Both Worm and Worthy
By Trevin Wax, TGC.
When Oprah Winfrey ended her long-running daytime talk show in 2011, I tuned in to the final episode, recognizing the significance of the host’s presence and influence on American life. A moment that stood out to me from the finale was the exhortation she left her viewers and fans with: that they see themselves as worthy. She repeated a phrase, mantra-like, to her audience: “You are worthy.”
This is one of our world’s favorite statements, an inspirational saying that shows up on Instagram squares, on TV and in movies, in conversations both private and public. Telling someone “You are worthy” goes hand in hand with the push for stronger self-esteem we’ve seen since the 1980s and 1990s, and it’s now part of our therapeutic culture’s focus on mental health and emotional stability. Say it enough, and perhaps those feelings of inadequacy or the lingering guilt you feel for the undeserved blessings you’ve received can go away. You are worthy.
Worthy or Worm?
The theologically minded Christian, the regular churchgoer accustomed to singing countless worship songs that declare God alone to be worthy of worship and devotion, recognizes immediately something is off base when we go around affirming each other’s “worthiness.” The whole point of grace is that God bestows unmerited favor on the unworthy, right?
The parable of the prodigal son hinges on the young man’s acknowledgment he’s “unworthy” to be called a son (Luke 15). Another parable describes the faithful as “unworthy servants” (7:7–10). The apostle Paul claimed he was “unworthy to be called an apostle” (1 Cor. 15:9). The Book of Common Prayer casts us in the role of “unworthy sinners” who approach the table of the Lord only through the cross.
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