Friday, June 6, 2008
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What a deal I got on a masterpiece! I was in Paris, touring what is probably the world's most famous art museum - the Louvre, as they say. All day long I had been seeing these works by great artists like Michelangelo, and Rembrandt, and you know all the biggies! And then I rounded this one corner and I was in this room jammed with people. It was lit with special lighting, it was guarded by security guards. And when I finally got into that room, there she was, the one painting you've heard of if you've only heard of one painting. That's right, the Mona Lisa! There she was smiling at me in a painting that took up an entire wall. At the bottom was this signature - Leonardo da Vinci, the artist. Now, you can't buy the Mona Lisa, she's literally priceless. But I bought the Mona Lisa for .25 that day! Oh, yes I did. It's in a drawer at home. I could show it to you. Well, actually, it's a postcard of the Mona Lisa. What's the difference? Well, the postcard is a copy. It's cheap! The one in the museum is an original, signed by the artist - she's priceless.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Untouchable Worth."
Let's get an estimate of what you're worth...
Our word for today from the Word of God, Ephesians 2:10, "We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Did you hear that? God's workmanship! Put your name in there, "______ is God's workmanship." You're unique! You're a one-of-a-kind original masterpiece! You may not feel like you're a masterpiece. You may not have been treated like you're a masterpiece, but the One who designed you says that's exactly what you are. From the time that egg and sperm came together to begin you, God was creating an original and building into you the qualities and the experiences and the capabilities to make a unique difference, to as that verse says, "do good works which God prepared in advance for you to do." You're a one of a kind original! You're priceless - unless you become a copy of someone else, in which case you go for cheap.
You've probably had plenty of messages in your life that have made you feel more like the postcard than the masterpiece. Maybe you've been rejected, ignored, hurt, or used. Maybe you've been criticized a lot, put down, and all by people who didn't know who you really are. But because of all those negative messages, you have this lie playing in your brain - "you're not worth much; you can't do much; you're not good enough." Remember it's not your friends who determine what you're worth, or your critics, or your family, or your culture, or your boss. It is your Designer. He gave you your worth the moment you were conceived by Him. It is intrinsic value - so your worth is not because of how much you make, or what title you have, or whether anyone asks you out or not - you are God's workmanship. No one on earth gave you your worth, and no one on earth can take it away. Your worth from God is untouchable!
There are three words in this verse that point us in the direction of where personal worth can be found, it says, "in Christ Jesus." It's when you're in Christ Jesus that you finally realize how much you're worth. You don't know who you are until you're in the hands of the one who loves you the most - who thinks you are so valuable, He paid for your sin with His life. God's Son died for you. That's how much He thinks you're worth!
Now, it may be you've never given yourself to Jesus. You've never put all your trust in Him to be your personal Rescuer from the sin that keeps you from knowing who created you. This could be your day to open up to His love and get a personal relationship with the One who gave you your worth. See, God wants you to live like the masterpiece He created you to be.
Maybe you've never said to Him, "Jesus, I'm Yours." I really want to invite you, really at your first opportunity today to get to our website, where there's a simple road map for how you can begin that relationship this very day. Go to yoursforlife.net. I hope you'll meet us there. You've been designed by the Master Artist. You are priceless!