Certain people have asked me, “what does God think about me as a pastor, hunting?” To be honest, I think God is pleased with those who choose to provide for their families, and do it in such away that brings glory to Him as Savior and Creator.
1 Corinthians 10:31 says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” (NIV)
I believe God has given every person the right to provide for their family whether it’s going and buying beef, chicken, fish, or pork from the store or going out and harvesting venison or any other wild game. We have been given a responsibility to provide for our families. Yes, I said a responsibility, Unfortunately there are some who are not responsible in their hunting by killing to kill and not to eat.
Genesis 9:1-3 says “Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will fall on all the beasts of the earth, and on all the birds in the sky, on every creature that moves along the ground, and on all the fish in the sea; they are given into your hands. 3 Everything that lives and moves about will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything.”
God has given the green light on hunting. So I see no reason to stop if I’m willing to eat what I shoot. As a man of God, I always try looking at everything through God’s eyes, which isn’t always easy to do. But I see Hunting with a purpose to provide for our loved ones something God would do Himself, in fact He does just that.
Genesis 3:21 “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.” Here we see God killing an animal for its skin. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that God was the first hunter. I’m just saying when it came to providing for His children, He was there. At this time man was vegetarian and didn’t eat meat, so there was no reason to hunt, but as soon as man sinned they felt shame, so by their own efforts Adam and Eve tried to cover up their own disobedience with clothes made of fig leaves. However this was not good enough for God.
God Himself clothed Adam and Eve because they could now no longer walk before God in innocence (Genesis 3:8). Man-made coverings were by implication pronounced ineffective in dealing with sin. But what was the origin of Gods provision? (Animals)
So there it is, my two cents.
God has given you and I responsibility. What you do with it is between you and God. Hunt responsibly.