Bible Reading: Proverbs 11-12; 1 Corinthians 15:33-58
Memory verse: “A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” Proverbs 12:10 (KJV)
Do you know that God cares for all His creations? He looks at how you take care of the plants around you, the animals and how you see people in general. God cares about His creations, not only for man but everything He created. Since man was given dominion over the plants and animals and every other thing He created He looks at how man handles them. A godly perspective on creation naturally leads to respect for all creatures.
God expects you to take care of his creations. Genesis 2:5 (NKJV) says, “Before any plant of the field was in the earth and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till the ground;” He did not send rain nor allowed the plants to grow because there was no man on earth then to take care of it. Whatever you have the privilege of taking care of please do it as to God for He sees your heart towards His creations.
Jesus Christ told us in Matthew 6:26-29 of how God feeds the fowls of the air and takes care of the grass of the field. He is consistent in His doings and so expects any who is following after Him and His Son, Jesus to do same. David will always be remembered for the way he cared for his father’s sheep. He put his life in the line to protect his sheep from a lion and a bear! Moreso, the bible recorded how he always kept the sheep in the hand of a keeper before going on other errands (1 Samuel 17:20,22). He cared so much for the sheep that God saw it and took him from being a Shepherd to a king.
Today’s memory verse reminds us that while God created animals for our use He expects us to care for these resources and not to abuse them. How you handle your animal says a lot about you. Solomon connects a person’s righteousness to their treatment of animals, “A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast:” Proverbs 12:10a (KJV). A righteous man will treat his animals well, feed them properly and care for them like the good shepherd does.
Action Point: Do you have pets around you or you know someone who does? Remind them of God’s perspective towards these animals and act accordingly.
Bro. Worthmore Aghanenu