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Steve Brown: God loves you and that changes everything. Almost. Let's talk about it on Key Life.

Matthew: That was Steve Brown and this is Key Life. We're dedicated to the teaching that the only people who get any better are those who know that if they don't get any better, God will still love them anyway. Steve is an author, seminary professor, and our teacher on Key Life.

Steve Brown: Thank you, Matthew. We've been talking about how we have allowed people who don't have the right to define who we are. I simply do not accept those definitions. Well, most of the time, sometimes I do, and that's why I have so much regret and guilt and shame and fear.

But I'm learning to let God say who I am and nobody else. And we saw looking at a lot of Scripture how God's love changes everything. It's our justification. It's God's acceptance. But I have some more to tell you. Not only does God accept us, but he names and defines us in a totally different way.

What I'm going to teach you is not what I think about you, how psychology defines you, who your mother, your spouse, or your friends think you are. No matter where you've been, what you've done, what you've said, or the sin you've committed, what follows is a fact. It is who you are.

It's how the only one who has the right to define you defines you. What follows is who you are. It's about what God thinks about his people, and it's revealed propositional truth. In Ephesians 4:8 and 10, we are defined as God's masterpiece. That's what God was doing with Job when God showed Job to Satan.

"Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on earth?" That's Job 1:8. Job was God's masterpiece before Job's world fell apart and remained so when Job was not altogether that wonderful. God's creation, listen up, is incredible, but not even close to his creation of us.

Psalm 139:14 says that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. When God said that Jesus was his son in whom he was well pleased in Matthew 3:17, that had incredible implications for Christians given that Galatians 2:20 teaches that we are crucified. He lives in us and God says to us, says to me, "Hey Steve, my child in whom I am well pleased."

"Hey Jane, my child in whom I am well pleased." "Hey Bill, my child in whom I am well pleased." I've written a lot of books and I'm often asked which one is my favorite. Frankly, as you've discovered, I'm not the most skilled writer if you've read any of my books, and my books have surprised many of my teachers and professors.

But when asked that question, I generally say one of the books is my favorite. When I say that, I'm certainly not saying that it's my favorite because it's so good, but because, well, because I like it and I like that one the best. That's what we are, as it were. We are God's favorite book. We are his masterpiece.

Not only are we his masterpieces, but also his valuable, precious, and important masterpieces. Just as the creator is the only one who can define what is created, the creator is the only one who can define the value of what is created. There's an old sermon illustration of a boy who built a boat and was very proud of it.

He took the boat that he created to the seashore, placed it in the water, and to his dismay, the waves started carrying his little boat away from shore. Eventually, the boat got so far out that the boy couldn't get to it, and then it got further and he couldn't even see it. The boat disappeared.

Weeks later, that same boy was walking down the street and he saw his boat, the one he made, in the window of a pawn shop. He rushed inside the store and he said to the pawnbroker, "That's my boat. I made it. That's my boat." The pawnbroker said it may have been your boat, but it's mine now, and if you want to get your boat back, you've got to pay the price that I put on it.

The boy spent most of his summer mowing lawns and babysitting, walking dogs and doing odd jobs until he had enough money to buy his boat back. He paid the pawnbroker the price and left the store with his boat in his hands. And as he walked down the street with his boat, he was heard to say to the boat, "Little boat, I made you. I lost you. I found you. I bought you back, and now you're mine, all mine."

That's what God did for you, his child. What's our value? To those who wanted to work to please God who is already pleased, Martin Luther said that we were crazy to think that anything that we could ever do would be more valuable than the blood of God's own son. He was right. We are not only masterpieces, but we are priceless masterpieces.

When we see a friend's new car or watch, we can't help it, but sometimes do say, "How much did you pay for that?" When God is asked how much he paid for it, his answer is always the same. He paid the price of his son for us. There is no higher price. That's what you are worth.

I heard a teacher one time who had a ballpoint pen, and he was illustrating what I just taught you. He was clicking the pen, standing in front of his class, and he said, "How much you think this pen is worth?" Somebody said, "About a dollar ten." And he said, "No."

Somebody said, "Well, maybe it's a better pen than others. I'll give you three dollars for it." And the professor said, "No. This pen is priceless. I will never sell it to you. I'll never give it to you, and I'll protect it with everything that I have, because it's my pen, and I get to name the value of this pen."

God has named our value. Now there's more, and we're going to talk about it next week, but let me just bring one up and then we'll talk next week. We're also defined as his family, his son or daughter. John wrote, "To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to be a servant." Didn't say that.

He gave the right to follow him. Didn't say that. He gave the right to become the children of God. John 1:12 through 13. We have been made his sons and daughters. As it were, we don't live in the servants' quarters, we live in the big house. Jesus even said that when we pray, we ought to open with these words: "Our Father."

Matthew 6. Hebrews 2:10 through 11 teaches that Jesus is our brother. Paul wrote in Romans 8:14 that we are the sons and daughters of God having been adopted by him. Paul said we should address him as Abba, and that means Dad. That's where you get a good self-image. Don't forget who you are. You think about that. I'm in.

Matthew: And that was Steve Brown wrapping things up for this week of this series. Don't forget you can stream all of these episodes for free at keylife.org/notmad. Tomorrow, our good friend Pete Alwinson will join Steve for Friday Q&A to answer this question among others: Where did dinosaurs fit into creation? Join us Friday to hear their answers from the Bible.

Well, I don't remember the book, but I remember the scene in the library at college. I randomly pick up a book from the shelf and start reading, and in the span of the first page, tears start welling up as I'm reading about God's amazing love for me. The author? Max Lucado.

Recently on Steve Brown, Etc., we spoke with Max about his latest book called Tame Your Thoughts. In it, he offers some practical, biblical tools to renew our minds and transform our lives. Get that full conversation on CD for free by calling us right now at 1-800-KEY-LIFE. That's 1-800-539-5433.

You can also email Steve at keylife.org to order that CD, or go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses. Again, ask for the CD featuring Max Lucado. Before you go, if you've been blessed by the work of Key Life, would you help share that blessing with others with your financial support?

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