Isaiah - Verse By Verse

Thought:  To me, meditating on what it means to be "in Christ" does more to lift me, heal me, direct me, encourage me, etc., than any other activity, and should far outshine my own works.

Question:  Have I learned the proper time and place for my "good works"?

Scripture:  Ephesians 2:10 (NIV):  "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Why is salvation not of works?  So that works may be given their proper place; not as a way to save our own soul, but as a way of life after our soul is saved.  We are molded into lives of good works by God.  He is the Master Craftsman.  Being The Master, He does the creating, directing and shaping.  We, the lump of clay, (Isaiah 45:9 and 64:8), become the "workmanship", or, that which is fashioned.  A lump of clay must be submissive or it is no lump.  A striving, working lump becomes resistant, in its own free-will, bucking against the will of the potter, God.  A compliant lump receives grace while a willful one cannot.  Grace received initiates salvation and prepares the life to begin good works.  Grace resisted prevents salvation and any "good" works become misapplied, as the person continues to strive to save self.  

Emphasize the word God in this verse and we begin to see the whole point.  God does salvation, we don't.  He works on us, not we on our salvation.  And see how the foreordained purpose of Christ is woven into this whole doctrine:  we were "created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance...", that is, God made a way for His original plan to succeed despite our sinful interruption--He provided Jesus Christ.  God's workmanship upon us is all "in Christ."  As long as we are there, "in Christ", God can work on us and in us.  Outside of Christ no workmanship is possible.  This speaks not only of salvation, that is, that we are saved only by having Jesus, but also of the good works after salvation.  Anything done must be done "in Christ" in order to qualify as a "good work."  Things done in the energy of the flesh, though they may be said to have been done in God's Name, will endure as well as straw in a furnace:  they will burn away.  But all things, large and small, done in the leading and strengthening of The Holy Spirit, will endure, even improve, as does gold in a furnace.  Thus the life lived in Christ will have its good works mean something and its sin processed out.

God "prepares in advance for us to do" good works.  His goals did not end with salvation alone.  God has much more in mind than mere rescue for rescue's sake.  He rescues us in order to apply us to His purposes.  These purposes were determined by Him before time was even invented.  When we enter "into Christ" we enter the beautiful scope and sweeping plan of God begun from eternity past, embracing all of time, and flowing on into eternity future.  Even as Christ is an Eternal Being, knowing no creation and no demise, so we fulfill God's purposes in our good works, in time, fulfilling the past eternal plan of God and molding the future eternity with God.  We are immortal in Christ, and our good works will win out over our sinful natures, and will endure forever.  Wow!

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, all that You have planned, all that You have accomplished through Christ--it is amazing and marvellous to me!  Praise Your Holy Name!  Amen. 

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