Caring in an Expendable Culture
Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18
God values life. God created, redeemed and sustains life. God is life (John 1:4).
Psalm 139 states that God values you and me (vv. 1-6). God knows us inside and out. God knows when we get up or lie down, what we are thinking, and what we are going to say even before we start the sentence. God is present around us and His hand is there to guide us. It is incredible to think God values us so much and has such intimate knowledge of us.
God also values and knows intimately other people:
? God values the baby being formed in her mother’s womb.
? God values that drunk down the street.
? God values those skateboard kids with the funny colored hair, piercings, and tattoos.
? God values that boy with autism.
? God values that murderer on death row.
? God values the lesbian across the street.
Christ died for you, me, and them.
While God formed us in the womb, He had great hopes and a plan for us (vv. 13-16). God planned for you and me to be born, grow in loving relationship with Him and others, live lives of purpose, and share the blessings He gives us with other people. It is incredible to think God created you and me to fulfill the lives He created for us.
God also formed, holds hope, and plans lives for others:
– When we ignore the plight of babies being aborted, refuse to share God’s blessings with hungry people in our communities and around the world, and devalue persons with handicaps, we devalue the hopes and plans God has for them.
– When we disdain people because they look different from us, we disdain the hopes and plans God has for them.
– When we devalue and avoid people because they sin, we devalue the hopes and plans God has for them.
The psalmist reminds us that God’s thoughts are immeasurable and very precious. By God’s actions, God has demonstrated He values life, He values us, and He has hopes and dreams for everyone. Let us celebrate the Sanctity of Life Sunday as if life is a sacred thing. Let us treat life, everyone’s life, as if it is a holy gift from God. Let’s not devalue anyone’s life: the unborn, the unrepentant, and the unloved. Let us demonstrate with our actions and proclaim with our words that God values life.
Scudder– Lessons in the BSL series for the winter quarter are being written by Steve Scudder, former DOM for Savannah River Association.