The Bible begins with the majestic line, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Max Lucado points out that it does not say God made, built, or mass-produced the universe—He created it. Creating, Lucado notes, is something deeper than constructing. It involves the heart and the soul. I might argue that building also requires intellect and imagination, but Max’s point stands—creation is a profoundly personal act. When God created the world, He did not assemble it like furniture from a celestial hardware store; He poured Himself into it. But then, in a more intimate stroke of genius, God created humanity “in His own image.” Both male and female reflect His likeness. Creation, in this sense, is not mechanical—it is artistic. Just as a painting reflects its artist, or a melody reveals its composer, we bear traces of the divine artist who crafted us. As Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:10, “For we are God’s masterpiece.”
That word masterpiece carries a certain weight. It is easy to see the Grand Canyon or a newborn baby as divine art, but when we look in the mirror, it is harder to feel like a Michelangelo. We tend to focus on the cracks, the fading colors, and the places where life’s hammer seems to have struck too hard. Yet Paul’s point is that our value as masterpieces does not depend on our appearance, age, achievements, or even our moral record. Our worth comes from the Artist who made us. A painting does not earn its beauty—it receives it from the painter’s hand. God created us for good works, but that does not mean we perform them to prove our worth. It means we are expressions of His goodness, designed to reflect His character. As one writer observed, “A sculpture does not go to church or read its own biography—it simply displays the beauty of its creator.”
Through Jesus Christ, the divine Artist restores His damaged masterpieces. Sin may have marred the canvas, but grace repaints it with new color and light. Paul reminds us, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are God’s artwork, renewed by His own blood, framed by His love, and destined for His glory. When we live in that truth, we display His craftsmanship to the world. The Creator’s signature—written not in paint, but in grace—marks every believer: “You are my masterpiece.”