Butterflies and Faith, Part 3

“After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb…” (Revelation 7:9)

Jesus said, “ I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven...” (Matthew 8:11)

Have I told you that I love butterflies? Of course I have.

Have I told you that butterflies reflect some wonderful things about my faith? Of course I have.

Have I told you that butterflies remind me of new life? Or that the level of detail on butterflies reminds me that each of us, too, is a masterpiece created by God? Of course I have.

So let me tell another way that butterflies provide me with insight into my faith in God: the sheer variety of butterflies is mind-boggling.Scientifically, butterflies are part of the large order, “Lepidoptera,” which includes numerous subgroups; and all lepidoptera share a basic common anatomy (e.g., antennae, three-part body, compound eyes, forewings, hindwings, proboscis, etc), and so on a certain level they are the same. But scientific categories aside, I marvel at the diversity of butterflies (and moths -- they, too, fascinate me, at least when they're not eating my sweaters): size, color, shape, body characteristics, wing design… It really is amazing.

I have kept a list of the kinds butterflies and moths that I have spotted in my backyard in the past five months alone; I have chronicled 26 different kinds (If you want, send me a message on Facebook or Instagram (@revshw), and I will provide you with the detailed list). 

Every variety is beautiful and fascinating. Every variety.

It makes me wonder, If I am amazed at the sheer variety of butterflies (and moths), and I marvel at the diversity I see, then why do I consider the diversity of God’s human creation differently? Why do I look with suspicion at humans who are unfamiliar to me, or who have different skin color, or who are shaped differently than what we might consider to be “normal”?

Shouldn’t I look at every different human being and rejoice at the inherent beauty? Of course I should. So should you. All of us should.

My appreciation for the variety of butterflies reminds me that I need to appreciate the diversity of human beings that inhabit the earth. After all, not only do we have the same basic anatomical and biological characteristics, but even more, we’re all created in the image of God.

Jesus said, “Many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” When he said that, he was driving home the point that citizenship in the kingdom is larger than most of us thinks it is; it includes us, but it includes way more than us. It even includes people you and I might think unworthy of being in the kingdom.

In the Revelation of John, John is given a vision (presumably by God) of every nation, and all tribes, peoples and languages. As the little children’s song reminds us, “Red and yellow, black and white. They are precious in His sight.”

And if they are precious in the sight of our Lord, shouldn’t they be precious in our sight, as well?

When it comes to appreciating and valuing the sheer diversity that we find in the human race, I know I can do better.

We can do better.

We have to do better.