What is the value of a species? As our partners in Australia help friends and neighbours recover from the devastating bushfires, and Australian partners overseas worry about friends and family, communities in affected areas have also been very concerned about wildlife. A government analysis estimates nearly 50 threatened species have lost more than 80% of their habitat.
In my local paper this week a companion story profiled nine species of mammal, bird, fish and amphibian that have gone extinct since 1980. Scientists say we are in a “mass extinction event” caused by us. How should believers in Jesus interpret this?
Psalm 104 says “How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.”
“Psalm 104 says “How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” “
If God made each species in wisdom, then surely it is unwise to let any die out. In truth, we do not know how the ecosystems that support life on earth (including human life) may unravel as species disappear. Psalm 104 also says “May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works”. This verse reminds us that God’s glory is known through his creation. His works and His Word are God’s two great testimonies. We wouldn’t imagine allowing pages of the Bible to be lost forever, and yet we are watching as God’s other great testimony is succumbing to fire, land conversion to agriculture and, increasingly, climate change. To pray with believers in Australia, visit https://australia.arocha.org/news/australian-response-to-the-bushfire-crisis/.
