3. God is caring, not cruel.
The God of the Bible is not a cruel, distant, absentee father who simply calls His suffering children to “suck it up.” Rather, He gives us precious promises. One we talked about is from Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
When pets die, it’s a fine time to grab a promise from the Lord and let it bring you comfort. Again, for some this may seem like a petty thing to bother God with. But I want to assure you, it isn’t.
In fact, if your god doesn’t care about the tears of a child who’s lost a beloved pet, then your god is too distant. The God of the Bible doesn’t scold us for the kinds of sorrows we have. He meets us in them, whatever they may be, and points us to Himself as our only sure comfort.
4. God doesn’t tell us what happens to our pets when they die, but we can trust Him.
Anyone who’s ever had a pet die has asked, “Will I see them again?” Some give hearty assurances based merely on what they hope will come to pass. But hope is far too precious to cast it on what we desire to be true. It’s safer to base our beliefs on what God says is true. And on this issue, He just doesn’t say.
Animals don’t have the same hope humans do, because humans are distinctly different. We are created in God’s image; animals (and angels) are not (Genesis 1:26-27). Jesus came as a man to save mankind, not animals. Yet the Bible does speak about the presence of animals in the life to come (Isaiah 11:6-8
and 65:25).
I think this gives us good reason to assume that God will fill the New Heavens and New Earth with redeemed image bearers, elect angels, and all sorts of animals. Beyond this, we don’t know much. Do animals go to heaven? We don’t know for certain.
Do animals go to heaven?
It’s best to be honest and say we don’t know. I wouldn’t be surprised if God, in His generous wisdom, allows us to enjoy the company of familiar animals in glory. But we can be certain of two things.
First, if it will bring God more glory and will help us enjoy Him forever, then God will reunite us with our pets. God knows what good gifts to give us, now and for eternity. (Luke 11:13 says, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”) God knows what is good for us to have, so we can trust Him.
Second, we must guard our hearts and not allow love for pets or animals to diminish our love and trust in God. No matter how good any gift God gives us, we must remember that He is the One worthy of our devotion, not the gift itself. Pets included.
So how did I answer my children? Do animals go to heaven?
I told them we don’t know exactly what happens to our pets when they die. We don’t know for sure do animals go to heaven or not. But we do know God is good. We can trust Him, and He will do what is best.
I won’t be a bit surprised if we see our pets again in glory. If I’m wrong, that’s fine. No serious doctrine is in danger. Nor are my children’s hopes tied to anything other than God’s wisdom in dealing with His children.
This article on do animals go to heaven originally appeared here.
