My Worth Is Not In What I Own

My worth is not in what I own
Not in the strength of flesh and bone
But in the costly wounds of love
At the cross

My worth is not in skill or name
In win or lose, in pride or shame
But in the blood of Christ that flowed
At the cross

As summer flowers we fade and die
Fame, youth and beauty hurry by
But life eternal calls to us
At the cross

I will not boast in wealth or might
Or human wisdom’s fleeting light
But I will boast in knowing Christ
At the cross

I love this Keith and Kristyn Getty song. Our materialistic, consumerist world is dominated by the powerful, rich and famous. Each verse reminds me that my value, worth and identity isn’t defined by my possessions, wealth, skills, talents, strength or beauty.

Each verse ends with ‘But… at the cross’. I’m taken  out of myself, my story, my concerns, my problems. I return to the cross, central to love, forgiveness, reconciliation, faith and hope. My focus changes from me to Jesus.

I rejoice in my redeemer
Greatest treasure
Wellspring of my soul
I will trust in him, no other
My soul is satisfied in him alone

The repeated chorus calls for a response to this Jesus. He’s not ‘my redeemer’ unless he redeems me – an ongoing process in which I’m intimately involved. I rejoice, value, drink, trust, rest, not in passive intellectual faith, but continuing active response to ‘at the cross’.

Two wonders here that I confess
My worth and my unworthiness
My value fixed, my ransom paid
At the cross.

The final verse brings one of the mysteries and paradoxes of my Christian faith. On the one hand I’m made in God’s image, wonderful, unique, infinitely valuable. On the other hand I’m a messed up failure, a ragamuffin who repeatedly lets God and everybody down.

My worth and unworthiness are held in tension, in balance, at the cross.

And I rejoice in my redeemer
Greatest treasure
Wellspring of my soul
I will trust in him, no other
My soul is satisfied in him alone