God is the one who sets the standard for worth in this universe, not men. For “ what is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight” (Luke 16:15 NIV).
Jesus said, “what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). Consider for a moment all the wealth in this world. Think of all the multimillion dollar mansions; all the gemstones and precious metals; all the fine cars, yachts, and planes; all the state-of-the-art electronics, and these are but a few of the “nice” things. There are so many more treasures in this world it is almost unimaginable. The World Fact Book estimates the gross world product for 2010 to be 62 trillion dollars. That is US$62,000,000,000,000. That’s a lot of wealth, and that’s even before we include the real estate. Yet Jesus tells us a man who exchanges his life for all this wealth makes a bad deal.
If our true worth, the value God places on us, is more than all the wealth in and of this world, what is our value to Him? We’re told, “for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:16). We were under the reign of the wicked prince, Lucifer, after we were turned over by Adam (see Luke 4:6). Adam’s disobedience spread to all and we were slaves to sin, a domain over which Lucifer reigns as lord. He laid claim to us and would not release us. Our destination was eternal darkness with no hope of liberation. The only way we could be freed was if we were purchased back – but the price was too high for any man to pay.
God gave Jesus as the ransom for us. No one and nothing else could have purchased us, for God says, “the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough (Psalm 49:8 NIV). God values our souls so highly He purchased us with Jesus Himself. Paul says “God bought you with a high price” (1 Corinthians 6:20 NLT). Again he says the Father “is so rich in kindness that He purchased our freedom through the blood of His Son” (Ephesians 1:7 NLT).
There is no one or nothing more valuable to Father God in this universe than His Son, Jesus. Yet with this purchase God declared our value as compared to His greatest treasure. Here is something amazing: if we would have been worth one cent less to God than the value of Jesus Himself, the Father would never have given Him, for God never makes unprofitable deals! A bad purchase or exchange happens when you give something of more value for something of less. Wow! Do you see how important you are to the Father? Jesus confirms this by saying, “I have given them the glory You gave me, so that they may be one, as we are –I in them and you in Me, all being perfected into one. Then the world will know that You sent Me and will understand that You love them as much as you love Me” (John 17:22-24 NLT). Jesus plainly declares the Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus! Did you hear that? Do you see your true worth? Do you see why He pursues you?
Some may argue, “yes, God did that for all mankind cumulatively, but who am I among so many? The answer to this is if you had been the only one, He still would have pursued and ransomed you at this great price. This is clearly seen in Jesus’ ministry. He had spent the entire day teaching multitudes about the kingdom of God. He was tired, yet there was something that could not wait. By the leading of the Holy Spirit, Jesus tells His disciples to get into a boat and cross the Sea of Galilee. In the midst of the sea a storm arises and threatens their lives, but Jesus is so exhausted He is asleep. In fear the disciples awake Him and tell of the pending danger: Jesus responds by commanding the waves and wind to be still.
They’d spent a good part of the night crossing this troubled sea. Now that they have come to the other side, maybe they can finally get some rest. But just as they disembark they are met by a demon-possessed madman. He lives among the tombs and cannot be restrained even with chains. All day long and throughout the night, he wanders among the tombs screaming and cutting himself with stones (see Mark 5:3-5).
If alive today he would have been placed in a mental institution, most likely in solitary confinement. He would have been given drugs and left to himself. Most would consider him an outcast, only to be kept alive because the laws do not permit him to be killed. He would be viewed as a worthless drain on society. His value would be almost nothing. Very few would pursue his acquaintance.
Yet this madman had great value to the Father, Jesus and the Spirit of God. Jesus ministered to him in a powerful way. So mighty was his deliverance, before day’s end he was seated next to Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. Now here is the amazing part: after Jesus had ministered to him, He got back into the boat and “crossed over again by boat to the other side” (Mark 5:21). Awesome! Jesus, exhausted from a hard day, would cross a sea and fight through a storm, just to minister to a possessed outcast that society considered worthless, only to get back into the boat and travel all the way back again. He did it all for just one man!
If you had been the only one He still would have sought you out and paid your ransom, so you could have fellowship with Him. No wonder the angels of heaven sang the evening He was born – celebrating peace on earth, and goodwill toward men!
You are so precious to God!
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