Psalm 139:14
I praise you
because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are
wonderful,
I know that
full well.
In many
ways, every human being is the same. We share the same general bodily
configuration. Our bodies are organized in a uniform way. The systems within
our bodies all operate under the same set of rules. We all process food into
usable energy in the same way. We all gather information from our environment
in the same way. The blood that courses through our veins is interchangeable between
human beings. Even the major organs of the body, given the right circumstances,
are exchangeable. When we look at human beings as a whole, we see that we are
all alike. Human beings in the norm are incredibly uniform.
But when
we begin to look closer at individual human beings, we quickly discover that we
are amazingly diverse. Isn’t it amazing that we have the ability to pick out a
specific person from within a large crowd? Although there are many similarities
between people, there are also specific differences that make each person
unique.
From
the outside we see this in the form of the main features that make up each
person. We all have eyes, but our eye color varies. We all have hair, at least
at the beginning of life, but our hair color varies. We all have ears and
noses, but all ears and noses are not the same shape or size. Our hands and
feet, although uniform in one way, are different in size and shape. Even our
overall body shape varies from person to person. We gather all of these things
into general categories, but that does not negate the vast array of
differences.
When we
look more closely, we discover that there are things about each of us that are
uniquely us. We are all aware that our finger prints are unique. We have
discovered that the retina of our eyes is even more unique. Even our footprints
is unique as well.
If we
dig deeper, we discover that we don’t all learn in the same way. We perceive our
world in ways that are unique to us. Again, we have been able to gather these
characteristics into general categories, yet when we put the pieces together,
we come up with a unique individual. Similarity does not equate with
uniformity. As David said in Psalm 139, we are fearfully and wonderfully made.
When
God looks upon this earth that He created, He does not see the mass of
humanity. Instead, He sees each individual. He knows each of us intimately,
even down to the number of hairs on our head. He knows not only our outward
actions, but our thoughts as well. He is completely aware of our struggles,
temptations, and challenges. David expressed this reality in the opening lines
of Psalm 139.
Psalm 139:1-4
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.
Before a word
is on my tongue
you know it
completely, O Lord.
We are living in a world that constantly wants to negate the uniqueness of each person. Instead of celebrating just how unique we are, we are told that we are all the same. We are pressured to conform to a standard image of what a human being should be. It is no wonder that people rebel, withdraw, and implode. God created every person in His image, yet He created every person as a unique individual. And one day we will each stand before God and give an account of what we did with this unique life.
The
most exciting and important thing about our uniqueness is that it allows us to
be known individually. We are not just another human being; we are a specific
human being. We can be known by others, but most importantly we can be known by
God. When Jesus looks upon us, He does not identify us by our genus and
species. He calls us by name.
John 10:2-3
The man who
enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate
for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and
leads them out.
John 10:14
"I am the
good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me--
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