“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 2:10. Wow! This is one of those statements from the word of God that always makes me go, wow! If the Bible did not say it, I am not sure how much of it I would have believed that I am God’s masterpiece.
When I was young, I could not have believed this even if I had seen it in the word of God. Back then, I was this wobbly young lad who tended to drop everything and break everything. I could not stand up to any of my contemporaries, so I cried about every little thing and many of my siblings found this quite annoying. The thing about all of that was I knew it myself that I was an irritation. So there was no doubt that I did not feel like a masterpiece then, and I certainly did not look like a masterpiece, but God’s Word says I am not only a masterpiece, but I am, in fact, God’s masterpiece.
I am God’s masterpiece, which means I am God’s jewel, God’s workmanship. Being God’s masterpiece means I am intentionally created by God. The creator of every masterpiece has a lot of intentionality behind the work created. This means I am special. The Word of God says “for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well” – Psalms 139:14. It is so good to know that I am not only special, but that the Lord also thinks I am special. How I wished I had come across this word of God at that time! It would have helped my confidence which was lacking a lot in those days just because I felt I was not up to par.
This reminds me of the story about the seven-cow bride. In a small indigenous town in Africa the custom is for prospective grooms to pay a bride price, or dowry, in cows. Often, the most beautiful girls attract the highest number of cows and, usually, the dowry for the most beautiful girls range between four or five cows. Young girls in the town will often joke about how many cows they believe their suitors will offer. There was a young lady in the town who was so plain that no one thought she could attract more than one cow. However, a young man was attracted to the character of this young lady and decided to ask for her hand in marriage. The suitor had heard of how other girls had made fun of the young lady and how many cows she might get. The young man decided to do what no other person had done and offered the parents of her bride seven cows. The parents were happy, and the bride was elated. Now this girl had the singular honor of having received the highest number of cows from her suitor. She moved to her husband’s house and as the day passed, everyone started noticing a new bounce in the step of this new wife. Her dress started appearing more beautiful. When she walked, she walked so elegantly. In no time she became so glamorous that she was the talk of the town. People were taken aback by the transformation. A friend of the groom who visited them asked him why he offered seven cows for a plain bride and he said, he just wanted to have a seven-cow bride and because of his love for his wife he believed she is a seven-cow bride. He added that it is evident she has risen to the level of her bride price.
My brothers and sisters, we must live up to the value our creator placed on us. We are God’s masterpiece created anew in Christ Jesus. This means our rebirth; our faith has improved our value in the eye of the Lord. I found the Lord and I found my worth. I found, to my content, that I am God’s masterpiece. God loves his creation. If for some reason you still had thoughts like I had before I met the Lord, I implore you to take a moment and meditate on His words. Listen to the truth of God’s words. You have been fearfully and wonderfully made. The word says “He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” – Ephesians 2:10b. Do not let “untruths” take over your mind. When we know who and how special we are, we can begin to walk in our purpose. When God looks at us, all He sees is beauty and greatness. We are His priceless work of art with divine potential to do things within His good plans that are unique, special, and designed to give us an expected end. Glory! — Pastor Simbo Odunaiya
