WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
Each person who is a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ is a work of God in progress. “We are his workmanship.” Our spiritual existence is the result of His work in us. This is the difference between a religion of works and true Christianity. Many are counting on what they do for God to earn them a place in Heaven; when according to the Scripture, there is nothing we can do in and of ourselves that can merit any of God’s favor. Salvation is not what we do, but it is the result of His work in us.
The Bible confirms this in many places. Philippians 1:6 says, “he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.” The new birth is the result of God’s work in us when we receive Christ by faith as our Savior. At that moment, we are born again by the Spirit of God. We can truthfully say that every Christian is a work of God, which began at the moment of salvation and will continue until God calls us home. The Scripture makes it clear that we have been “created in Christ Jesus unto good works.” We are not saved by our works. After we are saved, we are to do good works. God has good works for us to perform. Our works matter to God and to those who cross our paths.
Jesus told us to let our lights shine in this dark world, “that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). We are to live in such a way as to glorify the Lord. It is important that others see the difference that God has made in us in our daily lives. In our homes, neighborhood, and work environment, we are to be examples of what Christ does in a life.
Referring to our good works, the Scripture says, “which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Long before we were saved, God had a plan for our lives. There are works He wants us to do that were determined in the mind of God before we existed. As His children, it is our responsibility to seek the Lord about what He would have us to do, and to walk in that path. It is also our privilege to be always yielding to the Lord and allowing Him to work in us. We are not a finished work, but a continuing work, becoming what God has planned for us to be.