His Eye Is On The Sparrow
In the past few years there has been a steady increase in the number of religious
spokesmen who try to alter Christ's teaching about God's concern for sparrows. They claim
that the text of Matthew 10:29-31 validates man's claim of dominion over the
"lesser" creatures of the earth.
That interpretation has been popularized as the issue of animals as beloved
creatures of God, has come to the fore. This understanding has challenged the self-serving
theology which taught that animals were created to be utilized by humans, in whatever ways
they thought desirable or necessary.
When Christ said to his disciples, "ye are of more value than many
sparrows," he was speaking about a fact of economic life, not about heavenly
priorities. And his followers knew precisely what he meant. In the time in which they
lived, the buying and selling of human beings was as much an accepted part of everyday
life as the buying of stocks and bonds in our own time. And although physical condition,
gender and other factors affected the sale price of humans, the value of the cheapest
slave was far beyond that of any bird. And among birds, the sparrow was the least valued
by men.
Jesus told his disciples of God's love for all creatures just after he warned them
that the world in which they would preach his Gospel was a hostile place. They would face
persecution, and even death, but they were not to be afraid: "Behold I send you forth
as sheep in the midst of wolves....beware of men for they will deliver you up to the
councils...but fear not them who can kill the body." (Matt.10:16,28)
They were to be secure in the knowledge of God's care. And in order to insure that
they understood the all-encompassing nature of Divine love, he told his disciples that
even those creatures upon which men placed little value, were loved and watched over by
God. "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the
ground apart from the will of your Father" (Matthew 10:29)
When Jesus said God was concerned about the fate of something they considered as
trivial as a sparrow, it was a remarkable revelation. Then, as now, human beings assumed
that the value they place on something is a reflection of its actual worth. And the price
men set on the buying and selling of their own species was far above that of any other:
"You are worth more than many sparrows." In the hierarchy of human values this
was, literally, true. But the scriptures warn that the value systems of men do not reflect
God's values.
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,
declares the lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than
your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts"(Isaiah 55:8,9). But as in so many other
matters, this warning is ignored. Instead of accepting the Good News that God cares about
the fate of all creatures, during their lives and at their death, there are still those
who claim that the rest of creation exists to be used by man, as he sees fit.
In the time of Jesus, the religious establishment tried to nullify his message of
God's all-encompassing love and mercy, but the spiritual truths he taught escaped their
control. The same is true today. The religious establishment tries to counteract the
growing understanding of God's concern for all His creatures. Preachers preach the message
of man's right to his dark dominion of the earth and theologians develop theories to
uphold it. But even as they do this, Christ's revelation of the unlimited nature of Divine
love brings hope to those who are discouraged or feel unworthy. Above the sound and the
fury of those who demand belief in a God whose concern is limited to certain groups, or
religions, or species, comes the sound of voices raised in gratitude for Christ's
revelation of a God whose love is unlimited.
Why should I feel discouraged..* When hope within me dies... His eye is on the
sparrow, and I know He cares for me; His eye is on the sparrow, so I know God cares for
me.*
*Copyright 1926. Now in public domain
Article copyrighted 2000 by Humane Religion and J.R. Hyland
HUMANE
RELIGION
