What is it worth?

Everything in life is valued at ‘something.’ What we personally view that ‘something’ as is what we term ‘worth’ (noun). The value or worth of something is different from one person to the next. For example, being the history nerd that I am, I think that Abraham Lincoln’s top hat is worth a very high price and would be willing to spend quite a bit on it (if I had the money to do so, that is). Person B, however, might look at the hat and see its worth at perhaps a $1 or so. The worth of the hat to me is greater than the worth of the hat to Person B.

Some items in this world can not necessarily be placed within a monetary or materialistic value. For example, the terrorists of 9/11 found their cause to be worthy. They were not receiving anything of value (money, cars, houses, etc.) in this life, but rather they wanted to make a statement about the cause they found worthy.

Merriam-Webster defines worth as: a) monetary value—“the farmhouse is of little worth”; b) moral or personal value—“we are trying to teach the worth of human life”.

A question that I would like to propose would be: what is it worth to you to live your life according to God’s Word and will? Is it of high value or is it something we could do without? Furthermore, why is Jesus worthy to live for? To die for?

While I was reading over Revelation 4 and 5 today, I came across answers (for myself) to these aforementioned questions.

Jesus is worthy…why?

First, He is worth it! The devil tries to convince us that we are getting a bad deal from God and that it is not worth the trouble to be diligent to His call on our life. We begin to believe these things the devil tells us and we begin to say to our self “it is too hard to give up _____” (fill in the blank…pride, sexual urges, anger, resentment, hatred, etc.) The devil says “give in and give up because it is too hard to follow God…He expects too much from you!” Paul counterattacks this claim by saying “I count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish…” (Philippians 3:8) What did Paul value or see as worthy? Jesus and Jesus alone. All other things (material items, bodily urges, emotional thoughts) were “rubbish” to him. Is it worth giving up personal things simply because God is good?

Second, Jesus is capable. He is the only one with enough power to overtake this corrupted world and renew it. I mentioned in an earlier blog some of the evil that is very present in this world today. NO ONE is capable of removing all that evil alone (or even as a group). Jesus is the ONLY one with the authority and power to cleanse the Earth and make it new. He is asking us (the Bride) to join with Him as He renews the world. Is it worth giving up personal things to join Him in this renewal?

Third, Jesus deserves it. In the beginning, God gave ALL authority to Adam (Genesis 1:28). Adam forfeited his authority to Satan (Genesis 3, Luke 4:6). Jesus reclaimed the authority. Although Jesus and His bride have authority over the Earth, Satan still rules the Earth with minimized power and NO authority. As a church body, we need to realize that Satan no longer has authority and we must fully accept that He has no right to rule in individual’s lives. Jesus has proven himself worthy by making every choice in love and righteousness with the Bride in mind. Is it worth giving up personal things to see God’s perfect plan for individuals accomplished?

People (even ‘Christians’) are constantly compromising their values in today’s society. Is it worth it? Is that momentary pleasure worth more than Jesus’ death on the cross? Is it worth more than the beatings He received? Is it worth more than eternity?

I cannot force anyone to see loving Jesus as worthy or valuable. I can only explain to them why I see him as worthy and valuable and in turn, hopefully they (with the help of the Holy Spirit) will also see Him as a worthy and valuable cause to live for.

My challenge for myself today is to live a life worthy of His death.

-His Beloved Son, Ricky