Lesson 11: Human Value

By the end of this lesson, the student should:

(1) Believe that every person is valuable and deserves to be respected because of being made in the image of God.

(2) Take responsibility for performing acts of justice and mercy for those who are mistreated in his area.

(3) Commit to treating all people with dignity, no matter what the situation.

Dale Carnegie was famous for his book How to Win Friends and Influence People. He believed that all people deserve attention and respect because they are inherently valuable as people. The Dale Carnegie Institute was established to teach his principles.

Once the Dale Carnegie Institute taught an evening class for business professionals, teaching them how to be friendly and make connections with people. When the students took the test, they were surprised by one question. The unexpected question was, “What is the name of the woman who is always cleaning in the lobby when you leave class?” The students had passed her many times as they left class to go home, but they did not consider her important enough for attention, even though they were coming from a class about how to be friendly and make connections. They had assumed that they should use their new skills only to make connections with important people.

All humans who put their faith in Jesus Christ are members of one body—the body of Christ: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).

The gospel of Luke tells about a lawyer who had a conversation with Jesus. The man knew that the Law required him to love his neighbor as he loved himself, but he thought that he had to love only people of a specific group. He asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:29). This question reveals his assumption that he did not have to love everyone. 

People of all cultures have a very similar morality. They know that stealing, murder, and oppression are wrong. However, they do not feel that everyone deserves fair treatment. Maybe they would not steal from a friend, but they would steal from a stranger. Maybe they would not kill a person of their own nation, but they would kill a foreigner. Maybe they would not oppress their own relatives, but they would oppress people of an ethnicity that they despise.

Followers of Christ believe that every human is made in the image of God, with infinite value.

Whenever an angel appeared to people, as recorded in scripture, his first words were “Fear not,” because his very presence was overwhelming and amazing. Sometimes people fell down in front of angels with an urge to worship.[1] But humans are more important than angels (1 Corinthians 6:3).

You may meet a person who is a beggar of low class, uneducated, unintelligent, of bad character, lacking in skills, with no influence, of disgusting appearance, and a repelling personality, yet he is making decisions with eternal results. If he is redeemed by God, he will become a being greater than any we have seen on earth.[2] Therefore, he deserves respect.

► A student should read Galatians 3:28 for the group.

This verse mentions three ways that people are often classified—ethnicity, social class, and gender. Social class includes economic level. We could add other classifications such as age, educational level, and skills. None of these classifications affect God’s value of a person.

► Can someone be more valuable than other people? Explain.

A person with high intelligence, education, skills, physical strength, leadership experience, or money is more valuable for accomplishing certain things. However, it is wrong to consider a person more valuable as a human because of those characteristics. Those characteristics have practical value, but the essential nature of humanity made in the image of God has infinite and eternal value.

People tend to think that the people of a certain ethnic group all have certain characteristics. Sometimes these statements are made with reference to skin color, such as “White people always ________” or “Black people are all ________.”

Sometimes the statement refers to a nationality, like Haitians or Germans or Japanese. Sometimes it is more specific, like a tribal name or an ethnic group within a nation.

The statements people make about categories of people are sometimes complimentary, but often they are critical. The statement may say that everyone of that group has a certain fault.

Here are examples of critical statements people make about ethnic groups or nationalities. The names of various ethnic groups would go in the blanks.

• ________ are lazy.

• ________ get drunk frequently.

• ________ will steal if they have the opportunity.

• ________ fight frequently.

• ________ never finish the work well.

• ________ are not smart enough to do well in school.

• ________ get angry quickly.

• ________ always lie.

It is obvious that ethnic differences exist, and these differences are more than physical appearance. An ethnic group may excel at certain sports or types of work because of their physical and mental abilities.

A people group has cultural characteristics. Culture teaches people to respond to certain situations in certain ways, so we learn to expect certain actions from people of certain cultures.

It is not wrong to notice physical and cultural characteristics of a group. However, it is wrong to judge a person’s character because of his ethnicity or culture. A person from any ethnic group may be godly, honest, and kind. It would be wrong to treat him as though he has bad character when you don’t know him as an individual.

Our personal experiences affect the way we see other people. If a person is treated badly by people of another ethnic group, he may begin to feel that everyone of that ethnic group is the same. That impression is strengthened if the person is repeatedly treated badly by someone of that ethnic group, or if the bad experience happens while he is young.

Long-term conflicts between two ethnic groups can produce generations of people who have prejudices against each other.

When a child hears his parents and other adults talk about people of an ethnic group, his opinion of that ethnic group is formed.

A believer should examine his own attitudes toward ethnic groups and pray that God will help him to show fairness and love. We should remember that God cares about others the same way he cares about us and is not pleased if we treat them unfairly.

The Old Testament story of Jonah is instructive. Jonah tells us why he ran from God:

And he prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” (Jonah 4:2-3).

Jonah ran from God because of his deeply embedded hatred for the Assyrians and because he knew that God’s call for him to work among the Ninevites meant that there was a strong possibility that God would be good to them.

The social concept of race is not a biblical concept. The Bible teaches that all humans are one race—the human race: “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place” (Acts 17:26).

God calls the church to reach out with the gospel to every ethnic group on the earth (Acts 1:8). The value of a human soul is the same no matter what the ethnicity.

Because people tend to accept earthly, worldly priorities, they tend to use a wrong way of setting the value of people. Many societies categorize some people as less important and treat them as if they are less than human.

Below is a list of examples of ways that various societies have treated certain categories of people with disrespect. Some of these practices are historical; others are still practiced.

Real examples of disrespecting categories of people:

• Elderly people are no longer useful, so they are left in an isolated place to die.

• People own people from a different ethnic group as slaves and can sell them or treat them however they choose.

• Businesses post signs saying they will not hire people of a certain ethnicity.

• Women are considered the property of their husbands, to be treated however the husbands choose.

• Baby girls are left to die because the families wanted sons instead.

• The government of a nation sends soldiers to a certain region to kill everyone of a certain ethnicity.

• Children are abandoned because they have mental or physical handicaps.

• A nation has laws that forbid a woman to drive a car or get a university education.

• People who speak the common national language but not the language taught in school are not allowed to speak for themselves in a government office.

• People are hired because of having English names rather than African names.

• Girls can be sold into slavery or prostitution by their fathers.

• Babies are killed before they are born because the mothers are not ready to have children.

Some philosophies and religions support the mistreatment of categories of people.

Atheistic evolutionists do not believe that people are specially created in the image of God. They believe that modern humans developed by competing and destroying weaker and less intelligent variations of humanity. They believe that the “survival of the fittest” has produced us. If that were true, it would be appropriate for people to continue to destroy weaker forms of humanity. But we know that all people were created in the image of God and thus are special to God.

Many nations of the world allow doctors to kill babies before they are born. Some governments have even required the killing of babies because of an excessive population. In many countries, mothers ask doctors to kill their babies before birth because they are not in a good situation to have a baby. When unborn babies are murdered, they are treated as if they were not made in God’s image and do not have value. Their rights are being violated, and they cannot speak for or defend themselves.

Religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism believe that people suffer because of their own wrong actions in previous lifetimes. They believe that oppressed people deserve the status they have. They believe that if a person endures suffering and oppression well, he may have a better life next time. Those religions give little reason to help an oppressed person, because they think the person is going through a necessary process.

Wrong philosophies and religions cause people to tolerate horrible mistreatment of classes of people. Societies accept conditions of extreme social injustice as normal. Believers are different. The biblical doctrine of special creation in the image of God provides the only adequate basis for human value.

► What disrespect of a category of people is normal in your society?

Like many of Jesus’ parables, the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:29-37) was shocking to his listeners. When he told how the priest and the Levite went past the injured man without helping him, nobody was surprised. The priests and Levites were part of the religious establishment, but people thought they were corrupted by money and power.

The listeners expected the third person to be the hero of the story, but they were shocked and disappointed that it was a Samaritan. Samaritans were ethnically mixed, and they were confused in their religion. Jews despised them for both traits.

Remember, a Jewish lawyer had asked Jesus the question, “Who is my neighbor?” He had wanted Jesus to specify the people he had to love, setting a narrow category. Like most people of the world, he thought that his moral obligations were only for a select category of people, and that he did not have to care about others.

Jesus answered the question by showing that we should care about any person we encounter. Any person we meet is our neighbor. But Jesus also answered a question that nobody had asked, “Who is a good neighbor?” or “What kind of person shows this love?” He showed that a person who is not respected by society can be a person who pleases God and shows the love that God wants to see.

The Apostle James warns the church not to honor people by the world’s standard.

► A student should read James 2:1-9 for the group. What have you seen churches do that was similar to this?

Many people who are considered important on earth are not people honored by God. Many people who please God are not honored on earth. Jesus said that in eternity the statuses of many people will be reversed (Matthew 19:30).

When Christian brothers get together, the poor person gains a status that he does not have in the world, because he is respected as a Christian brother. The rich person loses the status that he has in the world, because his money does not put him above others in the church (James 1:9-10).

A slave is someone who is owned as the property of another person. In most nations that allow slavery, the slave has no rights as a human. The owner can do what he wants with the slave as if the slave were an animal or machine. The slave’s own desires and ambitions are subjected to the owner’s will. A husband and wife may be separated by their owner, and children can be taken from their parents.

In the Old Testament, God restricted slavery and protected certain rights for the slave (Exodus 21:1-11, 26-27). Concern for the rights of a slave was very unusual in those times. In the New Testament, God said that he is the master of all people, does not favor anyone because of status, and that the master of slaves should be kind and fair (Ephesians 6:9). The principle that a slave should be treated with the consideration deserved by every human ultimately led to the abolition of slavery in the nations most influenced by the Bible.

Slavery still exists in many places in various forms. For example, in some places, children are sold by parents for work or sexual use. Sometimes children are given to pagan temples in payment for deliverance from sickness or curses. Sometimes women are kept in prostitution against their wills. Sometimes people are smuggled into another country for the purpose of being enslaved.

In a place that lacks economic freedom, conditions may partly resemble slavery. People do not have the freedom to operate their own businesses. There is little opportunity for a person to change his employment for something better. Some people work for wages that barely feed their families. They rarely buy anything except basic food. They cannot afford medical care. No matter how hard they work, they will never be able to live in a better house, because the money is never enough for their needs. Their employers do not pay more because they can always find people to work for low pay.

Economic oppression is complex and is not only the fault of employers. In some nations there are many available workers but few factories and large businesses. If a government is corrupt, it may prevent large businesses from starting by demanding high taxes and bribes. If many businesses were allowed, wages for workers would be higher because workers could choose where to work and businesses would have to attract them with better wages and conditions. Because few businesses are allowed, and workers have few options for employment, employers can pay their workers low wages. Workers cannot earn enough to meet their financial needs.

The purpose of government is to serve the people by protecting them from attack and by guarding their freedoms. Basic human freedoms are: the right to speak opinions, to practice religion, to work for profit, and to own property. A person not allowed to do those things is not treated as fully human.

Sometimes believers in a place accept conditions as normal, and do not try to help people who are economically oppressed.

Julia lived in a small village where no employment was available. She left her three children with their grandmother and went to the city to work as a servant in a pastor’s house, earning only a little every month. She rarely saw her children. Most people would not consider it good for a mother to be separated from her children like this, but even believers hire someone in Julia’s situation. They wonder why they should pay more, when someone is willing to work for a small amount? Why should they be concerned about her separation from her children if she makes the choice to leave them and work?

► Do believers have an obligation to intervene in Julia’s situation? How?

The book of Amos speaks of economic oppression several times. In Amos 5:11-12 the prophet speaks of bribes that cause judges to take the side of the person with money and that make justice inaccessible to the poor. In Amos 8:4-6 the prophet condemns people who use false measurements to cheat poor people. In Amos 4:1 he said that women are also guilty if they live in luxury that their husbands gained by oppressing the poor. The prophet said that justice should pour out like a river (Amos 5:24), meaning that it should be abundant and available for everyone.

The fact that every person is infinitely valuable does not mean that there should be no authority structure among people. Equal value does not mean equal authority. For example, though every person of the Trinity is fully and equally God, the Son is submitted to the Father (John 6:38). God has ordered a wife to obey her husband; that does not mean she is inferior to him (Ephesians 5:22). God has told children to obey their parents; that does not mean they are inferior to their parents, except in development (Ephesians 6:1).

God has instituted government (Romans 13:1-5). He has also instituted authority in the church (Hebrews 13:17).

All leaders should remember that they are servants (Matthew 20:25-28). To serve by leading means to lead for the benefit of those who follow. The leader does not lead for his own profit but sacrifices his own benefit in order to serve those who follow him.

► How would you explain the fact that in a sense some people are more important than others while in another sense all people are of equal importance?

Make sure that all people are cared for by the church family.

• Are elderly people remembered and helped as they need to be?

• Are children valued and given teaching and encouragement designed for their level of maturity?

• Are poor people welcomed and made comfortable in your church?

• Do you avoid honoring people in the church for their wealth or status in society?

• Are people of all ethnic groups welcome to fellowship and participate in the life and ministry of the church?

• Is there an ethnic group in your area that needs to be evangelized?

• Are there people who are oppressed in your neighborhood who need someone to advocate for them?

A godly family should demonstrate the value of all people. Both the husband and wife should be respected. Their needs should be considered. Children should not be ignored or treated as insignificant. Children should be disciplined properly. You do not have the right to be violent with your child or wife any more than you have a right to treat your neighbor that way.

We should help the poor in a way that strengthens their dignity. Do not give in a public way to honor yourself while humiliating the poor. If you offer a poor person a fair way to earn what he needs, his dignity is protected because he can make a choice, and he can work in exchange for profit. The best help gives the poor an opportunity to change their situation.

The Old Testament prophets emphasized that God wants his people to set free the oppressed (Isaiah 58:6).

The New Testament emphasizes the fact that Jesus came among the poor (2 Corinthians 8:9). He was born in a place where animals were kept (Luke 2:7). Most of his friends and followers were working people and poor people. Jesus showed care for people who were unimportant in his society: the poor, lepers, widows, foreigners, and children (Luke 7:22). He said he came to bring good news to the poor. He said that the gospel would free the oppressed (Luke 4:18-19).

Since the early days of the church, believers have been active in their societies. They have taken abandoned children into their homes, delivered slaves, and helped the sick. They have cared about people whom their societies considered worthless.

Jesus said we should pray that God’s kingdom would come and that his will would be done in earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10). We know that all oppression will end when God’s kingdom fully comes on earth. In the meantime, we should pray for God’s intervention for oppressed people everywhere.

For most groups, this topic will cause much discussion. Some students may have strong feelings about what they have experienced or observed.

► How will your attitude toward other ethnic groups change if you remember the value that every person has to God?

► What is something you wish you had done differently because of what you now know about human value? Encourage students to share their own commitments more than expressing anger about what others have done.

► How should human value affect the ministry of a church?

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for making us in your image. Help me to respect all people. Help me to repent of any prejudices and resentments I have against people.

I pray that you would bring justice for those around the world who are treated wrongly because of their ethnicity, gender, age, or other characteristic.

Help me to defend oppressed people and work to make my society fair to all. Help our church and each individual believer to show your love for the world in specific ways.

Amen

(1) Write about the church’s God-given responsibility to change the treatment of people in its society.

• What should your church be doing?

• What should individual believers be doing?

• What will you do?

(2) Study Deuteronomy 24:10-22. List the commands that show the value of people. Explain the intention of each command.