God's Masterpiece
Given Sunday a.m. March 30, 2008
Ephesians 2:8-10 (From the New King James)
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.."
New Living Translation: "God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God.9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."
1) We're saved by grace and we can't take credit for it because it's a gift from God.
Illustration: I read about an instant cake mix that was a big flop. The instructions said all you had to do was add water, mix and bake. The company couldn't understand why it didn't sell -- until their research discovered that customers didn't trust a mix that only called for water to be added. People thought it was too easy. So the company changed the recipe and added to the directions on the box to add one egg. The idea worked and sales jumped dramatically.
That story reminds me of how some people react to the plan of salvation. To them it sounds too easy and too simple to be true, even though the Bible says, "By grace, you have been saved through faith...; it is the gift of God, not of works" (Eph. 2:8-9). They feel that there is something more they must do, something they have to add to God's 'recipe for salvation. They think they have to do good works to earn God's favor for eternal life.
But the Bible is clear -- we are saved, "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy" (Titus 3:5).
The cake manufacturer had to change his formula to sell his product. But God has not changed His 'formula" to make salvation marketable because it's not for sale. It's a gift.
2) Look at verse 10, "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."
Illustration: An old Indian, after living many years in sin, was led to Christ by a missionary. Friends asked him to explain the change in his life. Reaching down, he picked up a little worm and placed it on a pile of leaves. Then, touching a match to the leaves, he watched them smolder and burst into flames. As the flames worked their way up to the center where the worm lay, the old chief suddenly plunged his hand into the center of the burning pile and snatched out the worm. Holding the worm in his hand, he said: "Me. . .that worm!"
3) The Indian saw himself as a worm plucked out of the fires of hell.
a. But the verse we just read says God didn't see him as a worm, He saw him as a Masterpiece in the making.
4) All of creation reflects the handiwork of God.
a. I love Iowa because of the 4 seasons.
b. Spring brings flowers, green grass, and trees start budding leaves.
c. Corn and beans begin to sprout in the fields.
d. In summer we see everything growing to its full potential.
e. Then fall brings colors that only God could create.
f. Fall colors turn to neutral colors of various shades of brown.
g. Then winter brings the snow.
h. Speaking for myself, that's when it starts to get ugly.
i. But I'll have to admit, the first snow of the season is beautiful to see.
j. No matter what the season or what the season brings, they should remind us that each one is God's handiwork.
5) But when it comes to someone who has accepted Jesus Christ as Savior, the Bible says that person is God's Masterpiece.
a. Only by the Grace of God could we be thought of as a Masterpiece.
6) Have you ever thought of yourself as a Masterpiece?
a. Maybe when you look in the mirror you give a thumbs up and say, "Good job, Lord".
b. I know when I get up in the morning and look in the mirror, the last thing I'm reminded of is a "masterpiece".
c. You know you're in trouble when your first reaction is to rebuke that thing in the mirror.
d. But if you're talking about abstract art where one eye is up here, the nose down to here, hair out to here, etc., what I see in the morning could be considered a work of art.
e. But in God's Eyes, every Child of His is not only a work of art but a unique, one-of-a-kind, Masterpiece.
7) From the time of Adam there has never been anyone born with the exact qualities, characteristics, and looks that you were born with.
a. And there will never be one born exactly like you after you've left this world.
b. That can be said of everyone, whether they are saved or not.
Illustration: I read about a burglar in England that was very careful not to leave his fingerprints. But he had a habit of putting his ear against windows to hear if anyone was inside the home. It seems that every ear is different, just like fingerprints. That's how the police caught him, by the prints of his ear.
8) We're all made in the Image of God but we're all unique in our ways.
a. But for those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, there is a scripture that adds to the value of your uniqueness.
b. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV) "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
c. You may not look new on the outside but if Jesus Christ is your Savior, you're a whole new creation on the inside.
d. As time goes on that new creation on the inside is going to be reflected on the outside by the way you talk, the way you act, the way you smile, and by the peace you have on the inside.
e. That peace is something others are searching for and they won't find it until Jesus becomes their Savior.
9) Looking back at Eph 2, verse 10 (from the NLT):
a. "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."
b. There's a saying that goes like this, 'Plan ahead It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark."
c. God has a purpose for each one of us and He planned it before we were born.
10) One of God's attributes is the ability to look down into time and know what's going to happen.
a. That's hard for us to comprehend.
b. The closest thing we can compare that to is ultra-sound. A doctor can use an ultrasound to tell if it's a boy or girl and a lot about the baby's health.
c. God can do better than an ultrasound machine.
d. He knows who was going to accept salvation and those who are going to reject it.
11) For those who accept it, He has a plan.
a. John 15:16 (NKJV) 'You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you."
b. God chose us so that we would bear fruit.
c. Fruit has in it seeds to bear more fruit so the process goes on and on.
d. From the time we receive salvation, God begins to work out His plan for us so we can fulfill our purpose and bear much fruit.
e. Each one of us was born with certain characteristics that will exactly fit in with the plan He has for our lives.
12) Have you ever put a jigsaw puzzle together?
a. You open the box and lay out all the pieces on a table right side up.
b. Before you can begin to put it all together there is something that's needed to finish the picture.
c. It's the picture on the lid of the box.
d. That's the plan for the finished product.
e. Once you've seen the picture it's just a matter of finding the right pieces to complete the puzzle.
13) Before the foundations of the world were laid God looked at the picture on the box and knew where every piece would fit in place.
a. You are one of those pieces.
b. A piece in a puzzle has all kinds of contours, curves, and corners and it isn't much good by itself.
c. It has to be added to the other pieces to form a picture and it's the only piece in the box that will fit in a certain place.
d. In the same way, you either have the gifts you need to fit in place now or God will provide those gifts as time goes on.
e. What's important to remember is, you're a Masterpiece but an unfinished masterpiece.
f. So God's plan won't be finished until you have fit in the picture.
14) Philippians 1:6 (KJV)
a. "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:"
b. God started a work in each of us and He'll keep working until the day Jesus returns.
c. What will happen when Jesus returns?
d. We'll receive glorified bodies and be taken to Heaven.
e. In the meantime, God is working on you and in your life
f. He's working in your present circumstances so they will work out for your good and so you can fulfill your purpose.
15) If life is like a puzzle, there may be times that it looks like God has lost the lid to the box.
a. That's when it seems to you like the pieces aren't fitting together.
b. Have you ever worked on a jigsaw puzzle and you have one piece that comes so close to fitting you're tempted to take scissors and cut it down to make it fit?
c. That may sound funny to you but isn't that what we're doing when we try to intervene in God's plan for our lives?
d. Instead of putting everything in His Hands and letting Him work it out, don't we tend to know just a little better how things should work out?
e. We like our plan better because we understand it.
f. But that doesn't take faith in God, that's just faith in ourselves.
16) Turn to Matthew 16:21, (NKJV)
a. "From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. 22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You! 23 But He turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."
b. Jesus is laying out God's plan for His life to the disciples.
c. Peter thought he should advise Jesus on how God's plan should work.
d. Peter and the rest of the disciples had a different view of Jesus than the One of being a suffering Servant Who would die for the sins of man.
e. They wanted to be free from the Roman occupation of the land, they wanted and expected, the Messiah to be the One to lead them in a revolt to overthrow the Romans and establish His kingdom.
f. So Peter took Jesus to the side to straighten Him out.
g. Reading from the New Century Version Bible, this is what Peter told Jesus, "God save you from those things, Lord! Those things will never happen to you!"
h. Peter didn't understand that the suffering and death of Jesus were the plan of God.
i. Peter was saying, "God save you from this!" when it was God Who put Jesus in this position. Jesus said, ", 'Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."
17) What Peter and the others didn't realize is the plan had been established long before the foundations of the world were even laid.
a. Just a few minutes before telling Jesus He wouldn't suffer and die, Peter, confessed that Jesus was the Son of God.
b. Later Peter had a different viewpoint about the suffering & death of Jesus.
c. Listen to this scripture: "knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was manifest in these last times for you" 1 Peter 1:18 (NKJV)
d. Do you know who wrote that?
e. It was Peter in his first letter to churches in Asia Minor, or roughly the area of Turkey.
f. He's the one revealing to the world that Jesus was the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world.
g. Peter may have been as sifting sand before the cross but after the cross, he received a revelation about the plan of God to redeem man.
18) Sometimes God seems hidden from us but those are the times He is molding us to fit as a piece of His puzzle, or plan.
a. Those are the times we need to have the assurance in our hearts, a revelation like Peter had, that God's plan is working and whether we understand it or not, it will work out for our best good.
b. Here are some scriptures to help show you God takes the responsibility to guide you as you walk in the plan He has set out for you.
i. Jer. 29:11 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.'
1. First, God gave His life for you through His Son.
2. Now He's going to give you hope so you have to know you're going to have a great future.
ii. Psalm 37:23 "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord..."
1. Think of each step as one day that God has planned out for you.
2. Your job is to live each day to its fullest, to do the best and be the best at whatever God has called you to do that particular day.
iii. Proverbs 16:9 (NKJV) "A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps."
1. There may be times when we have to plan things out, try to figure things out, and test things out.
2. As you're doing that, God will direct your steps and before you know it, you'll arrive at the point where God wants you to be.
iv. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV) "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths."
1. "Lean not on to your understanding" is probably the most important one to remember.
2. God's ways are completely different from our ways and we can't understand them because we can't see the future.
c. All of these verses make it clear that God will guide and direct your steps in this life.
i. That's why the Bible tells us we can cast our cares on the Lord because He wants to take complete care of us from the moment we surrender everything to Him.
19) Just remember, you are one piece of the puzzle, but in reality, to God, you are the only piece, a work in progress, a Masterpiece needed to complete His plan for the rest of the world.
20) What gift do you have that you can use to bring the lost to the Lord?
a. You might say you don't have a gift.
b. When Moses was before the burning bush God spoke to him and asked, "What is that in your hand, Moses?"
c. "It's just an old stick Lord."
d. "Throw it to the ground!"
e. Moses did and his shepherd staff turned into a snake and then turned back into a staff again.
f. God did it to teach Moses the lesson that it's not what you think you have that's important.
g. It's what God can do with WHAT you have.
Illustration: God likes to take ordinary things to use for extraordinary purposes. Several years ago a large American shoe manufacturer sent two representatives to Australia to see if they could drum up some business with the Aborigines. After some time, the two men each sent a telegram back to the home office. The first man said, "No business here, Aborigines don't wear shoes" But the second man's telegraph said, "A great opportunity waits for us here! I haven't seen one Aborigine wearing shoes!"
One man looked at the situation and assumed it would never change.
The other man saw the same situation but knew things could change and the change would mean millions of dollars for the company. We can be like the first man by seeing things as they are and feeling hopeless to change them. Or we can be like the second man who sees the same thing but a great opportunity to change things.
Which are you going to be? Are you going to be like the one who sees the world as a lost cause? Or the man who sees a great opportunity in a world that's ripe unto harvest? If so, use your God-given gifts to make a difference in a person's life by sharing the Gospel.
I'll close with these verses from Hebrews 13, Verses 20 & 21. Reading from the New Living Translation:
"Now may the God of peace--- who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with His blood---may He equip you with all you need for doing His will. May He produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him. All glory to Him forever and ever! Amen."
