How Much Are You Worth?

Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 ESV). Have you ever thought about how much money your body is worth? I know, some of you are chuckling now; but, there is an incredible need for healthy organs, tissue, and fluids of our bodies. Many years ago, according to Discovery Science Magazine, the human body was worth pocket change, a mere 97 cents. This could purchase all the raw carbon, iron, and calcium a person had to offer. Today, thanks to improved processing, a determined seller could gain closer to $46 million for donating every reusable part. Of course, there’s a catch: The most lucrative substances are the ones you can’t go without. So the $7 million you’d get for your germ-fighting antibodies would be quickly spent on the plastic bubble needed to keep you alive. In our reading today the apostle echoes his instruction in his first letter (cf. 1 Thessalonians 2:12) when he urged them to live lives worthy of their calling. Here it’s a prayer that God would make the believers worthy of his calling in their lives. Holding these two together gives a helpful picture of what a worthy life looks like. He’s talking about a significantly different “worth.” We’re called to renewal and sanctification, and we’re given the power to do all of that by the same God who asks it of us. God doesn’t love us because we’re worthy; we’re worthy because God loves us. The source of our worthiness is essential to understand. We must be rooted in the knowledge that God sees us cloaked in the grace of Christ. Otherwise we will be burdened by persistent feelings of unworthiness, never quite sure whether we measure up. Be assured of God’s love for you, so that you may be set free from the anxiety of feeling inadequate. We are worth much more than any assigned dollar amount! Now that’s good news we can celebrate!