Matthew 12:12 “How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

The Pharisees had just asked Jesus a question about the Law of Moses, specifically intending to trip Him up. Jesus didn’t decline to answer, but He gave the reasoning behind the answer before He said it, just as He did when asked about divorce a little later. (Matthew 19:3-6) Many things Jesus said were shocking to His immediate hearers, and often, to people in many different cultures today, but they were always God’s truth, which means they were and are unassailable. That said, part of Jesus’ answer here is sadly unpopular with some people today, and that is that a person is worth far more than a sheep. They will say that “Life is life,” just as they say, “Love is love,” in regard to LGBTQ issues. Jesus states unequivocably that such thinking is inaccurate, period. We aren’t to be needlessly cruel to animals, but placing them on the same level as human beings is wrong, period. We often hear of “fur babies,” as people cherish their pets instead of having actual children. That’s one of the reasons for the plunging birth rate, though it can also be said to be a result of it as well. We are made to cherish children, and when that emotional need isn’t met, we look for substitutes. The Pharisees in Jesus’ day were substituting legalism for genuine human concern, and Jesus was saying that was wrong. The devil doesn’t care if it’s legalism or hedonism or whatever, so long as he can get people to violate God’s value system. Laws are important, as is certainly being demonstrated in the US and Europe and around the world today, but we need to receive our values from the One who created us, and seek to reflect both His love and His righteousness.

I have always been an animal lover, to the point that I even had a pet snake for a while as a child. Even today it is rare that I encounter a dog with which I can’t quickly make friends. Even so, I think one of our neighbors was a bit shocked that I demolished our dog house the day after our most recent dog died. I valued that dog and treated it well, but not to the level of a human being. There are animal rights activists who will do things that actively endanger human beings in order to protect or “liberate” animals. I feel sorry for them in their delusions. I am to value everything in God’s creation, but know that it is only for human beings that Christ died, and order my value system accordingly. A physically or mentally handicapped person is as valuable as an Einstein, Elon Musk, or Olympic athlete, and I must not forget it. Likewise, no material treasure on earth can come up to that value. People mistreat other people, even to the point of killing them, for material gain all the time. Welfare fraud is part of that, not to mention getting people killed for insurance payouts. I am to seek God for His values and follow them, so that I may be faithful as His child.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Help me live according to Your values indeed, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!