Jason Turner did a great job this weekend, describing the value of receiving the great gift that God has for us. Thanks, Jason!
Have you ever been given a gift you didn’t exactly know how to respond to?
Have you ever been given a gift that was overwhelmingly generous? How did you respond to that?
Each of us has been given an incredible gift in Christ. Jason covered this well on Sunday:
Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 2 You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil—the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. 3 All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God’s anger, just like everyone else.
4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) 6 For he raised us from the dead along with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ Jesus. 7 So God can point to us in all future ages as examples of the incredible wealth of his grace and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us who are united with Christ Jesus.
8 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.
Ephesians 2:1-10, NLT
Spend a minute on this. According to this passage, where did you start? What were you before the gift given to you?
As a result of this incredible gift… What are you now?
Jason drug out one of my favorite Greek words… The word translated “masterpiece” is the word “poiema.” It is the word from which we get the English word “poem.” Think about that.. we are God’s poem… His artful expression of himself. What does that mean for us?
I think it is easy to believe in this… But what does it really mean to receive this? Jason made the case on Sunday that believing and receiving are not necessarily separate… They are both/and… They go together. What do you think?
I think it is really easy to believe something… But I think you have to actually believe in order to receive.
After feeding the 5,000, Jesus told his followers that they might just be believing for the wrong reasons, didn’t he?
“You are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.”
John 6:26-27 ESV
Jesus is pretty straight up with the fact that we happily believe in him when he gives us cool things… When we get to eat our fill of the loaves. But are we happy to truly believe him when the bottom seems to fall out from under us?
Jason mentioned that his wife, Sara, lost her father earlier this year, and that he was a sixteen-year cancer survivor. It is often during these difficult times that people who “believe” turn away. Why do you think so many of us “lose our faith” when bad things happen in our lives?
When we have to suffer, when things seem to all go wrong, we often blame God for not helping us out. But, isn’t it true that God allows the storms to blow in our lives, specifically to change us?
This is part of what he does to turn us into that masterpiece… To express himself. He breaks us down, and then rebuilds us into something brand new.
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT
In other words, God us changing us from people seeking to be filled into people who are strong in Him! Muscle is only built through resistance training!
What I am trying to say is that “receiving” is more than just saying “yes…” it is actually believing that what he said is true to the degree that you abandon everything else in order to live the life he calls you to.
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? 17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.
James 2:14-17 NLT
God promises that he WILL make us into his masterpiece… Are you and I really willing to receive that promise, and to become like Him?