The Value of Others

“Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!” –  Psalm 103: 2-5.

How do you measure the worth of something? The general rule is that something is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.  The Antique Roadshow on PBS is an interesting show. People bring in things that were passed down from one generation or was purchased in a garage sale, to learn about the item and to see what the item is worth. Inevitably, a person will bring in an item that their great great grandfather bought what they thought was a piece of junk at a flea market for a dollar. The expert looks at the item and always asks the question, “Do you know how much it’s worth?”  Usually the person has no idea so when the expert tells them the item would bring $25,000, the owner sits there dumb-founded. The item has not changed over time, but the value has and now the owner knows the true value.

How do we measure the value of a person? How do we determine your value and how do we determine the value of others? Most people determine the value of others in terms of their value to us. We can determine our value based on our skills, success, talents and importance. So we determine our value by comparing ourselves with others.  In this scenario, we have more value than someone who doesn’t have as much success as we do and we have less value than those who have more success than we do. But our true value is not based on these temporary standards. In the eyes of God we have so much more value. 

Remember that a thing is worth what someone will pay for it. And God paid a great price for us because we have great value to our heavenly Father.  If you have doubts you are valuable to God, read 1 Peter 1:18-19 (MSG): “Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ’s sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought. Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It’s because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.”

You may be feeling pretty worthless right now, beaten down. Life may have thrown more at you than you can handle. You may not feel worth much. Isaiah 43:4 says, “Others were given in exchange for you. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you.” God loves and values us and He loves and values others.   

Discussion Questions:

1. Read Psalm 103: What does this Psalm tell us about how God thinks about us? 
2. What can we do this week to value others as God values us?