A Nugget from New Life Network
(by Chris Musgrove of Future Now)
Scripture for the Day – July 9, 2020
Ephesians 2:10: For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
The Greek word for workmanship is poiema — from the verb poieo, “to make.” (Compare “poem” and “poetry.”) The word signifies that which is manufactured, a product, a design produced by an artisan. Poiema emphasizes God as the Master Designer, the universe as His creation (Romans 1:20), and the redeemed believer as His new creation (Ephesians 2:10).
Before conversion, our lives had no rhyme or reason. Conversion brought us balance, symmetry, and order. We are God’s poem, His work of art. The Passion Translation says, “We have become his poetry, a re-created people that will fulfill the destiny he has given each of us, for we are joined to Jesus, the Anointed One. Even before we were born, God planned in advance our destiny and the good works we would do to fulfill it!”
I recently read Rick Renner’s’ description of the word poiema as follows; Paul uses the word poiema to explain what happened when you became a child of God. It emphatically means that on the day you got saved, God put forth His most powerful and creative effort to make you new. Once God was finished making you new, you became a masterpiece, skillfully and artfully created in Christ Jesus. There’s nothing cheap about you at all! God’s creative, artistic, intelligent genius went into your making.
Look how much you’ve been given in Jesus Christ! Don’t you think it’s time to stop moaning about how dumb, stupid, ugly, or untalented you “feel” compared to others? Those “feelings” are all lies. Some of that may have been true before you were born again, but none of it is true of you now that you are in Christ. God turned you into something spectacular. That’s who you are now! So lay claim to your new identity. Adjust your thinking and talking to reflect who you really are!
We are His masterpieces!!!
