Some of you may have heard the story about my first firefight as a young Marine officer in Vietnam. For those of you who haven’t, let me give you a brief overview.

In the heat and chaos of what is called in combat terms a firefight, we captured a Viet Cong fighter, and I immediately threw him to the ground. In that exact moment, the Lord pierced my heart over the wrong I had done and brought the following Scripture to mind.

“If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.” -Proverbs 25:21

All People are Precious

As I collected my composure and gave him my canteen to drink some water under a profound conviction of my sinfulness, I sensed God shouting out to me in His tender mercy:

All people are precious to Me.

I responded, “But Lord, he was trying to kill me.”

Then I sensed the Lord saying again:

John, all people are precious to Me.

That was a defining moment in my life, and since then, I have been taught some life-changing truths. But one of the greatest of those truths is this: God values all people, and all of us who are indwelt by Christ Jesus are to know, value, and act upon that truth for God’s glory.

Everything the cross of Christ stands for shouts out the message of God’s redeeming love for a sin sick world. Allow me to make some observations about Christ’s love for all people.

8 Reasons Why People Are Precious in God’s Eyes

1. All people will live forever, and lasting achievements and purpose that will live on into eternity must include people. Remember, people are precious and highly valued by God.
2. There is a literal Heaven and a literal Hell. Jesus is the only One who understands this perfectly, and love demands that He leave Heaven and come to Earth.
3. Jesus died for the sins of everyone, and what people do with His offer of forgiveness and eternal life determines their destiny.
4. The faith to believe in Christ Jesus’ love comes from hearing the message from those who have been forgiven and received eternal life. We are God’s ambassadors sent to deliver the message of God’s love for the world (2 Corinthians 5:20).
5. Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13).
6. How can they call on the name of the Lord if they have not heard (Romans 10:14)?
7. How can they hear unless someone speaks to them (Romans 10:14)—someone like you and me?
8. The Book will be opened, and if anyone’s name is not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, they will be cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15).

God Loves You and Your Friends

Here’s the conclusion I have to come to when I consider these eight points: God loves those who are in your network. Please go tell them about the love that Christ has for them; most are desperate to hear about it.

Yes, more than 50 years after my firefight experience, our Lord’s message to His church remains: all people are precious to Him. Those who want to kill you, those who hate you, those who have no regard for you are precious to our God.

And most of the world will have no idea unless we care enough to tell them.

“As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’” -Romans 10:15b

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