Identity in Christ Series: Week One - Masterpiece

Ephesians 2:10 (NLT) 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.

Webster’s Dictionary defines Masterpiece as: a work done with extraordinary skill; especially:  a supreme intellectual or artistic achievement  .  

The Word tells us that we are God’s masterpiece. How does that make you feel?  Do you look in the mirror and see that masterpiece or do you see flaws, scars, brokenness, and wounds?  Do you wonder how God could love you knowing who you are and how you feel about yourself? 

Maybe you’ve been the victim of abuse. Or maybe you suffered at the hand of an over-bearing, demanding parent (or adult authority figure) who told you you were no good and would never amount to anything.  Maybe you struggled in school and were labeled (i.e. “slow” or “hyperactive”).  Maybe you’ve made choices that you regret and are still living with the consequences from today.

I can relate to most of the things above.  I was abused as a child by a child care provider and developed an eating disorder from that, my paternal grandmother criticized me on a daily basis for my weight, hygiene habits (which were fine by the way), and for the cleanliness level of our home.  I was abused by my second grade teacher and thus had a fear of reading out loud and struggled to even read at all, I was sent to a “special ed” class when I was in fourth grade due to the struggles with reading, and I was made fun of all through school because of my weight. 

I carried all of the scares, pain, brokenness, and wounds into my adult life.  I lived to please others and struggled to find my identity. One of my college professors told me to stop trying so hard to please others. I blew her off at the moment but later I realized that she had hit the nail on the head.  I struggled to find the place I fit in because I was so insecure that I feared rejection since I thought others would feel about me like I felt about myself.

What I know now, that I did not know then, is that I am not my past!  I am not the scares! I am not the pain!  My identity is not found in any of the things that happened to me.  They have definitely help to shape my view of life, they have influenced how I have seen myself and others, but they were not and are not my identity.  I AM A MASTERPIECE and SO ARE YOU!!!

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT) This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

When you go to an estate sale or auction you will often see items that look like junk going for astronomical prices.  That is because someone realizes their value.  Sometimes it might be hidden under layers of dust and grime.  A masterpiece is usually framed well and if the paper seal on the back and the glass on the front are in tacked, it can be taken out and reframed and returned to its original value.  

That’s how it is with us. The masterpiece of our lives might be hidden under layers of dust and decay.  When we come to Christ with all our hurts, wounds, scars, and pain, He makes us new creations.  He takes off our old “frame” and reframes us into the beautiful masterpiece He intended for us to be. 

Yes, we might still have to work through things from our past, but as we begin to see ourselves in the light of who we were created to be and in the knowledge that we were created as image bearers of the King of Kings, we can begin to walk in the faith God placed within us on the day we accepted His glorious gift of salvation. 

2 Corinthians 5:7 (AMPC) For we walk by faith [we regulate our lives and conduct ourselves by our conviction or belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, with trust and holy fervor; thus we walk] not by sight or appearance.

God doesn’t only love us when we make the right choices or if we don’t get damaged along the way.  He is love and as such His love is limitless and unreserved.  It was never His intention for us to be bruised, scared, wounded, or hurt in for first place.   Sadly, the fall caused God’s perfect masterpieces to be exposed to all the ugliness of sin in a fallen world that often feels devoid of love and compassion. 

1 John 4:8 (NLT) But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

God’s design for each of our lives was planned and thought out completely. When Monet painted a picture no one ever expected it to look awful.  He had a reputation for creating beauty.  Go outside at night and watch the sunset.  The same God who created all the beauty of the sunset created you.  No one says, “Wow, I bet the sunset will look awful tonight!”  Rather, people drive up into the mountains or go outside the city so they can enjoy it without the lights of town.  Artists set up easel and canvas in an attempt to capture the beauty of the sunset.  If God put that much thought and beauty into a sunset that vanishes within minutes, how much more care did He take in creating us in His image?

Psalm 139:14a (NIV) I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

As God’s masterpieces we can rest assured that He is always watching out for us. He is working on our behalf.  Due to the fallen state of our world we might have faced or might still face hard times.  John 16:33 tells us, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  No matter what we face, we can overcome because He has already overcome. 

The first step in understanding our true identity is to understand that we are masterpieces, created intentionally by the Master Creator.  We were each created for a purpose.  Not one of us was a “mistake” or “accident.”  What our parents may not have planned, our Creator did!!!!!  Rest assured, the One who formed your innermost being will not leave you now. 
Romans 8:35 (NIV) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 

  Hold your head up high today and remember: You are a Masterpiece!