Insightful Musings on the Scriptures
by
Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67
Passage: Matthew 12:1-21
Focus: “How much more valuable is a man than a sheep!” Matthew 12:12.
Here’s a good theological question for you: How many sparrows are you worth? It was back in Matthew 10:31 that Jesus said, “So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” And here in this reading the matter of human worth is revisited: “How much more valuable is a man than a sheep!”
I’m going to suggest two statements regarding this issue of human worth that form a glaring paradox. (1) You are extremely valuable to Creator God. But to prevent our getting too arrogant with this truth, the question must be answered, WHY? It is certainly not because you and I are so flawlessly wonderful and lovable. It has to be related to our potential—what He can make from us.
I buy logs occasionally. Those logs are virtually worthless in their raw form. It is only when I take that log apart with my sawmill and make something useful that its worth is realized.
It’s easy to see how this idea underscores God’s grace—His AMAZING GRACE (Rom. 5:8; Eph. 2:1-10; Jn. 3:16-18).
Here’s where the paradox comes in. (2) You are virtually worthless to Creator God. Before we respond with approval or reaction to these two statements, let’s understand that there is a vital conditional IF clause that needs to be attached to each. So I am valuable to God IF I submit to His reconstruction project (Rom. 12:1-2). But IF I resist or reject His plan and purpose to make me “conformed to the likeness of his Son” (Rom. 8:29), I become no more valuable than “chaff that the wind blows away” as described in Psalm 1.