You Are Made of What You Do and Other Lies

I heard an ad the other day. The voice-over said:

“You are made of the things you’ve done.” It stopped me in my tracks.

What had I done that was worth anything by cultural standards? I spent most of my time standing over my kids as I slowly walked them through new tasks, and hours educating them one on one. I did laundry, cleaned up, and cooked.

If I was made of those things, I was insignificant.

That’s exactly the fear our culture is trying to sell us. Your life is made up of the things that have happened to you, the places you’ve been, the things you have accomplished. The subtext being, your worth is determined by what you’ve done. So do more or you won’t measure up.

What a lie!

During his time on earth, Jesus cared most for those who had done little and who had the least to offer the world. While it is true that God does give us work to do in this life, whether it is worthwhile is defined in heaven rather than on earth. Our value is in our mere existence.

I love my children because of who they are, not what they can do. I loved my newborn, who could do nothing for himself, just because he existed.

When the scripture says our righteousness is as filthy rags, that’s another way of saying that all the good things we will do in this life can never be enough compared to the blood of Jesus.

The world may say we matter more or less depending on the circumstances of our conception and birth, the social class, ethnic group, or nationality of our origin. But none of that informs our worth before the creator of the universe.

This is why I am ever so grateful for the perspective that transcends this earthly existence. Because if I am judged by the things I’ve done, not only would I look boring, but I also carry the shame of each of my mistakes.

One of the dangers of a civilization that lives its entire life online is that our words are forever. Technology preserves things that in previous generations would have been forgotten. Yet instead of measuring each word for the power that it holds, we have become more unfiltered with what we put out into the world.

The truth is that nothing we ever do, say, or think is hidden from the King of the universe. Yet, he doesn’t define us by the accumulation of these, but rather through the filter of the sacrifice of Jesus which covers all.

You are not the sum of the things you have done. You are worth the blood of Jesus whether you have traveled the world or never left your house. Your worthiness is based on His, not any accomplishments nor mistakes of your own. To be unchained from the changing expectations of culture and society and instead be released into a life of growth and abundance, that is true freedom.