graphic: Martha G. Brady
God says you are special. As a human being, you are valuable because you are made in God’s image even though that image has since been marred by sin. As a human being, created a little lower than the angels, we have value given to us by God. (cf. Genesis 1:27)
As a Christian human being, someone who has trusted Christ alone for your salvation, this is how He describes you. He describes you as chosen, part of a royal priesthood, member of a holy nation, part of a people who will be possessed by God in order that you can proclaim His excellencies to those around you. Oh yes, you are also part of a group who have been called out of darkness into light.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
a people for his own possession,
that you may proclaim the excellencies of him
who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people;
once you had not received mercy,
but now you have received mercy.I Peter 2:9-10 ESV
God sees us this way. It’s hard to believe this could describe us. We know ourselves. We know how far short we fall when it comes to “royal” or “holy” being descriptive of us. We think of the good times when we do the right thing but often still struggle with our attitude behind good actions, that no one knows about. God has to work there too.
Believe the truth of what God says about you once you belong to Him. There are too many lies floating around inside your head.
We need to know the truth of what God says about us, not the lies that often fill our minds. Yes, we often fail. Yes, we frequently fall short of what we want to be or even of what we think God wants us to be. No one knows your failures better than God. But your salvation doesn’t depend on who you are. It all depends on Jesus and who He is. How often have you pictured God looking at you with disgust when, once again, you fail. That’s not how it is.
When He sees you, He sees Jesus and the perfect record Jesus had when He lived here on earth. He sees all the sin you have ever committed marked as forgiven by Jesus when He died on the cross for you.
Action point: Think about and write down the lies that come to your mind during a week. Does this Bible passage speak to any of them? If not, go to Bible Gateway to see if you can find other passages that speak to them. What is the truth? Write out the lies, one by one and next to them, the corresponding truths found in God’s Word. This way when the lie comes to mind, you can remind yourself of the truth. You will be surprised how encouraged you will be as time goes on.
You are special to God. He delights in you as His child. Your value has to do with more than simply your accomplishments or lack thereof. Your value has to do with more than what you look like or how you perform. Are’t you thankful?
