Bible Studies for Life Series for January 21: What is human life worth?
Posted: 1/10/07
Bible Studies for Life Series for January 21
What is human life worth?
• Genesis 9:5-6; Psalm 139:13-16; Proverbs 1:10-11,15-16,18; 24:10-12
By Kenneth Lyle
Logsdon School of Theology, Abilene
What is human life worth? It would be great if we actually could provide an objective answer to that question, but it seems humans are not able to provide an adequate response.
By some accounts, human life is the equivalent of a few dollars worth of chemicals and the right amount of water, but parents know the life of their child is priceless. On the surface, we act as if the lives of some people are more valuable than the lives of other people. It seems clear that most of us value American lives more than European, African or Asian lives. Moreover, we seem to value the lives of people we know more than people we do not know.
So, we ask the question again: “What is human life worth?” In Christian discussions about the value of life, the conversation most often turns to questions about abortion, euthanasia, cloning, stem cell research and other hot topics. More rarely, Christians may talk about the value of life and the virtues of the death penalty. With far less frequency, we relate the question of the value of human life to issues of poverty, race, and gender. However, all of these issues relate powerfully to the question: “What is human life worth?”
The lesson for today fulfills the requirement of dealing with the sanctity of human life. It is quite a thing to suggest that human life is sacred. God’s post-flood covenant with Noah includes strong words about the significance of life: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made man” (Genesis 9:6). Because God creates each human being in the image of God, the shedding of human blood requires an accounting (9:5).
Both sides of the debate about capital punishment look to this verse for answers. Those who favor the death penalty find justification in the requirement of verse 6. Those who oppose capital punishment emphasize accountability is to God and God alone (v. 5). Regardless of your position on capital punishment, God’s covenant words with Noah suggest human life is valuable beyond measure and God expects us to take responsibility for one another.
In Psalm 139, David offers praise to God for the whole of David’s human existence. The focal passage (vv. 13-16) correctly emphasizes the wonder and complexity of the process of human birth. Life begins and God loves us even before we are born, but for David, that is not the whole story. David’s words about his own marvelous origin are magnificent, but they are not limited to his pre-birth.
David praises God because God knows every part of him—now! David says, “O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways” (vv. 1-3). David marvels because nothing can separate him from God and God’s faithful care. Here too, must be some clue as to the value of human life. Whoever we are, wherever we are, God cares for us.
The focal passages from Proverbs provide practical insight into the question of the value of human life. Proverbs 1 offers instruction from a father to a son about wise living. Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”
This admonition sets the pattern for understanding all the wisdom in Proverbs. Wise living begins with right relationship to God. The father urges his son not to get involved with violent people. Moreover, the father’s instruction suggests his son should not get involved with people who would so casually consider taking the life of another human being. These individuals “rush into sin, they are swift to shed blood” (Proverbs 1:16).
For the impure motive of greed, these individuals devalue human life and shed blood. The wise person will not join them in this activity. Christians must examine their own connections to people and institutions that devalue human life for impure motives.
The final passage from Proverbs 24 urges protection of innocent life. “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter” (24:11). God requires us to find effective, courageous, Christ-like ways of helping the most vulnerable people in our society: the unborn child, the child born into and living in poverty, the single mother, the innocent victims of war and famine.
The list goes on and on, but we cannot abdicate our responsibility to rescue innocent human life: “If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?” (24:12). Jesus’ words to his disciples in Matthew 25 echo the sentiment of the sage, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine you did for me” (25:40).
From God’s perspective, all human life is valuable beyond measure. We who bear God’s image and Christ’s name must learn to value human life as God values human life.
Discussion questions
• This lesson offers a wonderful opportunity to talk about what the term “sanctity of human life” really means. What does it mean to say that human life is sacred?
• Can human life ever lose its sacredness? Is there any thing we can do that makes us less valuable to God and to each other?
• What political, economic and social issues inform by our discussion of the value of human life?