The Importance of Knowing A Person’s Worth
The Importance of Knowing A Person’s Worth
My husband Nathan drove the same truck for nearly 10 years — a 2001 Toyota Tundra.
It had a lot of miles on it, even before we owned it; and it had a lot more miles on it by the time we were done with it — about 257,000, to be precise.
Despite the high mileage, it was in excellent condition for a nearly 24-year-old truck, and it ran like a dream. And given the fact that we’d already replaced the transmission two years ago, it was likely to keep running like that for a good, long time, if its new owner continued to take care of it.
When it came time to sell, I met with our potential buyer to negotiate a price. While he admitted that, for a 24-year-old truck with 250,000 miles, it was in surprisingly good condition, the dollar amount he offered didn’t reflect his assessment.
“I think that’s a bit low,” I told him.
“Well, what were you expecting for a truck with over 250,000 miles and a bad paint job?”
“I just know it’s worth more than that.”
“How do you figure?”
“First of all, I did my research before showing up, and I know the current market value for this truck. Secondly, it’s an old-school Toyota, and those things are built to last. It ran for over 200,000 miles before the original transmission died, and as I already mentioned, the transmission was replaced back in 2022. That means, as long as the next owner doesn’t wreck it, they’ll get another 10 years out of it, easily. The tires were replaced back in January, so you won’t have to worry about that for a while. The AC runs cold. The stereo’s been updated. The interior’s been kept clean. Sure, the paint job’s worse for wear, but I’m not expecting anyone to buy this truck because it’s beautiful. It’s a big old truck with a large bed and a tow package. Anyone who’s in the market for this truck isn’t worried about aesthetics; they’re looking for utility — and this truck’s got it!”
We went a few rounds before I wore him down, but in the end, he agreed to pay us twice as much as his original offer, which is the amount Nathan and I had agreed upon beforehand.
There’s a lesson we can learn from this story — not about how to sell a car, but about the importance of knowing something (or someone’s) value…
The reason I bothered to check the market value of the truck before going into negotiations, and the reason I started my sales pitch by referencing the market value, is because something’s worth or value has less to do with the thing itself, and more to do with how much someone is willing to pay for it. If our potential buyer was a serious buyer, I knew he was going to care that someone else would be willing to pay that much if he wasn’t; and he needed to know that I was going to hold out until I found a person who would.
Have you ever thought about how much you’re worth, or how to even calculate your worth?
See, just like our truck, someone negotiated a price for us (and all of humanity) a long time ago. And while we were looking pretty rough (Romans 3:23; Isaiah 64:6), and in the eyes of anyone else, we weren’t worth a thing (Romans 7:24), in the eyes of our Creator, we were worth everything!
Before you and I were even born, the God of the universe — the same God Who spoke us into existence — proved that He was willing to pay the ultimate price so that we could be with Him forever!
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord... You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 3:23, Romans 5:6-8, NIV
When no one else would have possibly thought we were worth the cost, God said, “They’re worth it to Me!” With that transaction, with a singular act of sacrificial love, Jesus Christ assigned a value to us that will never diminish!
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. - Matthew 20:29-31, NIV
It’s important that we know and remember our value (what God was willing to pay for us, and what God says we’re worth), because otherwise, we’ll live our lives like we’re just a bunch of dollar bin specials. We’ll sell out to anyone, or to any cheap worldly pleasure designed to be a knock-off of the best God has for us.
This is why the Apostle Paul calls us to keep God’s merciful sacrifice at the forefront of our minds, because for those of us who’ve believed, it should cause us to live our lives differently.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:1-2, NIV
Knowing the value God’s assigned to us should also cause us to view one another differently, as fellow Christians. God paid the same price for my sins as yours, and for yours as mine, so that both of us could be redeemed. Our values are set in stone, regardless of factors we tend to think or act like make us more or less valuable to the kingdom — things like political alignments, voting records, personal moral convictions, doctrinal and denominational differences, specific roles in ministry, etc. We’re all equally valuable in God’s eyes, and equally loved; and God’s not ever ashamed to call any one of us His child, even when we sometimes don’t act like His children, and even when we sometimes act ashamed (or downright refuse) to call each other brothers and sisters in Christ.
Also, it’s important that we, as Christians, remember that Jesus didn’t just pay the penalty for the sins of those who have already put their faith in Him. Jesus paid it all, for all (1 John 2:2). He died for the faithful and the faithless alike, in the hopes that everyone would eventually turn to Him and receive salvation!
This should change the way we look at, think about, and even talk about our unbelieving neighbors — including the ones we find ourselves at moral odds with at city council or PTA meetings, on the television or radio, in the voting booths, etc. If we don’t see these people as valuable and worth-it just as they are, even if they never come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ, then we haven’t realized their true value yet — the value that God has already, irrevocably assigned to them.
God loves all people, saved or unsaved, morally upright or morally bankrupt. He shows mercy and kindness to all people, and He calls us to do the same (Luke 6:30-36).
The way we treat the people in our lives, the way we talk to them, and even the way we talk about them — the people with whom we share the same beliefs and morals, as well as those whom we find to be morally reprehensible — these are the surest indications of what we really believe about their worth.
The man who was interested in buying our truck made a lowball offer, because he didn’t expect me to know the worth that had already been assigned to that truck by other potential buyers who were in the market for a 2001 Toyota Tundra.
Likewise, we sell ourselves short, when we don’t know how much the One who’s already paid our way says we’re worth. We sell others short, too — our fellow Christians, as well as our unbelieving neighbors who still desperately need to know how much they’re worth in God’s eyes.
As people, our value isn’t wrapped up in who we are or what we’ve done, or even what we’re capable of doing. Our value is based on the fact that God Himself said, “I love them so much that I’m willing to sacrificially pay for their lives with My own!”
We all need to be reminded of our value. As Christians, I believe this is the ministry we’re called to: in a world that values people based on what they have to offer this world, we can proclaim the Good News of what Jesus has offered for us and them instead!
Our value has already been assigned to us. And what’s our value, according to the One who named and paid the price for our redemption?
Jesus paid it all
All to Him, I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow
- Elvina M. Hall (1865), Public Domain
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