Articles
The Value of Souls
When you look in a mirror, what do you see? Often what we see are imperfections that should be changed and improved. The outward appearance for many people is the start of their self-esteem or the value and worth that they place upon themselves. God, however, places value on the inward heart and soul of a person, instead of on outward appearances (1 Sam. 16:7). Vanity is just one example of a distraction that the devil uses in our society to distract us from God. Wealth, fame, attractiveness, professional status, politics, and other physical distractions will not lead us to salvation, “for what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul (Mark 8:36 ESV).”
One example of applying Mark 8:36 is when a person changes their clothes to be more attractive amongst their friends. In this case, the motivation is to dress to impress your friends, rather than showing the example of Jesus’ teachings. Your friends become the ones who dress you and determine the standard of you wardrobe instead of God and His values that have been placed in your heart. Thus, it is easy to throw Jesus’ teaching of restraint to the wind, losing the person God created you to be in the process. Worldly temptations distract from the path of God and cause us to become more concerned about pleasing other people instead of God. God’s children are supposed to live solely by His standards “For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Eph. 2:10 ESV).”
Due to the grace of God alone you have been saved from eternal death and given the path to eternal life. Formerly, you were separated from Christ, having no hope of peace due to the dividing wall of hostility that separated mankind from God. Jesus broke down this wall, defeating the hostility, and giving us access to the Spirit, that all people may be reconciled with God. Jesus’ loving sacrifice on the cross gives you the choice to become unified with God in this life and the next. Whereupon choosing God, you will see the value every soul—including yourself—has to God. Every soul was beautifully created to show the love which God showed them first through their own acts of good works (1 John 4:19). These acts of good works do not save us or even renew our faith but show our obedience to God.
