The Value Scale
Scripture Reading: Matthew 12:9-15
While being attacked for having healed a man on the Sabbath, Jesus asked a question. In verse 12 we read, “How much more value is a man than a sheep?” The question was rhetorical. It answered itself and was intended to rebut and rebuke the criticism being leveled against Jesus. It was obvious to everyone that on a value scale, a man was infinitely more valuable than a sheep.
Today, in some quarters, if you ask a question like that the answer might not be as obvious. Not everyone would understand the value of a human far exceeds the value of an animal. Humans, not chickens, are made in the image of God. We are valuable, not because we have used our powers to rise to the top of the food chain, but because God has designated us with this worth by stamping us with His image.
That didn’t mean the animal didn’t have value or that it shouldn’t be treated with care and concern. Jesus doesn’t rebuke the one who saves his sheep from a pit on the Sabbath. He commends the action. The person who rightly understands God’s created order doesn’t abuse God’s creation.
The practical outcome of having a proper assessment of the relative value of things is we know how to treat people well. Lifting animals to the level of humans doesn’t do what we think it does. It is not as much an exalting of the animal kingdom as it is a debasing of humanity. Those who believe animals and humans are on equal footing don’t dignify animals, they debase humanity. Rather than treat animals “humanely,” they end up treating humans like animals.
