HIS WORKMANSHIP-I—Eph. 2:10
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
Attention:
We use the phrase ‘He/She’s a real piece o work!’ to describe someone who is a loose cannon, a little ditzy, or seems to ‘have a screw loose.’ In other words, the ‘work’ producing that particular person is obviously flawed! They’ve got some a specific observable slant to their thinking which doesn’t put two-&-two together properly.
Christians are also a ‘piece o work’ but in a very positive sense!
Christians are the very workmanship of God Almighty in Christ Jesus!
Need:
Why are you here?; Who am I?; How do I find my way?
Most people think Christians are a little wacky, right?
We will answer that statement/question with a resounding “Yes,” but will also offer you great reasons as to why you may think them to be so wacky.
An apostle of our Lord Christ Jesus related that the intent of Jesus’ sacrifice was to release man to affect God’s purposes.
Christians are & exemplify the purposeful workmanship of God.
How/Why are Christians identified with the purposeful workmanship of God?
5 hallmarks of Christian workmanship.
For Veteran’s Day—
1)All those who serve in the military, support the mind/rationale(that which/who made them) of the military. To provide for the common defense of the people/nation.
2) Military men/women have all been ‘made’ with an express purpose.
3)You served the US for the sake of the nation/people/others of the US, of whom you yourself are one.
4)Some of you serve(d) because you were made to & others of you serve(d) because you chose to. Regardless of why you serve(d) you serve(d), putting your life in harm’s way in doing so!
1—Christian workmanship entails a hallmark...
BELONGING(:10a)
Explanation:(:10a)His workmanship
“For we are His workmanship...”
Paul is including himself with those who are God’s. All who “are” true blood-bought believing Christians. All these/such are “His.”
The referent to “His” hearkens to :4, where it speaks of “God” who “made us alive together with Christ.”
Those who are “His” are not only “His” possession but are the finished product(“workmanship”) which He Himself has made.
Being the workmanship of God implies that we are something other than this world’s workmanship.
Thereby we are markedly different in our makeup—our thinking, manner, attitude(s), direction & directive(s), focus(God thru Christ), purpose, power, influence, etc.
Our church cannot claim to be perfect in the sense that only we hold the line of truth.
However at the same time, this church also holds an obligation to faithfully & rightly honor God, knowing that other churches may not do such. We must examine, know, & exemplify the ‘whole counsel’ of God. We attempt this by correctly interpreting the written word of God, recognizing it as the written revelation of God to Man!, & confirming it by the indwelling Holy Spirit.
We also measure/interpret reality by God’s revelation/truth, & not the other way around!
We ‘belong’ as a result of God’s loving desire for us.
“We are”—esmen—1) first person plural of “to be.” Strong—first person plural indicative of eimi[I am/exist]; “We are.”
“His”—autov(autou)—Pronoun—1) Himself, herself, themselves, itself; 2) He, she, it; 3) The same. Strong—from the particle au[perhaps akin to the base of ahr[Breathe/Respire/Blow/“Air”] through the idea of a baffling wind](backward); the reflexive pronoun--Self, used(alone or in the comparative eautou[Himself, herself, itself, themselves]) of the third person , & (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other persons.
“Workmanship”—poihma—Noun Neuter—1) That which has been made; 2) A work—2a) Of the works of God as creator. Strong—from poiew[To make or do(in a very wide application, more or less direct)]; A product, i.e. Fabric(literally or figuratively). Used 2X, here & Rom. 1:20.
Rom. 1:20—“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made[poihma], even His eternal power & Godhead, so that they are without excuse,”
Argumentation:
Mat. 5:1-16—“And seeing the multitudes, He[Jesus] went up on a mountain, & when He was seated His disciples came to Him. Then He opened His mouth & taught them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger & thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile & persecute you, & say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice & be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out & trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp & put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, & it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works & glorify your Father in heaven.”
Every Christian has a place(belonging) in God’s family!
Rev. 3:17-22—[to Laodicea]“Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, & have need of nothing’--& do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, & naked--I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; & white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; & anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke & chasten. Therefore be zealous & repent. Behold, I stand at the door & knock. If anyone hears My voice & opens the door, I will come in to him & dine with him, & he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame & sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
Jn. 14:19-23—“A little while longer & the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. At that day you will know that I am in My Father, & you in Me, & I in you. He who has My commandments & keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, & I will love him & manifest Myself to him.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, “Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, & not to the world?” Jesus answered & said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; & My Father will love him, & We will come to him & make Our home with him.”
Mat. 11:27-30—“All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, & no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, & the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Come to Me, all you who labor & are heavy laden, & I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you & learn from Me, for I am gentle & lowly in heart, & you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy & My burden is light.”
Jer. 31:3—“The LORD has appeared of old to me, saying: “Yes, I have loved you [Israel]with an everlasting love; Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.”
Jn. 3:16-17—“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
2Thess. 2:16-17—“Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, & our God & Father, who has loved us & given us everlasting consolation & good hope by grace, comfort your hearts & establish you in every good word & work.”
Illustration:
As a Veteran, You BELONG, on many levels, to an elite group of people you probably consider ‘brothers’ & ‘sisters’ given that you have gone thru difficult challenging, life-threatening times together/BELONGING
I have heard many common excuses for NOT being belonging to a church in my pastoral ministry—
1) ‘I don’t believe like y’all believe’
2) ‘I got ‘burned’ by a/the church in the past’—‘I had a ‘bad experience’ in church.
3) ‘Y’all don’t like the way y’all worship’(General Types=Ritual/Free expression/Celebratory/Respectful(traditional))
4) ‘I will not be part of a church where such-&-such is a member’
5) ‘Y’all aren’t organized for ministry’—meaning, ‘their particular ministry’ which they want to wield with no strings attached!
6) ‘I’m sick & tired of organized religion’
!BUT yet you are here versus there! What will it take for you to commit?! What is it about the Gospel of Jesus THRU US, that is offensive to you?
Application:
?To Whom is YOUR hallmark BELONGING?
?YOU characterized as ‘Christian workmanship’?
2—Christian workmanship entails a hallmark...
AGENT(:10b)
Explanation:(:10b)
“...created in Christ Jesus...”
Being “created in Christ Jesus” sets the bar/tone for any determination of “goodness” to be expressed, lived out, or worked.
If a “work” is entered into or meted out “in Christ Jesus” then it will honor Him above everything else. Likewise whatever results from such a “creation” gives glory to “Christ Jesus” as the Author of it!
And, as I like to add, “Christ” is not “Jesus’” last name! It is His title & speaks of His ministry as the only Anointed. Likewise His given name “Jesus” meaning ‘Savior,’ was specifically granted by God(Mat. 1:21).
“Created”—ktizw—Aorist Passive Participle—1) To make habitable, to people, a place, region, island—1a) To found a city, colony, state; 2) To create—2a) Of God creating the worlds, 2b) To form, shape, i.e. To completely change or transform. Strong—probably akin to ktaomai[To get/acquire](through the idea of proprietor-ship of the manufacturer); To fabricate, i.e. Found(form originally).
“In”2X—en—a primary preposition denoting (fixed)position(in place, time or state), & by implication--Instrumentality(medially or constructively), i.e. A relation of rest(intermediate between eiv[into, unto, to, towards, for, among] & ek/ex[out of, from, by, away from]).
“Christ”—Cristov—Adj.—Christ = “Anointed”—1) Christ was the Messiah, the Son of God; 2) Anointed. Strong—Anointed, i.e. The Messiah, an epithet of Jesus.
“Jesus”—Ihsouv—Jesus = “Jehovah is salvation”(Savior)—of Hebrew origin [ewvwhy Yeh-ho-shoo'-ah; or evwhy Yeh-ho-shoo'-ah]; Jesus(i.e. Jehoshua), the name of our Lord & two(three) other Israelites.
Argumentation:
**Ps. 95:1-2—“Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.”
Heb. 2:6-3:6—“But one testified in a certain place, saying: “What is man that You are mindful of him, Or the son of man that You take care of him? You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory & honor, And set him over the works of Your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory & honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things & by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies & those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying: “I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You.” And again: “I will put My trust in Him.” And again: “Here am I & the children whom God has given Me.” Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh & blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, & release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful & faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted. Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle & High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence & the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.”
Heb. 5:5-11—“So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.” As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek”; who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers & supplications, with vehement cries & tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, & was heard because of His godly fear, though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” of whom we have much to say, & hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.”
Heb. 13:8-12—“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, & forever. Do not be carried about with various & strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.”
Jn. 1:1-4—“In the beginning was the Word, & the Word was with God, & the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, & without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, & the life was the light of men.”
Rev. 3:20-21—“Behold, I stand at the door & knock. If anyone hears My voice & opens the door, I will come in to him & dine with him, & he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame & sat down with My Father on His throne.”
**1Tim. 2:1-6—“Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, & giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings & all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet & peaceable life in all godliness & reverence. For this is good & acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved & to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God & one Mediator between God & men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,”
**Acts 4:8-12—Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people & elders of Israel: If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, let it be known to you all, & to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’ “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
**Col. 1:24-28—“I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, & fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages & from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man & teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.”
**Eph. 4:11-16—“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, & some pastors & teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith & of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to & fro & carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ--from whom the whole body, joined & knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
Illustration:
Successful people in television advertising have ‘Agents’ or representatives, who act on behalf of the actor-actress/These agents contact ‘the-powers-that-be’ in the advertising industry/They take care of all the things that the actor or actress cannot & should not—The ‘Agent’ refers-‘sells’ the actor to the advertiser who has a need for a particular talent/AGENT
Application:
?Who is YOUR hallmark AGENT?
?YOU characterized as ‘Christian workmanship’?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
'A real piece o work!’—Christians being the very workmanship of God in Christ!
Action:
Christian workmanship entails a hallmark...
1. BELONGING(:10a)His workmanship
2. AGENT(:10b)Created in Christ Jesus
Pts. 1-2 Presented 11/08/2015am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave. SW(SE Ave A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
