Sermon Notes
Becoming Who We Are: God’s Creative Masterpiece
Ephesians 2:1-10
Our Scripture passage today culminates with one of the most moving declarations to churches and individual Christians to be found in the entire Bible, i.e., We are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works… (2:10)! With these words, God describes himself to be a creative artist making a masterpiece specifically to do good works in this world and that masterpiece is… well, it’s us!
With that in mind, did you know that, according to the Fine Art Expert Institute in Switzerland, well over 50% of the art masterpieces that are currently circulating in the market is thought to be forged or faked. So, a lot of work is being done so that collectors might discern fake art from authentic art. One instrument that’s being used to help in this is the Bruker X-Ray Florescent, the XRF: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajeRpezZ92g
Since all of us who claim to be Christians are supposed to be parts of God’s masterpiece, I wonder whether we might also have a percentage of people who claim to be authentic followers of Jesus but are not. Wouldn’t it be interesting to have an XRF device to help us sort out the real Christian from the fake?
Well, we don’t have that kind of device – but we do have the passage we come to today, Eph 2:1-10, to help us to discern whether we are authentic in our walks with God. These 10 verses contain a flow of thought that make the point that this “unexpected family of God”, as we’ve been calling the church, has been created by God for a reason, i.e., to make God known by engaging together in good works. As the Apostle Paul wrote this section of his letter, he wrote of several characteristics that help us identify an authentic work of God from those who might be faking it. What did he say?
God’s Authentic Masterpieces:
#1: Are Humble People – owning up to the truth of who we are apart from Christ (2:1-3). All of us… were by nature deserving of wrath.
One thing that knits all genuine believers in Jesus together is that we’ve acknowledged some bad news about our own lives. We’ve seen over the past two weeks that the Apostle Paul wrote about the two kinds of believers in the Church of Ephesus, i.e., Jewish believers and Gentile believers. In 2:1-2, he began to address only the newer Gentile believers by reminding them that they had been dead in their sins without Christ. But, in v. 3, Paul made it clear that, what he had said about the Gentiles’ problem was exactly the same for his fellow Jewish believers. Paul wrote, “All of us lived that way” before we came to Christ.
So, what Paul described here was neither just a problem for the Gentiles, nor was it just for the Jews. He described a human problem. When it comes to our standing before God, what a problem we human beings have! Paul took three full chapters to describe this human problem in the Book of Romans. But, here in Eph 2, he boiled our human condition down into three verses. What’s wrong with us? It’s a tough pill to swallow – but he says that you and I (and all people), on our own, are 1) dead, 2) enslaved and 3) condemned.
Apart from Christ, we all are dead (to God) -- You were dead in your transgressions and sins… (2:1).
That means that, here in church, we are all physically alive, and, because of that, we are all aware of our physical and material surroundings. But, it is quite likely that some of us are spiritually dead. The Bible tells us that this problem is true of all people before they are “born again” and made alive to God. The reason for this, the Bible says, is our “transgressions and sins”. These are two words that declare that we all go down paths that we know are wrong. We all cross boundaries we know we should not cross. We all do things we should not do and fail to do things we should do. Bottom line: we fall short of living as God has made us to live. Those transgressions and sins separate us from God. Sins may not kill us physically – but they kill us spiritually.
So, spiritually dead people may intuit that there must be a God – but don’t know him as Father. So, the person sitting next to you today may be a spiritual corpse. You may be one! The Bible passage we come to today is helping us discern whether we are spiritually alive or not. Apart from faith in Jesus, we are dead.
And, that first problem is compounded by a second.
Apart from Christ, we’re enslaved -- The physical part of us may not be alive to God but it is very much alive to the influence of things that will destroy us. To what? Paul mentions the three enemies: the world in v. 2a (“the ways of this world”), the devil in v. 2b (“the ruler of the kingdom of the air”) and our own human nature in v. 3 (“gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature”).
This is quite a powerful trio, isn’t it? The effect of their operating in our lives is that, even though we may try to live good lives that Eph 1:4 called “holy and blameless”, we can’t do it. We keep falling short – of our own moral expectations and, most certainly, we fall short of the glory of God. The result is that we all have a problem. It’s not just the people who never go to church who have the problem. It’s not just the really bad people like Hitler. It’s all of us! So, we’re dead to God because of our sin and we have no power with our own imperfect physical, mental or emotional strength to change things. And, that leads us to our third problem.
Apart from Christ, We’re Condemned -- We were by nature deserving of wrath (2:3).
Evil must be punished if we will have a good and just world. Few people disagree with that basic statement. And, God has declared that he will not let evil go unpunished. But, our condition is that we’ve all engaged in trespasses and sins! That means that, as we are on our own, we’re in big danger – eternal danger. That’s who we are without Christ: Dead – enslaved – condemned. What a mess we’re in!
As Paul begins this section describing the masterpiece God is making, he lets us know of the condition of those whom God is going to redeem and make a part of his work of art. Here’s my point: All of us genuinely being re-made as parts of God’s masterpiece have owned up to these problems. We know that on our own, we have no hope. Therefore, the authentic masterpiece of God is always a humble masterpiece.
Let me say right now as clearly as I can, unless we as a church are humbled by the reality of our own sin and our desperate need of mercy, we will never become the church God calls us to be. We will never welcome all those God adopts into his family. The humility that comes from owning up to our condition without Christ is the quality that will enable us to be a God-glorifying church. Humility is the first evidence of genuineness.
And, there is a 2nd evidence of our authenticity as followers of Jesus too, i.e., we…
#2: Are Grateful People – rescued by God’s grace through faith in Christ (2:4-9). God… made us alive with Christ even when we were dead.
Eph 2:3 ends with hopelessness. On our own, we are dead, enslaved and condemned. Then, v. 4 begins with one powerful phrase, i.e. “but God!!” God is ready to make a difference in all our lives. In these deeply moving verses, 2:4-9, we first are told why God has chosen to make available to us what we absolutely have not earned, and we do not deserve. V. 4 simply says, “Because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy made us alive…” So, on the basis of God’s Word, I want to declare to you as I did last week, that, no matter what you have done and no matter what you have brought with you to church today, God loves you with an everlasting love. Because of that, God is ready to do in your life what you cannot do on your own.
What Does God Do?
Rescue Action #1: He’s makes dead people alive -- God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions (2:5). This phrase, “made us alive” is what the Bible means by being born again. Babies cannot give birth to themselves physically. And, those dead spiritually cannot do anything to give birth to ourselves either. But, God loves us and is ready to do for us what we don’t deserve and cannot earn. This is what the Bible means by “grace” – and it is by God’s grace that we are made alive. When you’re alive spiritually, you’ll know it because the Bible will no longer be just a book but your Father’s loving guiding Word to you. A sermon will no longer a speech to you – but an opportunity to learn about your God and to hear from Him. Jesus will no longer be just a good man or religious teacher but your Lord and rescuer. God makes you alive to a world you had not formerly known.
Rescue Action #2: He takes enslaved people and raises us up -- God raised us up with Christ (2:6a). When you come alive to God, you will begin to sense new moral desires, i.e., you begin to long to know how God would want you to live. And, to accompany that, you will begin to discover a new moral strength to live for God, strength that formerly you did not know. This doesn’t happen as fast as you want it to happen. Being raised up and set free from our bondages and ways of life will require growth – and that takes time. But one of the surest ways to know you’re alive is that you start making “progress” in your love of God, your love of God’s family, and your readiness to obey God’s Word.
Rescue Action #3: He takes condemned people and seats us in victory -- God seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus (2:6b). It’s like we read about in Rom 8:1 “There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!” Jesus, the only one who lived the life we should be living but don’t, was willing to bear the punishment necessary because of our sin. What do we need to do to come alive to God and to be set free? The Bible says that all this is a gift of God’s grace. We need only to respond to what God has done by faith. We need to receive his gift of life. Hear Eph 2:8-9: “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”
All that we can say to this is, “Yes, Lord, I place my faith in Jesus.” And, “Thank you. Thank you for your gift of grace purchased by the precious blood of our Lord Jesus.”
So, the foundational change that God’s grace brings about in us, the thing that re-directs everything else, is that it takes away boasting and replaces it with gratitude. Those of us who know that our salvation required the death of the sinless Son of God can no longer be proud. Genuine churches are never griping, grouching churches. They are grateful churches.
#3: Are serving people -- doing good works together with others being re-created in Christ (2:10). We are God’s masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
In v.10, we come at last to the reason why God rescues and re-creates us. God does so because he wants to place something beautiful into his fallen and hurting creation that will make known his love, mercy and grace. His eternal plan has been to put local churches made up of people as different as Jews was from Gentile in Ephesus that will love and serve both one another and the world as Jesus did.
Do you remember what Jesus said in Mk 10:42-45 to those who would become leaders in his church? “Those regarded as rulers in the world lord their authority over their people. Not so with you! Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
And, do you remember what Jesus did for his followers just before he gave his life for us all? He washed their feet. Then, he said, “Do you understand what I have done for you? You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you (Jn 13:12-15).”
This life of service is at the heart of what Paul meant by “good works”. We are not saved by good works, but we are saved for good works. We are created by God’s grace through faith in Christ Jesus, ‘to do good works’…” That is the purpose God has eternally had in mind for us. So, why does God save us? It’s not just so that we get to go to heaven. The purpose of salvation is that we will do the kinds of good works Jesus did, works that make known what God is like! Our privilege, responsibility and calling is to do good works. We serve in our church family. We show love to our neighbor. We help people in our community who are in need. This is the heart, soul, and daily way of life of the authentic Christian.
So, we are ready to put the 10 verses of Eph 2:1-10 together now. A genuine masterpiece of God is marked by humility. When we live as if we don’t desperately need the mercy of God, then we look down on others different from us. But, when God’s grace meets us, we get our identity only by looking up to the only one who could have boasted. And, when we do that, when we look up at Jesus, we see that he who was in very nature God but was willing to serve us, even die for us (Phil 2:5-11).
And, that makes us grateful, so grateful for his grace that we ask, “Lord, how would you have me live. And, he says, “I’ve saved you to make my glory known. I want you to love and serve those I bring into your church family. I want you to love and serve those I bring across your path.”
What does that life of service and good works look like? On an individual and personal level, I think it calls for a different was of approaching each day and each encounter with people. I’ve asked a number of people in our church family about how that kind of approach to living might look on a daily basis. Let me show you just one response from LAC member, David Packer.
“My main goal each day is to be an encourager for those I see daily or weekly. I try to do so daily with those in the leasing office where I live. A word of encouragement; a smile; a prayer. Definitely I should be a good listener. Help others with chores. Volunteer at a care facility. Visit a shut in. Be with someone to support them as they go through the grief journey-or send a letter, card, text, or email. I seek to do these things with the goal in mind to glorify God and thank Him for His grace by caring for others.”
This way of life is what some theologians have called “the inner effect of the Gospel.” It refers to the ability God works in us to set us free from our usual sinful ways while we still touch and bless the people of the world. We live lives of good works in the world without engaging in the sin of the world. Do you know any examples of this? Does Jesus cross your mind?
But, let us remember that, in first respect, this message that we become God’s masterpiece is not so much a message to us individually but to us as a church family. We are people called to be one in Christ. And, one of the main ways this unifying happens is when we serve one another as well as serve alongside one another in our world. Nothing bonds people together more beautifully than when we serve one another. So, it’s clear to me that a life of service begins right here in our church family. When you come to church, you should always come with the mindset that says, “How would God have me serve my brothers and sisters?”
The Bible says this life of doing good works is what God has created us to be engaged in. We will be seeing in Eph. 4 that God gives each one of us gifts for the building up of the entire family. When we actually do this, i.e., live lives of serving one another within the church family, the world will see our life of loving service and know God is at work here. They will know God is re-creating us into his masterpiece.
Have you found the place God would have you serve this family? Many, many of you have. But, if you feel you are not serving as fully as God has created you to serve, we want to help you today. We will have tables in the lobby – tables at which pastors and church leaders will be present to talk with you about opportunities to make a difference here. If you are serving, something will be missing from this masterpiece that is LAC. We will be like a jigsaw puzzle with a piece missing! 
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My ministry colleague, Nancy Smith wrote this last week: If any one of us doesn’t serve, then the Body of Christ is missing a piece of the puzzle – God’s masterpiece. Our talents and gifts aren’t for our own benefit, but for the benefit of others. We need each other to complete the picture! It is a joy to serve alongside people who have figured that out! From singing to discipling, from praying to greeting, all gifts can be used to show God’s love and bring people into the Kingdom.
The evidences that we are a part of the masterpiece God is creating are these: 1) humility because of our condition apart from Christ, 2) gratitude because God loves us and by grace rescues us through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and 3) good works of service wherever we are, works that bring blessing to others and glory to God. Are those true of you? Are they becoming more and more true of us here at LAC? Let us become who we are created to be – God’s creative masterpiece doing good works that bring blessing to our world, joy to our lives, and glory to God.
Chinese Study Notes
回歸原本的自己：神最有創意的傑作
以弗所書2：1-10
我們今天所要看的經文，是整本聖經中對基督徒與教會的一個最感人的宣告：“我們原是祂的工作，在基督耶穌裏造成的……(2:10)“！神以這些經文來顯明自己是一位有創意的藝術家，祂所特意創造而出的傑作，是為要在世上做善工。那傑作就是我們！
你知道嗎？根據瑞典藝術專家學院的調查，在市場上流傳的藝術名作中，有50%以上的作品被認為是偽造的或是假的。因此大家做了大量的工作，為要讓收藏家們得以從大量的膺品中辨別真偽。其中一種用來測試真偽的儀器叫做布魯克X光熒光儀，簡稱XRF:
我們這些自認為是基督徒的人，都是神的傑作的一部分，但是我想，也會有一部分人，雖然認為自己是耶穌真正的跟隨者，但實際上卻並非如此。要是也有這樣一臺XRF儀器可以幫助我們識別真假基督徒，那不是很有意思嗎？https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajeRpezZ92g
不過我們雖然沒有這樣的儀器，卻有今天的這段經文：以弗所書2：1-10，這段經文可以幫助我們分辨清楚，自己是否真的走在跟隨神的路上。這十節經文包含了有關“神的意想不到的家庭”中所思考的一系列思想，就像我們的教會一樣，是因著特定的原因被神創造出來的，是為要一起同做善工，彰顯主名。使徒保羅在寫這部分的書信時，寫到幾個特征，能幫助我們辨認出真正的神的工作。下面我們來看看他是怎麽說的。
神真正的傑作
第一，他們必定是謙卑的人：我們死在過犯罪惡之中，所有人都是可怒之子（1：1-3）
把所有真正信靠耶穌的人們連結在一起的，是我們對自己的生命有所虧缺的認識。在過去的兩周之中，我們看到使徒保羅描述了以弗所教會的兩種信徒：猶太信徒與外邦信徒。在2：1-2中，他開始提醒那些新信主的外邦信徒，他們已經在罪中死亡，但是在第三節，保羅清楚地表明，他所說的外邦人的問題，與猶太信徒的問題是一樣的。保羅說：在認識基督之前，“我們所有人都是如此”。
因此，保羅在這裏所描述的，既不僅僅是外邦人的問題，也不單是猶太人的問題。他所講的，是人類的問題。當談到我們在神面前的地位時，我們人類所面對的是一個何等的問題啊！保羅在羅馬書中用整整三章來討論這個問題。然而在以弗所書第二章，他將人類的境況濃縮為三節經文。他說：我們所有人都1）已經死了；2）被奴役；3）被定罪。
離開了基督，我們在神面前都是已死的：你們都死在過犯罪惡之中（2：1）。
這裏的意思是說，此時在教會裏，我們都是活著的，因此我們都能認識到我們自身的狀況與周圍的物質環境，但是很可能，我們中的一些人在靈性上已經死了。聖經告訴我們，我們在神面前“重生”之前，這個問題對所有人都是真實的。聖經說，其原因就在於我們的“過犯和罪惡”。這兩個字表明，我們都步入了一條明知錯誤的道路。我們都越過了明知不可越過的界限。我們都做了明知不可做的事，卻沒有做我們該做的事情。一句話：我們都虧缺了神所命定給我們的生活。這些過犯和罪惡使我們與神隔絕。罪可能無法殺死我們的肉身，但卻在靈性上殺了我們。
因此，靈性上已死的人，可能會認識到，必定有一位神，但是卻不知祂是天父。因此，今天坐在你旁邊的有可能是一個靈性上死亡的人。你也可能是其中之一! 我們今天所看的聖經經文會幫助我們辨別我們在靈性上是否還活著。離開了對耶穌的信仰，我們就是已死的人了。
因此第二個問題將第一個問題復雜化了。
離开了基督，我們就是被奴役的人，我們的肉身可能不會活在神的面前，但在那毀壞我們的仇人面前，卻是活著的。保羅提到三個敵人：在第二節中提到今世（今世的風俗）；同一節又提到空中掌權者；第三節提到肉體的私欲（滿足我們罪性的渴望）。
這是一個強大的三重勢力的組合，不是嗎？它們在我們生活中的運作效果是，即使我們想要嘗試過以弗所書1:4所說的“聖潔和無可指責”的美好生活，我們也做不到。我們一直有所虧缺，虧缺了我們自己的道德期望，也虧缺了神的榮耀。結果是，我們都有問題，並不僅僅是那些從不去教會的人才有問題。並不是像希特勒那樣的壞人才有問題，是我們所有的人都有問題！因著自己的罪，我們在神的面前都是已死的人。我們沒有力量來靠著自己不完全的肉體、心智和情感來改變現狀，這就引出了我們的第三個問題。
離开了基督，我們就是受責罰的人----我們本為可怒之子（2：3）。如果我們要擁有一個美好而公正的世界，就要懲罰邪惡。很少有人不同意這個基本觀點。並且神也宣告，祂定會懲罰邪惡。但是我們的境況是，我們都是有過犯的罪人！這就意味著，我們只要依靠自己，我們就會面臨很大的危險，而且是永恒的危險。離開了基督，我們就面臨著死亡，被奴役，受責罰。我們面臨著一個很糟糕的境況！
當保羅在這個部分描述著神所創造的傑作時，他告訴了我們神的救贖計劃。我的觀點是，我們所有作為神的傑作而蒙神重造的人，都需要面對這個問題。我們知道，靠著自己，我們沒有希望。因此，神真正的傑作一定是謙卑的。
讓我說得更明白一些，除非我們因著自己的罪與我們對神恩典的迫切渴慕而謙卑下來，否則我們永遠無法成為神呼召我們要成為的那種教會。我們也永遠無法接納所有蒙召進入神家裏的人。如此得來的謙卑，才能使我們成為一個榮耀神的教會。謙卑是真實跟隨主的第一個確據。
我們是否真正跟隨主的第二個確據，那就是：
第二：他們一定要是感恩的人：我們因著神的恩典，藉著在基督裏的信心，得蒙救贖（2：4-9）。 “當我們死在過犯中的時候，便叫我們與基督一同活過來。
以弗所書2：3以無望結束，它指出，我們若是靠著自己，就已經死了，並且將被奴役、受到責罰。接著，第4節以一個強有力的短語為開始：“然而神……”。神已經準備好在我們的生命中做改變的工作。在2：4-9這些令人深受感動的經文中，保羅首先告訴我們，為什麽神要白白賜給我們那些我們不配得到、又無法賺取的恩典？第四節說：“神既有豐富的憐憫。因著祂愛我們的大愛……叫我們…活過來。” 因此，根據神的話語，我要像上周一樣向大家宣告，無論你曾經做過什麽，也無論你今天是帶著什麽來到教會，神都以永遠的愛來愛你。正因如此，神已經準備好在你的生命中做你靠著自己無法做到的事情。
神要做什麽？
拯救行動之一：祂使死人復活。神有豐盛的慈愛，即使我們應當死在過犯之中，祂仍舊讓我們與基督一同活過來（2：5）。聖經中所說的“使我們活著”這個短句的意思，就是復活。嬰兒無法使自己的身體出生於世，那些靈性上死了的人同樣也無法使自己重生。但是，神愛我們，祂已準備好將我們不配、也無法賺取的東西賜給我們。這就是聖經中所說的“恩典”，正是靠著神的恩典，我們才得以存活。當你在靈性上活著的時候，你就會知道，聖經不再是一本書，而是父親對你的愛與指導。講道對於你也不僅只是演講而已，而是一個了解神和聆聽從神而來的信息的機會。耶穌不再只是一個好人，或是一個宗教導師，而是你的主和拯救者。神使你活在一個以前未曾知道的世界裏。
拯救行動之二：神提拔被奴役之人，使我們與基督一同復活（2：6a）。 當你活在神面前時，你會開始感受到新的道德渴慕，你渴望知道神希望你如何生活。 而且，伴隨著這一點，你會開始發現一種新的道德力量，使你為神而活，這種力量是以前你所未曾經歷的。然而這種情況的發生並不像你希望的那樣快。我們被提升、並從舊日的束縛和舊有的生活方式中擺脫出來的過程，需要逐步的完善，而這需要時間。但是，使你確信你活在神面前的方法之一，就是在你對神的愛、對神家的愛，以及在遵守神話語的方面取得“進步”。
拯救行動之三：祂擔當了人類當受的責罰，卻使我們坐在得勝的寶座上，“祂又叫我
們與基督耶穌一同復活，一同坐在天上”，（2：6b）。 這就像我們在羅馬書8：1中
所讀到的那樣：“如今，那些在基督耶穌裏的就不定罪了！”耶穌過著我們本應當過的生活，並願意承受我們因罪而當得的刑罰。我們需要怎樣行，才能在神面前有永活的生命，並從罪中得自由？聖經說，這一切都是神賜下的恩典。 我們只需憑著信心回應神的作為、接受祂所賜的生命的禮物。請看以弗所書2章：8-9節所說的：“你們得救是本乎恩，也因著信。這並不是出於自己，乃是 神所賜的；也不是出於行為，免得有人自誇。”
我們唯有回應說：“是的，主啊，我信靠耶穌”，和 “感謝主， 感謝你送給我們用主耶穌的寶血所換來的恩典。“
神的恩典為我們帶來了根本性的改變，它主導了我們生命中一切的事物，這改變驅走了自大，並以感恩的心取而代之。我們明白，我們所得的救恩，需要那位無罪的神子去受死，從此我們再無可自誇之處。 真正的教會永遠不會是抱怨與發牢騷的教會，而應當是感恩的教會。
第三，他們一定是服事的人 ---- 與其他在基督裏重生的人一起同做善工（2:10）。 “我們原是祂的工作，在基督耶穌裏造成的，為要叫我們行善，就是神所預備叫我們行的。”
在第10節中，我們終於看到了神拯救並重塑我們的原因。神這樣做是因為祂想要將一些美好的東西放入那墮落並受損的被造物中，從而顯明祂的慈愛、憐憫和恩典。在祂永恒的計劃中，祂要使用像以弗所教會那樣不同於以色列人的外邦人來組成各地的教會，使這些教會像耶穌那樣彼此相愛與服事。
不知大家還記不記得耶穌在馬可福音10：42-45中對那些即將成為教會領袖的人所說的話：“你們知道，外邦人有尊為君王的治理他們，有大臣操權管束他們。只是在你們中間，不是這樣。你們中間，誰願為大，就必作你們的用人；在你們中間，誰願為首，就必作眾人的仆人。因為人子來，並不是要受人的服事，乃是要服事人，並且要舍命作多人的贖價。”
而且，你還記得耶穌在為我們所有人獻出生命之前為祂的門徒所做的事嗎？祂洗了
他們的腳，然後對他們說：“我向你們所做的，你們明白嗎？你們稱呼我夫子，稱呼我主，你們說的不錯，我本來是。我是你們的主，你們的夫子，尚且洗你們的腳，你們也當彼此洗腳。我給你們作了榜樣，叫你們照著我向你們所做的去做”（約翰福音13：12-15）。
這種事奉的生命，就是保羅所說的“善行”的核心。 我們不是因為“善行”而得到拯救，但我們得救是為了行善。 我們是因著在基督耶穌裏的信心，以致在神的恩典中被造而“去行善”......這就是神為我們所定的永恒的旨意。那麽，為什麽要神拯救我們呢？這不僅僅是為了讓我們去天堂，救恩的目的是要讓我們去行耶穌所行的各樣善事，這些“善行”能使人知道神的樣式！我們的特權、責任和呼召就是做善工。 我們在教會家庭中事奉，我們以愛心來對待鄰舍，我們幫助社區中有需要的人，這才是真正基督徒的心靈和日常的生活方式。
因此我們現在已經準備好，將以弗所書2：1-10的10節經文聯系在一起了。 真正的神的傑作是以謙卑為標誌的。 在我們的生活中，如果我們並不迫切需要神的憐憫，我們就會瞧不起與我們不同的人。 但是當神的恩典與我們相遇時，我們只有通過仰望那唯一可以誇口的人，才能獲得我們的名份。 而且，當我們這樣做、並仰望耶穌時，我們會看到，耶穌具有神的本性，卻願意服事我們，甚至為我們而死（腓立比書2：5-11）。
這讓我們對神的恩典充滿了感恩，以至於我們會問，“主啊，你怎能讓我活在你的面前？ 而祂說，“我拯救了你們，因此我的榮耀得以彰顯。 我希望你們能夠愛和服事那些我帶進你們教會大家庭的人們，我也希望你能夠愛和服事那些我帶進你生命之中的人們。”
事奉和做善工的生命是什麽樣的？ 我個人認為，它要求我們在每一天或遇到每個人時都能有所改變。 我曾詢問教會中的一些人，我們如何能在每日的生活中看到這種生活方式。 讓我向您展示一下我們教會成員大衛•派克先生的回應。
“我每天的主要目標是，當我每天或每周看到周圍人們的時候，我要成為他們的鼓勵者。 我爭取每天都在我所租用的辦公室中這樣做： 一句鼓勵; 一個微笑; 一個禱告。 當然，我也應該是一個好的聽眾，能幫助別人做家務；在護理機構做誌願者；探訪一個封閉的人；與某些正在經歷悲痛的人同在，或者寄一封信、一張安慰卡、一段安慰的話語或電子郵件，扶持他們度過艱難的時刻。我尋求做這些事情，目的是為了榮耀神，並通過照顧祂人來感謝祂的恩典。”
這種生活方式就是一些神學家所說的“福音的內在果效”。它指的是神在我們裏面作工的大能，使我們在接觸和祝福世人的同時，從帶有罪性的生活方式之中得以自由。 我們在世上不與罪茍營，而是活出“善行”。 你認識這樣的人嗎？ 耶穌此時是否浮現在你的腦海之中？
但是我們要記住，首先，我們成為神的傑作，並不是對我們個人而言，而是對我們作為教會家庭的整體而言。 我們被視為在基督裏合而為一的人。而且，這種合一發生的主要方式之一，就是我們彼此服事、也在世上並肩一同事奉。 沒有什麽比我們在彼此服事之時更美好的關系了。 所以我很清楚，在我們的教會大家庭中，服事的生活就在這裏開始。 當你來到教會時，你應該總是帶著這樣的心態：“神如何讓我為我的兄弟姐妹們服務？”
聖經說，“行善” 就是神創造我們時所命定要我們去做的事情。我們將在以弗所書第四章看見：神賜給我們每一個人屬靈的恩賜，為要建立起整個的屬靈家庭。 當我們真正這樣做時，也就是在教會家庭中過著彼此服事的生活之時，世人就會看到我們有愛心的生命，並知道神在這裏作工。 他們將會知道，神正在將我們重塑為祂的傑作。
你有沒有找到神讓你為這個家庭服務的地方？ 在座的很多人都找到了。 但是如果你覺得自己目前的事奉還沒有完全發揮神所賜予你的恩賜，那麽我們今天就想幫助你。 我們將在大廳設有桌子，牧師和教會領袖都會在場，與您討論如何在這裏做改變的工作。 如果你不在事奉中，這將會是我們教會這件傑作的缺失，我們就會像個缺了一個圖形的拼圖遊戲！
我的宣教同工南希•史密斯上周寫道：如果我們中的任何一個人沒有事奉，那麽基督的身體、也就是神的拼圖傑作都將會失去其中的一片。 我們的才能和恩賜不是為了我們自己的利益，而是為了他人的利益。 我們需要彼此共同完成這幅圖畫！ 與那些想出以上理念的人並肩事奉是一種快樂！ 從唱詩到門徒訓練，從禱告到問候，所有的恩賜都可以用來表達神的愛，並將人們帶入神的國度。
下面這幾點，就是我們身為神所創造的傑作的證據：1）我們與基督分離之後，因著自己所處的狀況而謙卑，2）因著神愛我們，並藉著恩典、藉著對主耶穌基督的信仰來拯救我們3）無論我們身在何處，都要做服事的善工，為他人帶來祝福，為神帶來榮耀。你是如此行的嗎？ 這些對我們教會來說是否也越來越真實呢？讓我們成為我們起初被造的樣式，就是那做主善工、為世人帶來祝福，為生活帶來喜樂，為神帶來榮耀的傑作。
榮耀歸給神
Greg Waybright博士
主任牧師
Greg Waybright