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Jesus was not a vegetarian.

By Scott Tibbs, March 27, 2007

If the folks at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals want to make a theological argument regarding animal rights, they might want to spend a little more time studying Scripture and a little less time fantasizing about what their man-made "god" would do.

If God commands nonviolence toward animals, why did He command the nation of Israel to sacrifice animals to Him? In fact, when Abel sacrificed an animal from his flock and Cain "brought an offering to the LORD of the fruit of the ground", God accepted Abel's offering while rejecting Cain's. (See Genesis 4:1-5.) Later on, God provides a ram for Abraham to sacrifice in place of Abraham's son Isaac in Genesis 22:1-18.

The God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are one and the same. Hebrews 13:8 tells us that "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever." In the New Testament, we read the following passages:

  • In Acts 10:10-17, the Apostle Peter receives a vision from God, where God commands him to "kill and eat" animals that had previously been considered unclean.

  • In Matthew 15:32-38, Jesus feeds the multitude with fish.

  • John 21:1-11, Jesus performs a miracle, helping His disciples catch a huge number of fish. This was after He rose from the dead.

  • In Luke 24:41-43, Jesus ate broiled fish. This was also after He was crucified and rose from the dead, and presumably no longer needed to eat.

1 Timothy 4:1-4 warns against "doctrines of devils" and those who are "speaking lies in hypocrisy". Paul writes that "every creature of God is good". This is a clear warning against the counterfeit "Jesus" of PETA. Furthermore, Revelation 22:18 warns against adding to the Word of God.

PETA's attempt to pervert Scripture and hijack the teachings of Jesus for their own narrow and extreme agenda is not just dishonest, it is blasphemous. Christians must not be fooled by Ingrid Newkirk's doctrines of devils.