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So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority. Colossians 2:10 (NLT)
Have you ever had a huge project to do and lamented over getting it done? A home I used to own had a yard built into a hill. I hired an excavator to level part of the yard and then spend hours hauling rocks from farmer’s fields to built a rock wall complete with waterfall and pool. I added a few lights and had my own little backyard paradise. It took many hours and I had many sore muscles from the project. But when it was done the feeling of accomplishment was tremendous.
Paul says we are complete in Jesus; a finished project. Ephesians 2:10 tells us, “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.”
I like that! I have to admit it’s hard for me to think of myself as a masterpiece. At best I’m a bruised apple. Okay on the outside for awhile, but my true character may come bursting through at any minute.
Do you feel that way too sometimes? Are you constantly reminded of your shortcomings by other people or the voices of your heart?
We’re wrong you know. Our view of ourselves isn’t anything like the view Jesus has of us. I’m a masterpiece, flaws and all…and so are you. I know, I know. I’ve seen the buttons and the T-shirts that say ‘Please be patient with me, God isn’t finished with me.’ I understand the implication. We are growing and as children we stumble and fall, just like when we were toddlers. But the finished product was completed on the cross and that’s really all that matters.
Scripture seems to teach that God IS finished with me. Sure, I have some maturing to do, but I am his masterpiece and I feel pretty good about that. So should you. So, when you sin, when you stumble for the umpteenth time, remember this. God IS finished with you and YOU are his masterpiece. There is nothing you need to add. There is no religious activity you need to complete, no schooling you need to take. Jesus Christ knows you inside and out. He knows your struggles, your fears, and your rebellious actions. He knows the secret you’ve been trying to hide for years. He knows all this, and you know what he says about you?
“Look, there, right there in your mirror. THAT is my masterpiece!”
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, I get tired of the struggle. I get fatigued trying to measure up. Help me to remember that it isn’t about my striving. It’s not about what others may think of me. It’s not about me at all. I AM your masterpiece and by the power of your Holy Spirit I resolve to live worthy of your love. Amen.
As the sun was setting, Abram fell into a deep sleep, and a thick and dreadful darkness came over him. Genesis 15:12
It’s during those darkest times of our lives that God often reveals himself. It’s when we are too tired from striving that his strength comforts us. It’s during those times when we can’t see his hand that he reveals himself.
Imagine the scene when God revealed himself to Abram. Jehovah God had promised Abram that his descendants would be more numerous than the sand and that his seed would deliver mankind from their captivity.
God’s promise was sealed with sacrifice but not until Abram fell into a deep sleep and a thick and dreadful darkness encompassed him. It was then, at this darkest time in Abram’s life that God restated his promise.
That’s the way God tends to work. We don’t understand it. It doesn’t always seem real loving for a God who is, in essence love, but it’s the way he works and our trust in him is the foundation on which we enter into the darkness and exit in his timing.
Hundreds of years later, on a stormy Sea of Galilee, a small boat was tossed about in the darkness. The crew was trying desperately to get the boat to shore before the waves broke up the ship and sent them all to a watery grave.
In the midst of the terror, someone noticed a lone figure asleep in the bow. “Jesus!” They screamed over the howling wind, “Don’t you care that we are drowning?” It wasn’t a gentle question. It wasn’t whispered in his ear. It was a scream of terror.
How could Jesus sleep through the darkness and fierceness of the storm? It’s easy to do when you trust the one directing the wind. Complete trust in God allows us to rest in the midst of the most dreadful periods of our lives.
If you are like me, you will admit that most of the time, we lay awake at night because of worry. It could be worry based on our own poor choices. It could be worry over the effect others can have on us. It can be worry over things we know we should have done, or not done, long ago.
Abram, like Jesus, teach us something important for life. During the darkest, scariest, most dreadful times of our lives, our hearts can rest when we completely trust a God who loves us and has promised he will never leave us. EVER.
PRAYER: Father, I confess to you that I’m scared. The things I see in my world, my relationships, and my future are dark and dreadful. Through the power of your Spirit I ask that you would help me rest in you because my trust lay wholly in you for my tomorrows, regardless of my past. Amen.
When the sun had set and darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces. Genesis 15:17
All of us, at one time or another have suffered from broken promises. It started when we were young with the promises of parents and other ‘trusted adults’ who promised to play with us, take us to the zoo, or go on that fishing trip.
As we grew older the promises became more complex, but no more secure.
“I’ll be your best friend forever.”
“I promise I won’t tell anyone your secret. You can trust me.”
“I promise I will never leave you. I will always be here for you.”
Broken promises break our hearts, wound our souls and cause us to doubt others as well as ourselves.
The problem with promises is that they are only as strong as the person making them. A common misconception we have is that some promises are conditional.
“I promise I’ll go to the dance with you if…”
“We’ll watch the ball game together if you promise you’ll clean your room.”
But promises are unconditional. Once you add a condition to a promise the promise and it’s accompanying obedience becomes a rule/wage situation. None of this is more true than with the story of Abram and Jehovah God.
Abram bursts onto the Old Testament scene rather abruptly and from out of nowhere. For no apparent reason, God promises him tremendous blessing both in wealth in this life and in a legacy that will last throughout history.
In Abram’s day, promises were covenants that were sealed with sacrifice. The ceremony involved cutting animals in half and laying them end to end. The participants in the sacrifice would walk together through the carcasses as a sign of their allegiance to the sacrifice. In a sense it would be like saying, ‘may I be like one of these animals if I break this promise.’
The interesting thing is, Abram didn’t walk down the path, only God did. The meaning is amazing. The promise of God’s love and blessing is entirely dependent on him alone, not Abram. The blazing torch symbolizes the Shekinah Glory, God himself in all his power and majesty. The smoking fire pot may symbolize despair and pain. To me, it symbolizes the pain Jesus bore on the cross for me.
God’s promise is not dependent on us in the least. There is nothing we can do to tear us away from his love and power and forgiveness. Without God’s love, our lives are full of pain and broken promises. With him we shine as lights in the darkness.
PRAYER: Father God, thank you for your promise of salvation. Thank you that there is nothing I can do to invalidate the covenant because it all rides on you. And thank you for the forgiveness that only comes through Jesus. Amen.
Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 