The Puzzle

Have you ever put together a puzzle? I don’t mean a 12 piece children’s puzzle. I’m talking about the 1000 piece jigsaw puzzles. I assisted putting together one of these puzzles. It took like three weeks to complete. I lost interest fast. But I remember some steps we took in putting it together.

· Take it out of the box to lay out all the pieces.

· Find the pieces that make the boundaries of the puzzle.

· Look at the picture on the box for an image reference.

· Patience. It took patience to complete the picture.

In Philippians Paul tells us to work out our salvation.

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Philippians 2:12-13

If you think about it working out our salvation is much like putting together a puzzle. Think of God’s gift of salvation like a box of a thousand puzzle pieces. We have to take the following steps throughout our Christian walk:

· Accept the gift of salvation. We have to un-wrap this gift, take it out of the box and spread out all the pieces.

· Lay out the moral boundaries of our salvation. Our salvation will become clearer once the boundaries are in place.

· Study the reference image of Christ found in God’s word and in God’s people. The more you look at the reference, the easier it will be to put the pieces together.

· It will take patience as you are formed to the image of Christ.

I suggest you try putting together a puzzle with your family and using this illustration to teach them about working out their salvation.