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Buck Jacobs is Chairman of the Board and Founder of The C12 Group, LLC. He breaks down Ephesians 2:10, the inspiration for TwoTen Magazine, in the following article...

Two of the best known, most often memorized and quoted verses in Scripture are Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift from God, not of works lest anyone should boast.”

We are reassured as we hear them that we don’t work our way to peace with God and that our salvation is a free gift which is the wonderfully profound truth of Jesus’ sacrificial and atoning death in taking our place on the cross. And perhaps it is the wonder of the magnitude and significance of that free gift that has allowed our enemy to so obscure the subsequent verse; verse 10.

This verse has significant profundity of its own and gives us the basis for a saved life of eternal significance if we understand it correctly. It follows that, because it is so important that our enemy, Satan, would attempt to deflect our attention or discourage our consideration of the eternal import that resides in just 22 words. “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10. No, we are not saved by good works, but we are saved for the good works that God prepared for us to do! Without taking the time to go deeply into the theology, let’s just look at the simple implications of the concept.

First, God has a plan for the life and works of each saved person. He prepared it beforehand, before He created the Earth. He planned for each Christian to be born and born again! He has a master plan for the entire universe, and within it there is a part for you and me! How important is our individual piece? Important enough for God to include it in the most wondrous of plans ever! You and I are not biological accidents who just happened to show up on planet earth at this time in history! God decided He needed and wanted us here right now! And He planned ultimate meaning for us as we fulfill His desire and do His will. Each of us is important to the plan and will of God. We have an eternal destiny, and it’s more than simply salvation. This statement doesn’t minimize the value of our salvation; it simply expands it to include God’s ultimate purpose...

To read more of Buck Jacobs' commentary on Ephesians 2:10, subscribe to TwoTen for free here.