"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord." Psalm 150:6
Hmmm....all animals have breath, therefore animals praise the Lord. So, they can praise the Lord but not enter Heaven with him? That's ridiculous.
"And all flesh shall see the salvation of God" Luke 3:6
All flesh...all animals. Salvation is Heaven. Salvation means: the act of saving from harm or loss; redemption - thank you Websters dictionary.
Won't the new Heaven and the new Earth be just like the Garden of Eden? Were there not animals there? He says "the lion shall lie down with the lamb..." how can that happen if there are no animals?
"The wolf and the lamb will feed together, the lion will eat straw like the ox" Isaiah 65:25. How can that happen in the new Heaven if animals are not there do so?
I've heard "animals don't have souls." How do you know? Show me where in the bible it says either animals do NOT have souls or animals will NOT be in Heaven. You can't. Who are we to LIMIT God and his vast expanse of love and his kingdom? Perhaps they don't have the same kind of soul that we do, but does that mean they don't have one at all? Who are you to say so? Just because they cannot speak English, we know what they think? Will there not be trees and streets of gold and castles in Heaven - they don't have souls...yet they are talked about in Heaven....GOD MADE the animals....everything he made is GOOD and PRECIOUS. Why would he not want them in Heaven with him?
I've heard "animals can't confess their sin and ask for forgiveness like we must do." How do you know?? Who are you to say Fido doesn't talk to God every day just like you do? How are we to know what kind of communication animals have with their creator? Who are we to limit that ability? Who are you to say that Fido does NOT have conversations with his creator? Perhaps they have their own set of 10 commandments that we don't even have a clue about and their own bible written in their language? Who are we to limit their spirituality?
Who among us has not had the supreme honor of being loved and cared for by an animal? Who can love an animal and not know that they know what pure and true love really is? They would lay down their lives for us in a blink of an eye, they are there for us unconditionally and despite how badly they are treated. Why would God allow us to connect so intimately and bond so tightly with animals to deny us eternal glory with them in Heaven? I cannot even imagine a possibility that a loving and just God would not include his animals in his perfect Heaven. I have prayed and talked to God many times in my life about if animals are in Heaven. I believe with my entire heart, just as strongly as I believe in God himself, that animals DO GO TO HEAVEN. I know with confidence my Abbie is there waiting for me. I know that Jesus welcomed her home and told her she took wonderful care of me and accomplished her job here on Earth very very well.
I know others will continue to argue against it, but why? Why do you so want animals excluded in Heaven?? Why would this be a bad thing to believe in? Why would you not want all of God's perfect creation in Heaven with us when we spend eternity worshiping our Lord? I think Abbie will be right there with me, as we BOTH bow down before OUR creator and worship him together.
No, the bible does not word for word say "animals will be in Heaven." But it does not say "animals are not in Heaven" either. So we ask Jesus. Then you make your own decision with him as your guide.