Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely, His eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; for although they knew God they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened.
Romans1:20-21
What is something that is unique about you? Is there anything that distinguishes you from everyone else in the world? Is there a unique talent or combination of talents that is unique to you? The answer to these three questions is yes. Each of us has a unique set of talents, quirks or facts about ourselves that most people don’t know. There are certain things that are special about us that are probably shared by many other people. For instance, someone might do exceptionally well at math, but in the world, there are lots of people who are exceptional at math, so that is not unique. Take the combination of where you live, the family you come from, the things you are good at, and your life experience and you’ll see a different life path for each person. Each of us has things that add to our unique value. And whatever things we have, each of us has infinite value in the eyes of God. God does not value us according to how much money we make. He doesn’t value us according to how many degrees we have. Each of us has infinite value in His eyes when we use the unique set of talents that He has blessed each of us with.
Another activity we did at summer camp involved bringing a small icon of Christ into a group of fifteen campers. Each camper was given a piece of paper and a pen and a roll of tape was given to each group of fifteen. The campers were instructed to write down something that devalues us on a piece of paper, something like cheating on a test, or committing a crime. After each person wrote down something, they took their paper wrapped it around the icon of Christ and taped it to the icon. After a few minutes, the icon had been wrapped with fifteen pieces of paper, each with something that devalues us written on it. You couldn’t see the icon anymore, and if someone had come into the room and been handed this heavily wrapped object, they would have no way to know that it enclosed an icon of Christ.
Next, we asked the campers, “If we throw this wrapped package on the ground and stomp on it right now, did we ruin what is inside?” (We didn’t throw it on the ground by the way). “What would happen to this if we did that?” The short answer is that we wouldn’t destroy what was in the package, we would just dirty the covering.
The message here is that we do this to each other and to ourselves. We cover ourselves with layers of insecurity, bad choices, sins, or other labels that people give us. We think we have lost our value. However, underneath all the dirt, the icon remains the same. The icon of Christ, the fact that we are all created in His image and likeness, as icons of Him, remains unchanged. The masterpiece that is our soul and God’s unique imprint of talents on it remains unchanged. We still have infinite value in the eyes of God. God still desires us. The distance between us and God has been put there by us. It is bridged when we come back to God in repentance.
In Romans 1:20-21, St. Paul writes, Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely His eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; for although they knew God they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. Ever since God created the world, His eternal power and deity, things that cannot be seen or fully comprehended, has been part of everything that has ever been made, most especially we who have been made after His image and likeness. There are some people who live in complete ignorance of the existence of God. Perhaps they have never heard of Him. However, no one reading this message is in this category. We have all heard of God. And we decide whether we will honor Him as God, or give thanks to Him, or whether we will become futile in our thinking, senseless in our minds, and darkened by sin.
In I Corinthians 3:16-17, St. Paul writes Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and that temple you are. We are temples of God. Going back to that example of the icon wrapped by many pieces of paper, deep inside each of us is an icon of Christ. The question is what is that icon covered with? Are the unique experiences of our lives occasions that have glorified God? Do we use our unique talents to demonstrate our love for Him and to serve others? Do we honor the temple within us, or do we treat it carelessly? Have we wrapped our icon in paper that obscures the image? Are we careless with the icon of Christ that resides within each of us? The truth is that no one is beyond the reach of God. God does not remove Himself from within us no matter how much dirt covers His image. This is because He loves us and we are of infinite value to Him. We have up to our dying breath to repent, to take the dirt off of the icon by unwrapping our layers of sin, the things that devalue us. The challenge is that no one knows the day or the hour his life will end and he will stand in front of God for judgment. This is why repentance needs to be a constant and urgent concern for each of us. Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:16, to “Let your light so shine, so that others may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” It is important that we take care of that icon within us, and that when we have covered ourselves because of our bad choices, that we unwrap the sins that surround our souls through repentance, knowing that the masterpiece beneath cannot be destroyed.
Lord, thank You for putting Yourself into me. Thank You for creating me as an icon of You, as a temple where Your Holy Spirit can dwell. Help me to be careful in taking care of Your temple within me. Help me to make good decisions, that Your light can shine in me. When I cover it over with sin and devalue myself, help me to know that I still have infinite value to You, and inspire me to repent and unwrap the things I do wrong. Thank You for finding value in me. Help me to find value in me. Help me to always seek to find You in me. Amen.
No one is beyond the reach of God. Beneath the dirt of all of our sins lies a masterpiece, an icon of Christ, placed deep in us by the Lord. God cannot be destroyed in us.
