There is an artistic vein that runs through me. As I attempt to create a painting, a scrapbook page, a clay structure, a photograph, there are times I find myself wanting perfection. I want my creation, whatever it is at the moment, to be as good as it gets. Often I’m frustrated.

When God created man, He formed Him, in the image of God. When He created each of us, He knitted our bones together in the womb of our mothers. He worked according to His perfect plan, putting the parts together that would work just as He wanted them to. He not only made the machinery which moved and breathed and thought, but deep within the heart of us was placed something we cannot see. It is our soul…a part of us that was created by God to need Him, to want Him.

As Christians, after a time, we feel the tugging of the Holy Spirit upon our hearts. Our souls know that something is missing in our lives, and that something is revealed to us as a real relationship with the Lord. The first moment that we submit ourselves to God, He begins to rebuild the creation He made. The more of Him we hand over, the more He perfects us, according to what His will is for us. What He wants us to do is to recognize that we can become the perfect ‘us’ when we place ourselves in the able hands of the Creator.

There is no other way we will become a work of art…a Masterpiece. HE alone is the Master, and as we live, work, submit, yield to Him, the Masterpiece will become more beautiful, more like Him.

This song from the mid-1970’s is my prayer as He forms me in small and great ways by His mighty hand.

Father, You are the artist with canvas and paint
Color my life with Your blue skies and rain
Paint seasons of sunshine and places of pain
‘Til I am a picture of Him.

Refrain:
Make me a portrait of Jesus.
Paint Your love over my sin.
Let Your life shine like a light through mine,
‘Til I am the picture of Him.

Lord, I am a canvas for You to create
Capture the look of Your Son in my face
And when You paint problems, Lord
Frame them with grace,
‘Til I am the picture of Him.

Refrain

Lord, You paint my future,
According to plan
I trust You though sometimes
I don’t understand
The rainbow of reasons that flows
From Your hand,
To make me a picture of Him.

Refrain

In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

Ephesians 2:21-22Ephesians 2:21-22
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
21 Christ is the one who holds the building together and makes it grow into a holy temple for the Lord. ²² And you are part of that building Christ has built as a place for God's own Spirit to live.

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Several years ago my parents built a home.  It was something they had dreamed of doing most of their lives, and after years of job transfers and moving from house to house around the eastern half of the country, they finally set out to accomplish their life-long goal.  Before they could begin staking off the foundation or driving the first nail, they first had to purchase the property where their home would be constructed.  That was an arduous process in and of itself, in that, once they located the property they desired, they sacrificed deeply to pay off the debt for that property in full before they began pouring concrete and erecting walls.  The sacrifice was worth it as they kept their eyes on the goal and the reward that would result from their perseverance and faithfulness. Oh how they rejoiced on the day when the deed to that property was assigned to them and their heirs for time in memorium.

Then, the day came when construction began.  They moved into a temporary apartment near their newly purchased property so they could see and even hear the progress being made daily on their new home.  My father did a lot of the carpentry work himself.  He helped with plumbing, bricking, and many of the finishing details in, around, and under the house.  From their cozy apartment, my mother would often be making dinner in the evening as the sounds of hammers and nails and saws could be heard echoing through the trees.  She recognized those as the sounds of her home drawing that much closer to completion.  Throughout sunny days and rainy days, stormy seasons and perfect skies, the process of construction continued.  The concrete that was once bags of powder lying on the ground eventually became a solid foundation.  The wood that was piled all over the red clay of their 3 acres was summoned one board at a time to form walls and rafters and floor joists.  Shingles eventually covered the plywood on the roof, doors and windows and cabinetry walked through the open thresholds, and the day finally came when we helped them move in their furniture.  In fact, we surprised them one weekend by going into town and helping them move in ahead of schedule and we spent the very first night in their new home with them about 7 years ago now.  It was a very joyous occasion.

But, if you were to talk to my father, you would quickly learn as all homeowners know, that construction is an ongoing process even after you move in.  There are refinements and adjustments and repairs that still need to be done, even on a brand new home.  A homeowner’s work is never really complete.  There is always something to be done to make the home more suitable.

Spiritually speaking, we are under construction too.  We who have accepted the Lord as our personal Savior are, in fact, the dwelling place of God.  Now many people consider “the church building” to be the place where God lives.  But, the truth is that His people are His dwelling place and His Spirit resides in us as we yield daily to the ongoing process of being constructed to become more like Him.  Just as my parents sacrificed to purchase the land on which to build their new home, so God sacrificed to purchase us.  In reality, the Bible says that we do not belong to ourselves, but rather to God, and that we are to honor him with our bodies that are His temple (1 Corinthians 6:19,201 Corinthians 6:19,20
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
19 . You surely know that your body is a temple where the Holy Spirit lives. The Spirit is in you and is a gift from God. You are no longer your own. ²⁰ God paid a great price for you. So use your body to honor God.

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The people of God are His temple, His home, and He is constructing us to reflect His holiness.  Just as the beams and joists of my parent’s new home had to learn to bear up under many different types of weather, so we too are tested under various circumstances and trials in our lives.  And by God’s grace, and only by His power, are we able to learn to endure and persevere for His glory. (Ephesians 6:13Ephesians 6:13
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
13 So put on all the armor that God gives. Then when that evil day m that evil day: Either the present or “the day of death” or “the day of judgment.” comes, you will be able to defend yourself. And when the battle is over, you will still be standing firm.

WP-Bible plugin)  Our faith is proven when it counteracts our fears, our character is forged by the purity of what we do in secret, and our maturity is deepened when we pursue holiness rather than happiness.  And like tools in the hands of the Master Carpenter, all of the circumstances of our lives are used to chisel and refine and sand away at our imperfections so that we are a home fit for the King.

What joy filled the Father’s heart the day you deeded your life over to Him!  The sacrifice He made for you was well worth the reward.  And, until the day that He returns, be willing and content to be a work of God under construction.

…he raised us from the dead with Christ and we are seated with him in the heavenly realms – all because we are one with Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:6Ephesians 2:6
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
6 God raised us from death to life with Christ Jesus, and he has given us a place beside Christ in heaven.

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I can remember sitting at the dinner table growing up. We had high back chairs, antiques. They were creaky, and as dinner would progress we were constantly being told to sit up, not to fidget, not to lean back. Ah, the memories of a child. Probably the most common place I am seated these days is in front of my laptop. My couch isn’t the most comfortable in the world, but in the evening you will likely find me cross-legged, tucked in the corner of the couch, leaning over my laptop keyboard as some show plays in the background. Undoubtedly, you have your own pictures of what it might look like to be “seated”.

When I think about the throne of heaven, I often have a very different picture. One of standing and pleading, or bowing asking for mercy. The only seat I can often imagine is the seat that the criminal sits in, being prosecuted. But this is not the picture Paul paints. We are seated with him in the heavenly realms. Jesus is seated in honor and power, with authority. He is the rightful king of heaven and earth. And we are seated with him, sharing in his honor and in his relationship with the Father.

From all that Paul shares, we should recognize that we were unworthy to stand in God’s presence, let alone sit in a position of authority and honor with Christ. Paul begins Ephesians 2 describing us with phrases such as “dead”, “doomed forever”, “full of sin”, and “under God’s anger.” He is holy, and our nature is so caught up in the world’s ways of thinking and acting. It is a constant battle.

But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so very much, that even while we were dead…he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (Ephesians 1:4-5Ephesians 1:4-5
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
4 Before the world was created, God had Christ choose us to live with him and to be his holy and innocent and loving people. ⁵ God was kind b holy and innocent and loving people. ⁵ God was kind: Or “holy and innocent people. God was loving ⁵ and kind.” and decided that Christ would choose us to be God's own adopted children.

WP-Bible plugina) Our position is secure because Christ was raised. His death paid the penalty of our sin, but his resurrection is a promise of new life. Having accepted Christ and followed him in faith, every day is to be lived in light of our position in Christ. If we lose sight of that, all sorts of things go wrong. We may fall into pits of paralyzing guilt when we see our failure to live to the measure of Jesus. Or we slave away in an exhausting path of discipline and self denial, hoping our effort will somehow please a God we have little hope even likes us.

But when we see of our spiritual life from the vantage point of the risen Christ, who bore our sin, we see the depth’s of God’s love, the extent of his willingness to do whatever it takes to restore us and make us like his Son. It’s from this place that we can begin to grow. Seated with Jesus, we have power to walk.

If you’ve ever tried to read through the entire Bible, you know the going gets rough in Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. I struggle through the lists of laws, rules, and regulations. The precise directions for animal sacrifices that had to be offered for a multitude of offenses is mind boggling. When I’m tempted to skip ahead, I force myself to read on because nothing has given me more of an appreciation for living as a part of the New Testament church than reading the Old Testament.

The old pointed toward the new. The old system was a temporary fix. The new system is permanent. The old system used the blood of blemish-free animals and required many sacrifices. The new system required the blood of one perfect, sinless God in flesh-the man Jesus Christ. The old system allowed only the high priests the authority to approach God. The new system allows any believer, Hebrew or Gentile, to boldly come before the throne of God. Hebrews 4:16Hebrews 4:16
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
16 So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.

WP-Bible plugin puts it this way, “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” What freedom! We can approach God for forgiveness of sins and ask for His power in our lives any time!

This brings us to Ephesians, Paul’s letter to the Gentiles in the church at Ephesus. Unlike many of Paul’s letters to various churches, this one was not written to confront problems in the church but rather to encourage believers and strengthen them. Early manuscripts of this letter do not include the words “in Ephesus” so this was probably a circular letter-first sent to Ephesus but then circulated to other local churches. This is a letter of unity, reminding early Christians that we are one in Christ with all other believers.

In chapter 3, Paul prays for the early believers. “I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner beings so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge….”

The Life Application Study Bible explains it this way. “God’s love is total. It reaches ever corner of our experience. It is wide-it covers the breadth of our experiences, and it reaches the whole world. God’s love is long-it continues the length of our lives. It is high-it reaches to the heights of our celebration and elation. His love is deep-it reaches to the depths of discouragement, despair, and even death.”

The love of God is a constant reminder of His presence in our hearts any time we feel shut out or isolated in this world. And if God is for us, even Satan can’t stand against us. What power! What love!

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Heb 10: 19-22Heb 10: 19-22
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
Encouragement and Warning ¹⁹ My friends, the blood of Jesus gives us courage to enter the most holy place ²⁰ by a new way that leads to life! And this way takes us through the curtain that is Christ himself. ²¹ We have a great high priest who is in charge of God's house. ²² ; . So let's come near God with pure hearts and a confidence that comes from having faith. Let's keep our hearts pure, our consciences free from evil, and our bodies washed with clean water.

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What is Sacrifice?  Webster’s dictionary gives these definitions:

• An act of offering to a deity something precious; especially : the killing of a victim on an altar
• Something offered in sacrifice
• a: destruction or surrender of something for the sake of something else b: something given up or lost

Exactly!  The act of offering to a deity…GOD, something precious…ourselves. With sincere hearts, with complete surrender, we gave our lives to Him at the time of our prayer for salvation. We were, as it says in Heb 10:22Heb 10:22
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
22 ; . So let's come near God with pure hearts and a confidence that comes from having faith. Let's keep our hearts pure, our consciences free from evil, and our bodies washed with clean water.

WP-Bible plugin “sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. Following that, we gave our bodies to be ‘washed with pure water” in the act of Baptism. Those activities of a new believer were not the end of it. More was expected of us.

Heb 10: 23 goes on to say that we should ‘hold fast’  (tightly, firmly) to the hope, without wavering.  Hmmm… without wavering.

What does that mean?  Does it mean that we can run and cling to the hem of Christ’s garment when we want something, when we need Him to do something for us?  Does it mean we can return to our old ways and run back and forth to Jesus with a prayer of repentance when we get into trouble?  NO! “Without wavering” means that we must walk in His footsteps, moment by moment. That means seeking God’s will, and yielding to it, regardless of how uncomfortable it may seem at the time. It means that we must surrender our own thoughts and trust in His.

Sacrificial living won’t always feel good. When you  give up something that you are used to doing, however unhealthy it might be, it’s not easy to do. God’s Word tells us that man’s thoughts are not His thoughts and our ways are not His ways.  Sacrificing anything is contrary to man’s selfish nature.

It takes practice to let go of old things and to begin new methods of living. Consider physical exercise. It causes muscles to ache.  However, the more we use those muscles, the stronger they get and the more natural it is to use them. Likewise, exercising these new spiritual muscles may cause moments of pain, but, the more we use those muscles, the stronger they get and the more natural it is to use them. Think of it as ‘growing pains’.  Our sacrificial living is healthier, and it produces growth. Do you see the pattern emerging? Our faithfulness in the practice of giving to and for the Lord, results in our strength, and growth in spiritual things. The more grow, the more we want to please Him.  The more faithful we are, the more He can use us in accomplishing His work.

We are to encourage one another in this vein. When it’s ‘hard’ to run that race set before us, let us call out, first to our Coach Jesus for strength, and then to the other team players, our brothers and sisters in Christ who will be our cheerleaders. We all need a friendly smile, a helping hand, a pat on the back sometimes. We all need a little scolding, too, at times and help in finding our direction. Each of us needs a little nudge, at times, to do our work with a cheerful heart.  Let us pray for one another and encourage one another to ‘keep up the good work’ as we attempt to develop new patterns of sacrificial living.