Car shopping – you buy it AS IS (no warranty or coverage), clothing racks with perhaps damaged or stained clothes – you buy AS IS. Implies that you should expect it to not be reduced in price or fixed in any way. You take it or leave it.
Last time I looked we don’t get to judge or say what our own value is but instead we get our value from God and what He says we are. You agree?
What is that? What does God say? Look at the photo – Psalm 139:14 You are Wonderfully made! That’s what God says we are.
If you think about it for a few minutes, think about people in your own life give it some great honest thought, do you have people who you take AS IS, that take you that way? I have several ladies in my life, most of which I have known for many years – I’m saying 10+, each of these ladies bring something so vital to my life, are they perfect – no. Am I perfect – no but together it works. Let me just give you some closer examples. One of the things I learned in my faith walk was about “accountability” having some and being some. Everyone has a definition of accountability so let me tell you my own developed definition – accountability to someone is talking to them, not yelling, speaking truth and love in to them even when the truth might be a very hard pill to swallow for them a proverbial 2X4 upside the head when it is necessary. Not being afraid to tell them the truth in love because you know it is for the best. Accountability is also valuing that person – being FOR them and what they stand for, believe, etc. understanding that you don’t always have to agree with them. It is morally doing the right thing. Now you don’t need to be a darn drill sergeant, that’s not accountability at all, that’s just yelling and I believe in many ways judging. If all your accountability person does is tell you what you are doing wrong that’s not helpful. God did not create us to tear each other down. Nope not in my definition.
So I have accountability partners in my life, these are ladies that would snatch me up by the short hairs in a New York second if I was doing something way wrong, they are also there for me if I need something too, a conversation, advise, just anything, even a phone call at 2:00am which would scare the stuffin out of me. Strong ladies indeed. I take these ladies at HEART VALUE, I take them AS IS. I need them AS IS in order for me to get from them what God wanted them to pour in to me. I also know that they take me as is too. Warts and all and for what I can pour in to them – love in to them. It’s how it should be. Now there is another lady who I used to sit with at the coffee shop when my daughter was in Youth group while she was in high school. Precious God fearing lady who talked to me, prayed for me, with me and asked me to pray for her and others, another person I take as is because God wanted this lady in my life, we are not of the same generation and seemingly had no common ground except God, He wanted me to be her friend, have her as mine and I’m very blessed, she has been a great source of advice, prayer and friendship much like my other ladies, actually there are so many people in my life that just AS IS bring so much value to me personally. I have to say I’m blessed because of every single one. I recently met some friends I’ve known for 30+ years now, these are not ladies I have attended church with or had faith conversations with but again, these ladies love me and are for me and I for them. They would never hesitate to pray for me if I asked. This all gives me value, value in me – AS IS.
Have you ever questioned your self-worth? Have you thought you have no value? Are you intimidated by what you think are not or what you don’t have? Intimidation - lack of courage, the enemy wants you to be intimidated. I tell you that the enemy is intimidated by God and he darn well should be because God is Truth, Value, Courageous – Courageous and true value (yours, mine, ours) - based on the Word of God. You are who God says you are – AS IS. An Encounter with God is the fix to a lack of security in ourselves. God Loves us as is. Deuteronomy 7:6 says: The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession. Get that – treasured possessions. God treasures me and my ladies, he treasures you. He values us. He values YOU. Just let that resonate with you for a few minutes, a few days or a few weeks, whatever time you need to absorb it.
God wants us to feel secure, He wants us to rest in His words, His love. I think there are times when everyone feels insecure about that relationship, especially those new in faith. It’s just not as easy to swallow that God loves us totally, AS IS, with all we’ve done, all we’ve said, all we’ve thought. He loves us Unconditionally.
You might ask – How, how can I understand and feel that security, how can I be sure. Something concrete (tangible) is this – I want to simplify this for you – in my own words, this is not technical but busted down in to laymen’s terms – my own words. In the Old Testament you read about offerings, sacrifices, basically these were unblemished animals (lambs many times – young and without defect – pure and perfect) sacrificed to God to cover sin. The point is – the Wage of sin (the penalty) is death as described by God and they had to give or offer these things to make up for the sins they did in order to stay in God’s good grace. There was even one time when a father was asked to sacrifice his own son, he didn’t kill the boy because it was a test of his faith and he passed, but you get the picture. They had to pay for sin by sacrificing and praying – giving something to God. In the New Testament you start with the Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John where we are introduced to Jesus and some who came before Him to announce Him. The Old Testament also foretold of a Messiah who would come to save the world. After all this sin and sacrifice when Jesus enters the world we find out that He is the only Son of God, that God sent Him to be the ultimate sacrifice, so no more baby lambs, no more alters – Just Jesus. That’s tangible, that’s real, Jesus paid the price on the cross to be our living Lamb, to take on the sins of those who came before Him, those who were alive at his time and those who came after Him – including me and you. Talk about the weight of the world on your shoulders (Jesus took it on knowing the cost) for us –AS IS. Now you might ask – how do we know Jesus is real outside the Bible. Well, let me give you just one and you can look it up. After Jesus died on the cross he was taken down and His body was prepared for death, cleaned and wrapped, then His body was placed in a tomb and a huge rock placed at the entrance to seal it basically. That cloth was found in the tomb after Jesus was resurrected (came back as a spirit) and it is preserved to this day in kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy. You can google the shroud of Turin and see the image. You can read how they tested it. This artifact is tangible again – something concrete that He existed. He was and is real. Be confident in that and if you can be confident in God that His love for us caused Him to sacrifice His one and only Son for us for our sins.
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank You for the Lamb, thank You for sending him for me, for us for the world. There is no greater love and I am grateful. Lord I just ask that those reading this today understand and accept that. if any are unsure let them seek You and then know that You love us as is. Where we stand, how we are. Thank You for that LOVE. In Jesus most precious Name - AMEN