What can the discontinuation of the penny teach us about how we value others?

We'll talk about that in just a SEC.

Welcome to the show.

I'm Daniel Dalp and this is for your Sunday morning drive.

The short podcast with the goal of providing some motivation, Dr.

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This is episode 86 In for a penny.

Let's go to church.

Are we there yet?

If you've been keeping up with the news lately, you might have seen where the penny has been discontinued.

Apparently, the little 1 cent coin that is the least of our US currency was actually costing more than it was worth to produce, around $0.04 per coin in fact.

So, amid a plethora of other reasons, the US Mint has made the decision to cease its production.

The last penny was Mint on November 12th of this year.

Yes, the penny was of little value, but it still took more effort than it was worth.

So for better or worse, it's been cast aside.

And I was thinking about that earlier this week, and my mind shifted to how we treat people in much the same way, or at least how we determine their value.

How sometimes, maybe, we see some relationships and people as more trouble than they're worth.

How sometimes, if we're honest, we run people and by extension souls, through a cost benefit analysis and determine they're just not worth the effort, or that some people or groups aren't worth God's love.

Or even more telling, do we ever value the cross in this way?

Anyone else?

Maybe it's just me, but I don't think so.

It makes me so, so glad that we have a God and a Savior in heaven and that they, not me, are responsible for assigning value to each and every soul.

That they meant.

And dear listener, your value is likely a lot higher than you think.

John 316 is probably the first verse that comes to mind, one of many when trying to show heaven's calculation process for the cost of a soul.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Clearly the Godhead thought their creation was valuable, and I'll highlight here all of His creation was valuable, was so precious that in order to extend salvation to it, the Creator Himself was sent to die.

And that fact alone should instill in us just how valuable both the cross and the creation are, because we couldn't accomplish that.

There's this beautiful connection that can be drawn between Psalm 49 and First Peter chapter 1.

Psalm 49 verses 7 and 8 say no man can by any means redeem his brother or give to God a ransom for him, for the redemption of his soul is costly.

Note here that the psalmist is saying to redeem someone's soul is outside the bounds of human payment, but thanks be to God that it was not outside of the cost of the blood of Christ.

First, Peter 118 and 19 says, knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood as of a lamb, unblemished and spotless.

The blood of Christ, the message that the soul is so valuable, so precious, that no human could ever pay its price, so God paid it himself with the blood of His Son.

Doesn't that make you want to say Hallelujah?

What a Savior, what an awesome God that he considered his creation worthy of one drop of the blood of the perfect Christ.

Doesn't that shift our thinking about ourselves, about others, about Jesus?

If we, knowing our flaws, our weaknesses, and our sins could be valued so highly by our God and Master, then shouldn't we value others in the same way, and not just our brethren, but the lost?

Doesn't that cut through a lot of the prejudice and rhetoric that we use to try to consciously or not, diminish the value of our fellow man, with sometimes the effect of minimizing the responsibility to put in a real effort to relieve their suffering or lead them to salvation?

Because the price of each soul, each and everyone, was the blood of Christ.

We don't determine our value or theirs.

Christ already did, and that makes each and every person priceless.

Period.

In terms of our salvation and our obligation to the lost, we should follow the example of Jesus because he was in for a penny, in for a pound.

Well, those are my thoughts for your Sunday morning drive.

Now it's time to hear yours.

Our discussion questions for this week are how do we value our fellow man in light of the sacrifice of Jesus?

How do we value the blood of Christ and what excuses do we use for not valuing them in the same way that Jesus does?

Hey, thanks for listening.

I hope you have a great week.

Thank you for making us a part of it.

I'll see you Sunday.