Sparrows

By Joe Slater

 

“Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? And yet not one of them is forgotten before God” (Luke 12:6, NASB).

    I’m not an avid bird watcher. I do enjoy seeing the Robins return in the spring along with the gorgeous red Cardinals. And we keep a hummingbird feeder in the back yard and laugh at the antics of the few who drink there as they dive bomb one another. But I don’t even notice the sparrows. They’re drab; they’re dirty; they don’t sing. I can’t imagine they’d be any good to eat, though I suppose that’s what Jesus had in mind when He mentioned people paying a pittance to purchase them.

    I simply don’t care about sparrows. But God does! They are a part of His creation (day five, Genesis 1:20). He notices if even one of them falls to the ground (Matthew 10:29). That being the case, Jesus assures us that God is also keenly aware of us. “Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows” (Luke 12:7), animal rights extremists to the contrary notwithstanding.

    I’m glad God cares for sparrows. I’m even more glad that He cares for me even though I’m not much to look at and there is plenty about me that is undesirable. Can you relate?

    I need to check my attitude toward other people, especially those whose behavior I find obnoxious. God cares about them even as he does about you and me. They need Jesus just like we do. Our Lord “is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). My job is not to despise them, but to lovingly share the gospel with them.

    Can you relate?

- Joe Slater serves as minister of the Church of Christ in Justin, TX. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://justinchurchofchrist.com