Verse Text: “For we are His workmanship (masterpiece), created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
Never in history has there existed so many products and services marketed in getting people to buy what they need or at least what they “think” they need. Granted, the majority of the products we find are useful in helping us be more efficient with our time and resources. Anything from toasters to sport utility vehicles are a welcomed commodity in our lives. If we stop and realize that these “things” were actually thought up, designed, and manufactured with a purpose, how much more are WE (who are made in God’s image and likeness) created with a purpose. Isaiah 45:18,19, says, “For thus says the Lord, Who created the heavens, Who is God, Who formed the earth and made it, Who has established it, Who did not create in vain, Who formed it to be inhabitated: I am the Lord, and there is no other. I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth; I did not say to the seed of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in vain’; I, the Lord, speak righteousness, I declare things that are right.” What these scriptures tell me is that GOD DOES NOT CREATE ANYTHING IN VAIN (including you and me!!). Everything (and I mean everything) that God does, He does with purpose. In Romans 8:28, it says, “And we know that ALL things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.” “Purpose” is derived from “prothesis” in the Hebrew which means “before” (pro) and “a place” (thesis). It suggests a deliberate and advance plan. God has a specific purpose and plan for you and me, which He has set into motion and called to be, before we were even born!! Let us look at how we need to 1.) realize, 2.) recognize, 3.) respond to, 4.) resolve, and 5.) run with the purpose God has for us.1. REALIZE - Isaiah 46:10,11, says, “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’ calling a bird of prey from the east, the man who executes my counsel, from a far country. Indeed I have spoken it; I will also bring it to pass. I HAVE PURPOSED IT; I will also do it.” We need to understand that before God “starts” something, He has already finished it!!
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For example, before any SUV is displayed for sale, the manufacturer first decides what the consumers need and want. It is then engineered in a computer to create the look and design of the vehicle with all of its features. Then it is sent to the manufacturing plant for construction. In actuality, the SUV was finished before it even went into construction and placed on the parking lot. Even so, realize that God has placed you on this earth at this time, because you are needed by the people around you and He has placed certain features (desires) in you for you to fulfill and accomplish in your life. 2. RECOGNIZE - To “recognize” means to “to know to be something that has been perceived before or to perceive or acknowledge or accept the validity or reality of.” We are not only to realize that “Yeah, I was born to accomplish some things in life,” but we are seek to know what those “things” are. Eph. 2:10, says, “For we are His workmanship (masterpiece), created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” “Workmanship” in this verse signifies that which is manufactured, a product, a design produced by an artist. Before we came to know Christ, our lives may not have had rhyme or reason, but since we have accepted Christ, God has brought balance, purpose and order. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation (or masterpiece); old things have passed away, behold, all things have become NEW.” 2nd Corinthians 5:17. Let’s seek to recognize what God wants to accomplish through our lives. We are to live NOT to ourselves, but for Him who has given His life for us so that we can walk in His life and fulfill the good works He predestined for us to do.
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