What determines the value of a person? The world associates a person’s “value” with monetary worth, usefulness, importance, significance, intelligence, appearance, popularity, behavior, and sadly—skin color. However, God sees each person as having great value because He created man in His own image and when God saw all that He had made, He said, “It was very good” (Genesis 1:27;31). It wasn’t just good…it was VERY good.
Jesus, the incarnate God, sees value and the deepest needs and potential within the human heart. One such example is in the story of the blind and dirty beggar, Bartimaeus.
Bartimaeus, sat by the roadside, begging for alms. When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, he began to urgently and repeatedly shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” The crowd rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:46-47). Bartimaeus’ physical need was apparent, but Jesus knew the state of this man’s heart and his greater need was for salvation. Jesus would meet both needs.
God sees us through His son Jesus, who is the embodiment of love. That love is not the world’s superficial “love.” It does not envy; it does not boast; it is not proud. It does not dishonor others; it is not self-seeking; it is not easily angered; it keeps no record of wrongs.Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails (I Corinthians 13:4-8).
Jesus taught that we should have that same kind of love for others, a love that can only come when we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. It is His love that filters the impurities of life and leaves the richness of His mercy and grace within us.
Like Bartimaeus, God sees far beyond our faults and imperfections. He searches the heart and understands every desire and every thought. Those who seek Him [urgently and fervently] will find Him, but those who forsake Him, He will reject forever (I Chronicles 28:9).
God wants intimacy with us. He knows when we sit and when we rise. He perceives our every thought and discerns our coming and going and when we lie down. He is familiar with all our ways and before we speak a word, He know it completely. He is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of every heart (Psalm 139:2-4; Hebrews 4:12). In pondering how God intimately knows each person and sees their value and potential, I was reminded of Michelangelo’s David and the story behind the world’s most celebrated and beloved sculpture.
Standing seventeen feet tall, the statue of David was created from a six-ton piece of neglected marble. Initially, a sculptor, Agostino di Duccio, had been commissioned to create a statue of David from the mammoth piece of Carrara marble, but he only got so far and then abandoned the project. Untouched for ten years, Antonio Rossellino was commissioned to finish the statue; however, for unknown reasons, he too abandoned the project.
The massive piece of marble sat exposed to the elements for 26 years when 26-year-old Michelangelo, a highly respected and revered sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of his day, was given the opportunity to finish the project.
Michelangelo had a clear vision of what he saw hidden within the massive piece of marble. He was quoted in saying, “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it.” Unfortunately, the first two sculptors lacked that vision for what the marble could become.
Before we were born, God had a clear vision for our potential when He created our inmost being and knit us together in our mother’s womb. Our frame was not hidden from Him, when we were made in the secret place and woven together. His eyes saw our unformed body. All our days were ordained for us and written in His book before one of those days came to be (Psalm 139:13-16).
We are precious in His eyes and greatly loved, because we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which He prepared beforehand the we should walk in them (Isaiah 43:4; Ephesians 2:10). God not only had a clear vision for who and what He designed us to become, He charted a path customized for each of us, so that we could have a hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).
God sees each person as having great value and worth. All too often, the world and even family can say or do things that cause us to doubt our value. But the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. (1 Samuel 16:7). Though we are flawed, imperfect, and we fail and make mistakes, God, like Michelangelo, looks beyond what can be seen and sees the beauty and potential that is within each and every person.
Have you allowed negative comments to drown out the truth of who you are in God’s eyes? Have you allowed past failures and negative comments to define your worth? Have you had a particular dream but never believed it was achievable? The truth is, we can be and achieve all things through Christ who gives us strength (Philippians 4:13).
Jesus asked Bartimaeus, “What do you want Me to do for you?” Jesus fully knew his need, but He wanted him to voice that need. Bartimaeus answered, “Master, I want to see!” Jesus told him, “You may go. Your eyes are healed because of your faith.” Right away the man could see, and he went down the road with Jesus (Mark 10:51-52). Not only could Bartimaeus physically see, but his eyes had been opened to the spiritual reality and truth of Jesus Christ as Savior and His redemptive love for him.
Spiritual truths overcome the world’s opinions and judgements and allow us to see ourselves as Christ sees us. We are then able to see past the lies that we have believed and finally see our great value and the beauty that is within. Today, Jesus is asking, “What do you want Me to do for you?”
PRAYER: FATHER, thank you that you are the Sculptor of my life. Where others reject me, You see value and worth that even I cannot see. Open my eyes as you did for Bartimaeus that I may see all that You have for me in this life and the life beyond. Help me to see that my value and worth were purchased at Calvary’s Cross by the blood of Jesus Christ. He is the One whom I desire to be the rhythm and joy of my heart. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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