not the animals I loved in the old earth? Now in my forties, I have a great deal of confidence that I will see my beloved pets raised. God is able and I can't imagine any reason He would not do so. It's just the kind of thing He would do and it would seem like an obvious and simple part of wiping every tear from my eyes.
I may be having children in the next few years and I've just been thinking about this lately. People "lie" to their kids and tell them their dead animals will be in heaven, but just in time, I've come to the point where I can say they'll live again and fully believe it. I don't know about all the animals that have ever lived, but I certainly think that the animals loved by His children will live again. Since we will have cats and dogs, why would he avoid the cats and dogs which we have loved and make entirely new and different ones? When I have a child and his pet dies, what would I do if I had a choice? Giving a bereaved child a new, healthy pet may comfort him, but not fully. Raising the old one would do the trick 100%.
“For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.” ---Romans 8:19
Why, as some do, take this scripture to entirely represent the longing and waiting of the purely inanimate portion of creation, when we see so much creation consciously sharing in our suffering with the ability to long for something better? These animals suffer because man has fallen; we are to blame for this, they are not. What more just than making this right again? And what more complete redemption can there be for mankind than for God to set right again all that we have made wrong as we properly take up our dominion over creation and keep it as God intended?
“But,” you say, “this is more than scripture tells us.” I will return that there are some strong hints and perhaps God would be pleased that we are bright enough to infer a few things from the knowledge of His character. Most of Christendom does so about at least one other thing. Most Christians believe that those without faith in Christ at their deaths will be consigned to hell, but it is unthinkable to most that a toddler who dies will meet such a fate. Thus, there are theories about “the age of accountability” and so on. Where is such assurance given in scripture? It is believed because we know enough of God’s character to infer it.
I submit to you that God wishes you to know and trust His character much better.
--Ed.
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