A.W. Tozer's materials are a mainstay in Evangelical churches in our day and he is one of the most quoted authors. He was a prophet in his day and his writings are even more influential in our day. One of his books: The Pursuit of God, has had over 1 million copies sold world-wide.

Morning and Evening with A.W. Tozer

Man - The Dwelling Place of God - How to Try the Spirits

For Reading and Meditation:      Ephesians 2:1-10We are acknowledging that in order to understand "grace" we must see it in relation to a Sovereign. As one writer puts it: "Grace is bound to be sovereign since it cannot by its very nature be subject to compulsion." That is why we often refer to it as free grace. There is no reason for grace but grace. I believe the old definition of grace cannot be improved: "Grace is the free unmerited favor of God." At the heart of all true communion with God there lies this gripping truth - God took the initiative. He is more inclined toward us than we are toward Him. We cannot earn His affection. We have simply to receive it. Always the initiative is from God. When you originally came to Him you came because He first drew you. The very faith by which you lay hold of Him is not of yourself; it is, as our text says, "the gift of God." Every step you make on your spiritual pilgrimage is possible because of His grace. I know this teaching affronts modern-day men and women because they like to feel that they can "work their passage to heaven," as one preacher puts it. That is like someone in debt for a million pounds trying to get the one to whom he is indebted to accept his resources of a few pence as being sufficient to clear the debt. Listen to the Word of God again and let it sink deep into your soul: "For it is by grace you have been saved  it is the gift of God." Grace is a gift. You have not to achieve but simply receive.O Father, once again my heart is moved as I realize it was not my merit but Your mercy, acting in grace, that drew You to me, and me to you. All honor and glory be to Your mighty and everlasting Name. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Romans 5:1-21</li><li>Titus 3:7</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>How does Paul define grace?</li><li>Write out your own definition of grace.</li></ul></div></div>

Let a little light into your soul every day with this wonderful devotional from English pastor Selwyn Hughes.

Every Day Light with Selwyn Hughes

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith  it is the gift of God " (v. 8)

For Reading and Meditation:      Deuteronomy 7:1-10When the Bible says God is love, it is saying more than that God loves, or that God is loving, or even that God is lovely; it is saying that love is the power behind everything He does - love is not merely one of His attributes but His whole nature. God is not only the Author of loving acts; He is love in the very core of His Being. Our thoughts of God's love must be built on God's revelation about Himself in the Scriptures, not by projecting our own ideas about love on to Him. Let's focus, therefore, on what the Bible has to say about the God who is love. First, God's love is uninfluenced. By that I mean nothing in us can give rise to it and nothing in us can extinguish it. It is "love for nothing," as someone once put it. The love which we humans have for one another is drawn out of us by something in the object of our love. But God's love is not like that; His love is free, spontaneous, and uncaused. The passage before us today makes clear that there is no reason behind the love of God for His people. If you look for a reason you just won't find one. He loves because  He loves. No man or woman can ever explain why God loves us. To "explain" it would require that He loves us for something outside of Himself, and, as we have seen, He loves us for ourselves alone. And that love has its beginning not in us but in Himself. He is love's source as well as its river.O God, what security this gives me to know that Your love for me will never be diminished and never be taken away. Help me reflect on this and draw from it the inspiration I need to walk tall and strong through every day. In Jesus' Name. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Ephesians 2:1-10</li><li>1 John 3:1</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>How does Paul describe God's reason for saving us?</li><li>How does John put it?</li></ul></div></div>

"The Lord did not  choose you because you were  numerous  But the Lord loved you " (vv. 7-8)

For Reading and Meditation:      Ephesians 1:15-23Young Christians who have just come into the faith often ask: Why is the resurrection so important? How can an event which took place 2,000 years ago have any relevance for us today? Three very simple statements (not original to me) will bring us to the heart of the matter. First, the resurrection of Christ assures us of God's forgiveness. Forgiveness is one of humanity's greatest needs. Jack Winslow, in his book Confession and Absolution, says that the head of a large English mental hospital remarked that he could dismiss half of his patients immediately if they could be assured of forgiveness. The resurrection is convincing proof that Christ's sacrifice on the cross was accepted, and thus gives us the assurance that all our sins can be forgiven. Second, the resurrection of Christ assures us of God's power. It is one thing to be forgiven; it is another to live above the power of sin. "Men may change their ways," say some writers (as we saw) from non-Christian religions, "but they can't change their character." Well, God can change people's character. He did so with the apostle Paul, with Peter, and with countless others. Paul's prayer in the passage before us today focuses on this - that we might comprehend something of the power released in the world through the resurrection. Third, the resurrection assures us of God's ultimate triumph. Other religions and ideologies have very vague ideas about the future. Some believe in endless cycles of reincarnations; others nirvana. Christians, however, have a hope that is different. Death for a believer is nothing more than the anteroom to glory.Father, this must be the moment when debate ends and dedication begins. As You have done so much for me, I want to commit myself in a deeper way than ever before to living life in the power of Your resurrection. Help me dear Father. In Jesus' Name. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Ephesians 2:1-10</li><li>Romans 8:11</li><li>Colossians 3:1</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>To what extent do we experience resurrection life?</li><li>To what heights does resurrection life raise us?</li></ul></div></div>

"... he raised [Christ] from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms ..." (v. 20)

For Reading and Meditation:      Ephesians 2:1-10A Hindu once said in my presence: "A man may change his acts but not his character." He was saying that a change is possible, but not a vertical change; there can be improvement, modification, a change of attitude, but no deep radical change. The Christian church is not without a sprinkling of what yesterday I called "horizontal" conversions. Many historians have called attention to the fact that when Christianity swept through Europe, there were many genuine conversions to Christ but many horizontal ones too - people taking the Name of Christ for political or economic expediency. They were converted horizontally but still in need of a vertical conversion. When I was about fourteen years of age I was "horizontally" converted. I was a mischievous young man, and one day in church I made up my mind to be "a good boy." I tried hard to give up such things as swearing, stealing, and so on, but it didn't last. Although I felt religious, there was no great inward change. On a horizontal level I was converted, but not in relation to God. About a year later, sitting in the same church and under deep conviction of sin, I made a complete and total surrender to God. I was vertically converted. I walked out of that church feeling as if I had been turned inside out. From that moment my life was changed, old habits began to disappear, and my whole being was flooded with light. I tell you with all the conviction of my being, the vertical was much different than the horizontal. O God, help us not to be converted to the things surrounding Christ - religious rituals for example - but to Christ Himself. For if we don't touch Him we don't touch life, and there will be no deep inward change. In His dear Name we ask it. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Titus 3:1-5</li><li>Ezekiel 36:26</li><li>John 3:3-7</li><li>1 Peter 1:23</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>How is the change in a person described?</li><li>How is it accomplished?</li></ul></div></div>

"... God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions ..." (vv. 4-5) 

For Reading and Meditation:      Ephesians 3:14-21We are seeing that once we enter the sanctuary of God our perspective changes. This can happen to us when we are alone, of course, but the chances are it will happen more swiftly in the act of corporate worship. It is a command of God that we meet together, not only that we might come to know each other better, but that we might also come to know Him better. And here's the interesting thing - the more effectively we relate to one another, the more effectively we relate to Him. We come to know God better through the act of corporate worship than when we worship on our own. That is not to say that the shut-ins, or those who for various reasons are unable to meet together in worship, cannot know God intimately, but something special flows out of the act of corporate worship. Listen to how C.S. Lewis put it: "God can show Himself as He really is only to real men. And that means not simply men who are individually good but to men who are united together in a body, loving one another, helping one another, showing Him to one another. For that is what God meant humanity to be like; like players in one band, or organs in one body. Consequently the only real adequate instrument for learning about God is the whole Christian community, waiting for Him together. Christian brotherhood is, so to speak, the technical equipment for this science - the laboratory outfit." Christians who neglect attendance at the church, or choose to deprive themselves of fellowship with other Christians, miss out on life's greatest science - learning about God. My Father and my God, I am so thankful that, although I can know You when I am alone, I can know You even better through the fellowship of the Church. Help me to learn about You in every way I can. In Jesus' Name I ask it. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Ephesians 2:1-19</li><li>Romans 8:15</li><li>2 Corinthians 6:18</li><li>Galatians 4:5</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>How does Paul describe the Church?</li><li>What does it mean to be adopted?</li></ul></div></div>

" that you  may be able to comprehend with all the saints " (vv. 17-18, NKJ)

If we are created anew, we are created unto good works. The world ought not to be angry with God for creating men anew; for he is creating them for this among other things that they may tread in the footsteps of 'their Divine Master and abound in good works to their fellow-men. The world, how ever, is irritated at the proposition that men need a special creation in order to become competent to bestow good gifts. It professes to be able to point to men, who have spent for tune, time, health, in a whole-hearted endeavor to do good to their fellow-men. But consider that it is one thing to give a poor creature on his way to the gallows, a cup of water, and another thing to save him from the gallows. One thing to make the cell of a criminal comfortable, and another thing to save him from crime and put within his reach the means of attaining to everlasting bliss. The world, obedient to the instincts that God has implanted, often looks around to see what oasis it can create in the desert of this world, but alas! the trees which it plants yield no immortal fruit. Until a poor creature has been brought to God, all that you can do for him is of comparatively little moment. If your benefits tend to this, even indirectly, well and good. You may exercise your generosity in such a way as shall tend to keep the man ignorant that there is a gospel, and that he needs it absolutely.

A daily devotional written by a Baptist Missionary to India, Reverend George Bowen (1816-1888) over 150 years ago.

Bowen's Daily Meditations

"We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works." - Ephesians 2:10. 

To me, to live is Christ. (Philippians 1:21 NIV)

In the wilderness the whole of our 
natural life is brought out, and we come to know our weakness and emptiness; 
that we have nothing. Thus it is that we now find everything in Christ and so 
can go over and possess. What is the secret of possession, of coming into our 
inheritance? It is that we have come to the place where all things are "in 
Christ" and He is everything – our very Life and being. Our flesh is cut off and 
we know as the deepest thing in our being, that unless God does everything in us 
by His Spirit, all is of no value. We must come to an end of our own working 
in order to come into His fullness. It is so easy to sit down in our weakness 
and nurse ourselves, but the Lord says at that point, "Arise and possess." Your 
inheritance is not here on earth, it is in Christ in the heavenlies; not in 
yourselves, your fullness is in Him. It is ever His Fullness over against your 
emptiness; His Strength over against your weakness; your inheritance is all He is, as typified to Israel by the land flowing with milk and honey.
Paul says of Timothy, "he worketh 
the work of the Lord" (1 Cor. 16:10). There is to be an end of our works so far 
as we are concerned, nothing of us, as out from ourselves; but God says, 
in effect: "with your nothingness I will possess the heavens and the earth." Oh, 
to be such a people, chastened and emptied of self, for the Holy Spirit by His 
energies to display the moral glories of the Lord Jesus in us and so 
through us. "To the intent that now unto principalities and powers might 
be made known through the Church the manifold wisdom of God" (Eph. 3:10,11). 
"That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace... for 
we are His workmanship" (Eph. 2:7,10).

This devotional contains short daily portions from a selection of Mr. Austin-Sparks' messages. In his own words, “Perhaps this is just like a window opened into heaven. If you get the right window you can see quite a lot. You can see great things and you can see far things. But the best that I can hope is that this has just opened a window, and that as you look through it you are seeing one thing - how superior is Jesus Christ to all else, and how superior is the dispensation into which we have come, and how superior are all the resources at our disposal to all that ever was before!” Open Windows messages have been selected and compiled by Austin-Sparks.Net from the works of T. Austin-Sparks. In some cases they appear in abridged form. The introductory verse and its associated Bible version have been selected by the editor and did not always appear within the original message.

Open Windows

Our Inheritance in Christ - Chapter 2

 Our Inheritance is in Christ 

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 NLT)
You look back on your life. You 
may be disappointed in many ways with your part in the business. You may be able 
to see many falterings and blunderings and mistakes that you on your side made. 
You may have sometimes felt that you were not the person for that job; God had 
made a mistake. Some of us have felt like that. And yet, as we look more deeply 
into God's ways with us and know God's principles, we see a wonderful logic in 
it all. You and I are called for something, laid hold of by God for something, 
put by God into something, and we feel God has made a mistake: "I am not the 
person for this, I ought never to have come into this, I have no qualifications 
for this, I am altogether the wrong peg here!" And yet, somehow or other, God 
does it. He enables you, He carries you through, He accomplishes the work to 
your own surprise and wonder. As you lay hold of the Holy Spirit, it is done – 
that is, if you do not sink down into yourself and give up and draw out because 
of what you are – but you lay hold of the Holy Spirit and you get through and 
marvel that you have got through, that the Lord has done this thing through you, 
through me. 
That is very consistent with 
God's principles, that is no contradiction. It is most consistent with the 
deepest principles of God. No flesh shall glory in His presence. It is all 
coming back to Him. God – mark you – elected "the foolish things of the world... 
the weak things... the things that are not" (1 Cor. 1:27,28). It is the same 
word; He has elected. It is quite consistent. Yes, His ways are past finding 
out. "God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform," but He is 
consistent with His principles. A life in the Spirit is one succession of 
confirmations that God is working out a plan. Only rebellion, stubbornness, 
self-assertiveness and all forms of self-life will hinder or arrest; but a life 
in the Spirit will be a constant succession of proofs, of evidences, that you 
were chosen for something. God is not dealing with you just from hand to mouth, 
piecemeal. It is all worked out. Good works foreordained, "afore prepared, that 
we should walk in them." If we walk in the Spirit, we walk in afore prepared 
works; whether we see it or not, it is a fact. But it comes out, wonderfully so, 
and we have to go down and say, "Well, Lord, forgive us for arguing, forgive us 
for discussing the matter, forgive us for putting over our minds and what we 
think about it against You: You are wonderful, Lord." And we worship, and that is 
the proof of election, and you do not want better proof than that. It is all 
inside of Christ by the Holy Spirit.

Union with Christ - Chapter 3

 God's Principle of Election 

This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent. Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. § Faith working through love. § He who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. § We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. § [He] gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other … Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good plea- sure of His goodness and the work of faith with power. § It is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

Daily Light on the Daily Path or Daily Light is a Christian daily devotional scripture reading published by Bagster & Sons about 1875. It has been reprinted continually since then. It consists of brief groupings of scripture passages which speak to prominent Biblical themes—two themes (morning and evening) for each day of the year. It appends no commentary, but simply allows scripture to speak for itself.

Morning Daily Light

Daily Devotional for Dec 22

Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith. § What do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? § By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. § For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things. § All things come from You, and of Your own we have given You. Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, for in Your sight no one living is righteous.

 When you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, “We are unprofitable servants.” 

You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God. § You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. You shall be named the priests of the Lord, they shall call you the servants of our God. § Priests of God and of Christ. Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus. § By Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. § The temple of God is holy, which temple you are.

 You shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. 

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God. § A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. § No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. § I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Lord, You will establish peace for us, for You have also done all our works in us.

 It is God who works in you. 

Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ … We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. § For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. We know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. § I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. § If children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ.

Evening Daily Light

 God created man in His own image. 

The king commanded them to quarry large stones, costly stones, and hewn stones, to lay the foundation of the temple. § The temple, when it was being built, was built with stone finished at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built. You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house. § Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. § Who once were not a people but are now the people of God. You are God’s building. § Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. § Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

 We are His workmanship. 

<blockquote>
He has created us through our union with Christ Jesus for doing good deeds which He beforehand planned for us to do" (<a id="verse_1632879398578142" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/2/10">Eph. 2:10</a>, Wms.).
</blockquote>The turning point in our Christian life comes when we begin to "let God be God," the day we throw all caution (fear) to the winds and look to Him to carry out His purpose for us in His own time and way."Our Father never does a thing suddenly: He has always prepared long, long before. So there is nothing to murmur about, nothing to be proud of, in the calling of God. There is also no one of whom to be jealous, for other people's advantages have nothing to do with us. It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that hath mercy' (<a id="verse_1632879398528906" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Romans/9/16">Rom. 9:16</a>). Our heritage, our birth, our natural equipment: these are things already determined by God. We may pick up other things in the way, for we are always learning; but the way is His way. When we look back over our life, we bow and acknowledge that all was prepared of God. To have such an attitude of heart, that is true rest." -W.N."Let us take care lest we get out of soul-rest in seeking further blessing. God cannot work whilst we are anxious, even about our spiritual advance. Let us take Him at His Word, and leave the fulfillment of it to Him.""For it is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His gracious will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire" (<a id="verse_1632879398186583" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Philippians/2/13">Phil. 2:13</a>, Wey.).

A 365 day devotional that will help you in your Christian growth and walk with the Lord Jesus Christ.  This devotional is a collection of quotes from some of the best authors in the realm of Christian growth that has been organized by Miles J Stanford.  This devotional study is divided into 12 sections each containing 31 daily portions.

None but the Hungry Heart

 Rest In Him 

<blockquote>
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him" (<a id="verse_1632879494102916" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Colossians/2/6">Col. 2:6</a>).
</blockquote>How readily and eagerly we take His Word when He says, "I go to prepare a place for you" (<a id="verse_1632879494799086" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/John/14/2">John 14:2</a>), yet how slow of heart we are to believe that He has prepared a walk for us, here and now! For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us, (taking paths which He prepared ahead of time) that we should walk in them - living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live" (<a id="verse_1632879494373992" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/2/10">Eph. 2:10</a>, Amp.)."Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (<a id="verse_1632879494790291" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/1/3">Eph. 1:3</a>, ASV). If you can run over in your mind and find one single blessing with which God might bless us today, with which He has not already blessed us, then what He told Paul is not true at all, because He said, God hath....' It is all done, It is finished.' God hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies! The great pity of it all is that we are saying O God bless us - bless us in this, bless us in that! and it is all done; He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ in the heavenlies. It is our place to believe and receive." -L.L.L."According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness" (<a id="verse_1632879494768782" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/2-Peter/1/3">2 Pet. 1:3</a>).

 Prearranged 

<blockquote>
So then let us once for all quit the elementary teaching about Christ and continue progressing; toward maturity" (<a id="verse_1632879763842992" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Hebrews/6/1">Heb. 6:1</a>, Wms.).
</blockquote>When the standard of the Christian life is low, the responsibility for growth is placed upon the believer. But when it is known that God's standard for us is His Son, all expectation of maturity must be placed in Him - "for it is God which worketh in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (<a id="verse_1632879763144913" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Philippians/2/13">Phil. 2:13</a>)."The Lord Jesus Christ is the Christian's very life, and the Holy Spirit dwells within our spirit to manifest Him, to work out all that is in Him and to reproduce Him in us. We must remember that there is something in the sight of God that is higher than work. There is Christ-likeness. That is our Father's purpose, and it is His work." -A.M."It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to the Lord Jesus. A holy ministry is an awful weapon in the hands of God." -R.M.Mc."In a great many evangelical churches the Gospel of salvation is magnificently presented, seekers are led to Christ; but the totality of the Gospel, the Gospel in its ultimate category, is by no means so clearly presented, nor maybe even understood by teacher as well as pupil. It is evidenced by exhortation to Christian living being mainly challenges to pray more, study more, give more, witness more, surrender more. The emphasis is predominantly on the active dedication of the Christian to his Lord, and to a much less degree on the dynamic remolding of the believer by his Lord.""For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus" (<a id="verse_1632879763386529" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/2/10">Eph. 2:10</a>).

 One Standard - Christ 

<blockquote>“In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will!” (<a id="verse_1632880362388504" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/1/11">Eph. 1:11</a>).</blockquote>It is easy to just "let George do it," but it is so unrewarding. There is a Christ-honoring ministry of being and sharing awaiting each believer, and the secret is to let Christ do it!"Our Father has a different line of things for everyone, and each of us has been sent into the world for some special mission. It is not a question whether it is great or small; it may be only a flower to shed fragrance, though this is really the greatest of all."There is no higher service than moral influence, thy whole body . . . full of light'; and this, of all the highest moral order, is within the compass of all. Christ shall be magnified in my body whether by life or by death' (<a id="verse_1632880362191131" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Philippians/1/20">Phil. 1:20</a>)." -J.B.S."A mark of the true servant is that he is consciously nothing. John could speak of himself as only a voice,' and a greater than John was consciously less than the least of all saints.' The moment we think ourselves to be anything, we are out of the servant's true position and spirit. There is a beautiful contrast between John's account of himself, and the Lord's description of him (<a id="verse_1632880362249858" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/John/1/22">John 1:22</a>; <a id="verse_1632880362620315924" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/John/1/27">27</a>; <a id="verse_1632880362929832" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Luke/7/26">Luke 7:26</a>; <a id="verse_1632880362659124351" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Luke/7/28">28</a>). The more worthy we are of the Lord's commendation, the less do we think of ourselves." -C.A.C."For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (<a id="verse_1632880362970195" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/2/10">Eph 2:10</a>).

 Selfless Service 

<blockquote>
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus" (<a id="verse_1632880603955199" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/2/10">Eph. 2:10</a>).
</blockquote>The Holy Spirit creates within us a hatred for the old nature, and a hunger for the new nature. Without a rejection of the old, there cannot be a projection of the new."I want a testimony that delivers me from the things I am occupied about in myself when I am suffering from them. I get it from God's gift that is perfect. I am accepted in the Beloved' (<a id="verse_1632880603476067" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/1/6">Eph. 1:6</a>). You say, There is something about myself I cannot get over. Remember, the testimony of the Spirit in us is the contrary of the testimony of the Spirit to us. In me, He takes notice of every fault that is not righteousness; but the testimony to us is, Their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more' (<a id="verse_1632880603345426" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Hebrews/8/12">Heb. 8:12</a>).""If we make morality our standard, we will be sure to fall below what we purpose. Whatever we put before us as our criterion, there will be always a falling short. If we have the Lord Jesus Christ risen and in heaven as our Object, we shall prove the power of His resurrection, not only in lifting us up when we are conscious of our exceeding short-comings, but in strengthening us to press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus' (<a id="verse_1632880603221711" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Philippians/3/14">Phil. 3:14</a>).""The Word of God teaches me union, but the Person of Christ brings out all that I derive from union with Him. The Word is always my authority for my position, but acquaintance with the Person confirms and manifests my position.""Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord" (<a id="verse_1632880603452961" href="https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/Ephesians/6/10">Eph 6:10</a>)

 Beloved Object 

10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

For we are God’s handiwork,<cr>1</cr> created<cr>2</cr> in Christ Jesus to do good works,<cr>3</cr> which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Ephesians 2:10

 10 For we are God’s handiwork,   created   in Christ Jesus to do good works,   which God prepared in advance for us to do.

From Wikipedia: 

The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The NIV was published to meet the need for a modern translation done by Bible scholars using the earliest, highest quality manuscripts available. Of equal importance was that the Bible be expressed in broadly understood modern English.

The NIV is published by Zondervan in the United States and Hodder & Stoughton in the UK. The NIV was updated in 1984 and 2011 and has become one of the most popular and best-selling modern translations.

OT: Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia; additional sources;
NT: UBS Greek New Testament; Novum Testamentum Graece; additional sources;

New International Version

 For we are God’s handiwork,  created  in Christ Jesus to do good works,  which God prepared in advance for us to do.

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

 For we are God’s handiwork,   created   in Christ Jesus to do good works,   which God prepared in advance for us to do.

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August 18, 1889

Ephesians 2:10 NIV

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