The Sparrows and God’s Love toward the Nobodies

Small. Drab. Commonplace. Easily overlooked and forgotten. Quietly picking up the pieces left behind by the bright, the outgoing, the popular and memorable.

Sparrows are nothing like the majestic soaring bald eagles which often brings cries of excitement from those who happen to see one overhead. Sparrows aren’t the main attraction in the latest bird calendars or the aviary section in the zoo. They have no unique features to set them apart like the diligence of an Emperor penguin or the dance of colorful birds-of-paradise.

In fact, no matter where you go around the world, sparrows can be seen on six out of seven continents in varieties such as the Dead Sea sparrow of Turkey, the Kordofan sparrow of Chad, the Saxaul sparrow of central Asia, the Great Sparrow of Kenya, the Plain-backed sparrow of Burma, and the Russet sparrow of Japan, to name only a few. Even here in the USA, house sparrows are easily recognized as they hop through busy parking lots and scavenge for crumbs under backyard feeders.

In Bible times, sparrows were nothing, the least of the least. One sparrow by itself was basically worthless, and even then, it took two to be worth a single copper penny. For two pennies, you could buy-four-get-one-free. Sparrows were nothing more than a food delicacy to be killed, roasted, and consumed. They were the nobodies among the 500 million migratory birds which passed through the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East, the most common of birds among such beauties as the black stork and the little green bee-eater.

Insignificant. Worthless except in being used for the physical needs of the strong(er). Plain and invisible. If one disappeared – even died – would it matter? Would anyone notice or care? Do they play a part in the bigger scheme of life besides a consumable entity?

I look at the sparrows and immediately feel a connection. As a child, I was surrounded by the love of my family and church on the outside. But that love could not erase deep feelings of worthlessness and insignificance on the inside which grew in ever-widening concentric waves. Even after God mercifully saved me, those feelings constantly fought for a handhold.

I don’t remember when I first started to notice the sparrows. As a young girl, I was fascinated by their freedom as they soared in a blue sky away from the cares of the world below – and I longed for what they had. My bedroom faced the backyard where Mom kept a birdfeeder all winter long. Blue-jays, scarlet cardinals, and bandit-faced cedar waxwings squabbled over piles of pinecones smeared with peanut butter, berry bushes laden with snow, and the overflowing birdfeeder hanging nearby. But it was the sparrows in the shadows that always drew my attention. Somehow they survived the winter as though something – or Someone – was looking out for them.

The older I got, the more changes in life triggered deep anxiety and fear. New locations, new relationships, the whole idea of turning over a new leaf presented a confident façade. But old insecurities inevitably resurfaced and failure shoved me back into the shadows yet again.

Often in my lowest moments no matter where I moved or what chapter of life I found myself in, the sparrows were always there, pulling me to look for meaning in the bigger message of their existence found in the pages of Scripture. They were not content to let me wallow in the mire of insignificance.

Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?         Matthew 6:26 (NASB)

Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.            Matthew 10:29-31 (NASB)

Notice the transition in these verses from “Creator” to “heavenly Father”. The sparrows testify of the astounding care of God for all His creation – including a general care for human beings. But God has provided more than our daily needs. He has also provided salvation from sins and adoption as His beloved children through Jesus Christ!

How can this be? Why would God choose to care for me? Doesn’t He see what I am? Doesn’t He see that I’m nothing? Love explodes with meaning when we realize this has never stopped God from caring for the sparrows.

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 (NASB), For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world  and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God.

But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

I love the wording of these verses. The foolish, the weak, the “bottom of the barrel”, the despised, the nothings – we know what it’s like to be rejected. We know what it’s like to be filled with shame and pull back into the shadows. But what power in God’s love that chooses me just as I am – and graciously transforms me into His beloved child!

1 John 4:19 (NASB) declares, We love, because He first loved us.

Just as sparrows are commonly in every corner of the world, so too are the weak and ordinary, the fearful and nobodies. The hope of the Gospel answers our universal need, and it is for anyone from every tongue, tribe, and nation (Rev. 5:9-10) who desires to be set free from their worthlessness and shame. And because of Jesus Christ, those children of God are valuable. They become wise. Righteous. A work in progress. Redeemed. Beautiful.

Look at yourself through the eyes of the truth. If you have been changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and your faith is in Jesus Christ, you are a child of God. No longer are we general objects of mercy, but specific objects of grace. Because we are God’s child, there is a special loving care shown toward us by our heavenly Father, even more than His tender care of the lowly sparrow. “Do not fear,” He tells us. “You are more valuable than many sparrows.” (Matthew 10:31, NASB)

Our value is based on our relationship with Him – and in that value, we have no reason to fear. Jesus Christ has done everything necessary for sinners to be adopted by God. He has paid it all. Will He not also give us everything we need for this life? As Matthew 6:32-33 (NASB) says, For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. When we realize our true value in the eyes of God, anxiety will be replaced with child-like trust.

In the past, Civilla Martin’s song “His Eye is On the Sparrow” has been very popular – not for its tune, not for the beauty of sparrow imagery, but because anxiety and discouragement and feelings of worthlessness are all emotions everyone can relate to. Her words declare the cry of every heart, and then dramatically remind us of God’s care as our heavenly Father. Linked to the version sung by the group Selah, this hymn is one of my favorites. I hope it blesses you too!

His Eye is On the Sparrow

Words by Civilla D. Martin

Music by Charles H. Gabriel

Why should I feel discouraged? Why should the shadows come?

Why should my heart feel lonely and long for heaven and home,

When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He:

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

“Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender words I hear;

And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubt and fear.

Though by the path He leadeth but one step I may see:

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise,

When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies,

I draw the closer to Him; from care He sets me free:

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

Chorus:            So I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free;

                        For His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.

Further Resources:

Read Matthew 6:19-34 and focus on the fatherly way God addresses the anxiety behind each of our greatest human needs – possessions (verses 19-24), food and clothing (verses 25-26, 28-31), length of life (verses 27), and the future (verses 32-34). Meditate on Ephesians 1 and 2 which declares the beauty of our value through Jesus Christ.

Borgman, Brian, Feelings and Faith: Cultivating Godly Emotions in the Christian Life, Crossway Books, 2009.

Bridges, Jerry, Who Am I? Identity in Christ, Cruciform Press, 2012.

Fitzpatrick, Elyse, Because He Loves Me: How Christ Transforms Our Daily Life, Crossway, 2008.

Horton, Michael, Ordinary: Sustainable Faith in a Radical, Restless World, Zondervan, 2014.

Welch, Edward, Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest, New Growth Press, 2007.

Welch, Edward, Shame Interrupted: How God Lifts the Pain of Worthlessness and Rejection, New Growth Press, 2012.

Public Domain sparrow photo credits:

Sparrow on a Log – Kevin Phillips

House Sparrow on the Fence – George Hodan

House Sparrow – Lynn Greyling