What is the value of a person? If you were to answer this question literally, the amount of chemicals found in the human body would come to around $160.
Then, of course, there are the internal organs —which could be sold at a greater price, but that is illegal, so they don’t count.
In a survey a few years ago, a small percentage of people said they would murder a stranger for $200,000. Some also said they would murder a family member for $2 million.
Now, ask a mother who is cradling a newborn child in her arms for the very first time how much a life is worth. The answer would be, “You cannot put a price on life. This child is perfect.”
The love, joy, excitement, and hope of a parent holding a child in his or her arms is overwhelming. The love felt is so deep, it is so nearly overwhelming, it feels as though the heart will burst.
The joy that is felt is so strong, that there is laughter, dancing, and tears. The excitement that is so palpable needs to be shared. Phone calls and photos are made and the wonderful news is spread abroad.
And the hope for that child is endless. He or she can become anything in life they set their mind on: the president of this country; the discoverer of new worlds; the first person in the family to graduate college; the one to bring an end to world hunger — the possibilities are limitless.
One cannot put a price on any of this. Life is priceless.
No matter how much love, joy, excitement, and hope we might feel about life, it is nothing compared to the depth of love God has for each and every one of his children. We could take the level we feel and multiply it by a gazillion and we would not come close to God’s depth of love.
Ask God how much a life is worth and he would most likely say, “It is worth my leaving heaven to live among you.” He would most likely say, “It is worth my dealing with rejection by fearful, angry persons.” He would most likely say, “It is worth the sacrifice of my Son.”
God demonstrates the value he places on life each and every day. There are no limits to the worth of his children.
You are one of God’s children. You are worth more than the $160 of chemicals in your body. You are worth more than the price a sick person might place on your head.
You are worth everything to God.
The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: BROADHEAD: A person's worth is without price