Who do you think you are? Masterpiece

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?—2

MASTERPIECE

WITHOUT CHRIST, THERE’S SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOU.

Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins…

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By our very nature we were

subject to God's anger, just like everyone else.

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But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,

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that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the

dead. (It is only by God's grace that you have been saved!) Ephesians 2:1, 3-5 NLT

WITH CHRIST, YOU ARE GOD’S MASTERPIECE.

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from

God.

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Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

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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. Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT

AS GOD’S MASTERPIECE

1) YOU ARE CREATED FOR THE MASTER’S PURPOSE.

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.

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I praise you because I

am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

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My frame was

not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of

the earth,

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your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book

before one of them came to be. Psalm 139:13-16

2) YOU HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO DO EVERYTHING GOD WANTS YOU TO DO.

[God’s] divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge

of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 2 Peter 1:3

3) GOD USES EVERYTHING IN YOUR LIFE TO BRING ABOUT HIS PURPOSES.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called

according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

IF YOU DON’T LIKE YOUR YOURSELF

LET GOD REMAKE YOU.

So I went down to the potter's house and saw him working at the potter's wheel. 4 He was using his

hands to make a pot from clay, but something went wrong with it. So the potter used that clay to

make another pot the way he wanted it to be. Jeremiah 18:3-4 NCV

Who do you think you are?

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?—1

AMBASSADORS

* WHEN YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE, YOU’LL KNOW WHAT TO DO.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 19…And [God] has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God.21God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:17, 19-21

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

* YOU ARE AN AMBASSADOR SENT BY GODFROM HEAVEN TO EARTH.

AS CHRIST’S AMBASSADOR

* YOU WERE NOT ELECTED BY PEOPLE BUT CHOSEN AND APPOINTED BY GOD!

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last… 19As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world.John 15:16, 19

But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles… Acts 9:15

* YOU NEVER REPRESENT YOURSELF. YOU ALWAYS REPRESENT GOD.

For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. John 6:38

I may seem to be boasting too much about the authority given to us by the Lord. But our authority builds you up; it doesn't tear you down. So I will not be ashamed of using my authority. 2 Corinthians 10:8 NLT

We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God weremaking his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:20-21

TALK IT OVER

· Discuss what being “in Christ” really means. You may want to search for that phrase in the book of Ephesians for ideas.

· When a person accepts Christ, what about them would you expect to be new and different?

· If you don’t feel like an ambassador, what will you do this week to step into that truth?