His Workmanship

Some of you already know this, but this is my favorite passage in the whole Bible. I guess Ephesians 2:10 would be considered my "Life Verse" and it often gets overlooked when people memorize Ephesians 2:8-9. These first 10 verses of Ephesians 2 can ultimately be summed up in one sentence: Christ pulled us up out of the pit we were naturally born into so that we could complete the tasks He set out for us to do. But why simplify things...

Ephesians 2:1-10 (New King James Version)
1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 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.

Verses 1-3 are basically talking about where we came from. We were dead in our sins and we didn't know any better...we followed the world's pattern for life and it came naturally (confirming that sin nature!). We don't need to divulge on this any further...I think we all know what we're capable of without Christ!

Then there is the phrase that we all must come to terms with when we realize we are helpless and lost without eternal life: "But God." And we see exactly how He lifted us up out of that pit...through His rich mercy and His deep love for us. We did not do anything to deserve God's grace here, but He chooses to use it anyway. Despite our selves, He has chosen us and we can never take that choice for granted.

"For we are His workmanship..." I know of one person out there who will tire of hearing this, but this came to be my favorite verse in New Testament Greek class at college. As we were exploring the meaning of the words and the context of Ephesians, this word popped out at me. The Greek word for "workmanship" is "poivhma" (pronounced = poiema). This is the same word from which we get our English word, "poem."

Think about that. With the exception of the limerick, a poem is a special thing. A poet puts their innermost thoughts into a poem. They put their heart and soul into it, creating an intimate being that can stand on its own. A poem can be a few lines or a few pages, but it says a lot about the poet and what is on their mind and on their heart.

Didn't God create us the exact same way? Psalm 139:13-16:
13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.

God took care and special note when we carefully knit us together. He knew what we'd be capable of without Him and He knew what we would do with our life in Him.

The world can be so generic sometimes. They see that we were just created or just came into being and they ignore the fact that we were carefully created. They fail to see that as a poet sees his words, we are God's masterpiece, showing off the quality of His workmanship. They also claim that enough good works can get them into heaven. What they choose to ignore is that their good works are self-based. God has chosen "good works" or a life lived for Him. The works He wants us to do are to further His kingdom--not for selfish ambition.

I know that I need help putting my own selfish ambitions and desires aside so He can work His will through me. I also know I need to take care of my body, remembering that He put special time and care into creating it. Letting it fall apart (which is usually due to selfish ambition, too--thank you very much, Chocolate Cake!) is not respecting His work and not following His will for my life.