I don’t typically like posting about things that are controversial, but this issue has just been on my mind and heart: The gorilla that was shot and killed to rescue a 3-4 year old boy who climbed through security and fell into the gorilla habitat.
If anyone knows anything about how I feel about my dog, you know that I love animals. Fresly was my “baby”. I still miss him. Honestly, I still hope he's okay and that his new family is taking good care of him. And in subtle was I’ve done what so many are doing now. There was a movie that came out many years ago when some threat to earth was vaporizing life. The trailer showed a dog being vaporized and… it bothered me. More than when the same trailer showed the same thing happening to humans. And then the fact that it bothered me bothered me. How could watching the death of an animal be more disturbing than watching the death of a human?! That is not okay! And that’s where many people are today.
I’ve been shocked at how many counts of verbal homicide I’ve read through today. I don’t normally read many comments because on issues like this, it’s just reading a lot of anger and hate, and I’d just rather not! But I’ve been thinking about and listening to teachings on the death of Jesus and the cross and sin and our need for a Savior and how He is our only hope. So reading this verbal massacre struck me. And it struck me that a week ago, all this malice and hatred and anger and murder were in people’s hearts, hiding. This incident only made those things come out for a segment of the population. And apart from Jesus, that is in each of us, given the “right” conditions. And God sees it all, has seen it all, all the time, even if it’s hidden. It was painful to read, at best, the slander against the mother (whom it seems may have been smiling at a camera, with her son at her side, both posing for a picture, and for a few seconds was distracted from her son’s movements due to the picture taking — kids are lightening fast!), and calls for death and various forms of torture and just horrible, horrible comments at worst. Murder, proudly streaming from the hearts of so many. Apart from Jesus, we’re all murderers, and set ourselves up as all-knowing expert, jury, and judge, convinced that our self-righteous sentence is justice. We are horribly deceived.
The value of human life and animal life has been a large part of this discussion, many thinking human and animal life is equal, or even that animal life is more valuable because they’re helpless. There is a godly component to valuing the earth and animal life — one of the tasks God gave us when He created us and what we see now was to care for the animals and for the earth. That is godly and part of God’s design. But it was never to be at the expense of humans — of men, women, and children.
I must say emphatically, that one human life, any one, is of more value and worth than every animal that’s ever lived for two reasons.
1.) Men and women were created in the image of God Himself. Animals were not. We, astonishingly, are the only beings in all of creation that actually reflect the character and attributes of God. Some of these things are seen in our capacity to love, experience a wide range of emotions, imagine, and create beyond what any other life on earth can. (Part of the whole “fall” issue is that we often don’t reflect those attributes well — as in this case with all the angry comments.)
2.) God became a human being, Jesus, and then died the death penalty that we all deserved. We were all hateful, angry, murderers at heart, all deserving the death sentence (as so many have said this mother, and even her son, deserve), but God Himself took our death penalty upon Himself. God values humans, you, more than He values protecting His own feelings, comfort, and life. He didn’t become a squirrel or dog or horse or gorilla. He became a human. And He didn’t die for those animals either. He died for humans. And if there were only one human, you, that would have been enough reason for Him to die in your place — only yours. Father God values human life at the price of His Son Jesus. God's estimation of your value is His own life. That is infinite value. That is why all the animals to have ever lived will together never outweigh the value of one human life. And when we come to Him, acknowledging the various forms of hate and violence within ourselves, accepting His death in our place, and deciding to believe what He says, He can somehow take the worst of us and make us into the most gracious, kind, joyful, patient, loving people the world has ever seen.
Finally, I would like to point out that Satan has been trying to destroy humans since we were first created. He was the one who tempted Adam and Eve, twisting God’s words and saying death wouldn’t be the result of disobeying and eating the fruit the Lord said not to. The Bible also says that this enemy of ours, who has wanted us all dead from the beginning, is out to steal, kill, and destroy and that his target is humans. Not birds or fish or rhinos or elephants or zebras or gorillas — but *us*! To in any way say that the life of an animal is more valuable than any human at all is to agree and take sides with the one who wants you dead, and to say that the One who created you created trash.
God deeply loves all of His creation. But you, YOU, He wants to call “my child”. He cares for everything He has created, but you, YOU, He wants to call “my beloved”. He says of the sparrows and lilies that He feeds them and cares for them. But for humanity He uses the language of Father to child and Husband to wife. And He is a very, very good Father and a very, very good Husband.
And, by they way, if you know Him and love Him, when you enter into life with Him in the home He's prepared in Heaven for those who love Him, if you're not too wrapped up in experiencing the greatest love you've ever experienced, you can probably ask Him if Harambe the gorilla can be a part of life in Heaven. I wouldn't be surprised if He says yes. I've already told Him I want Fresly there with me. Even though I'm pretty sure I'll be completely enamored with Him. He's already captivated me.
