Monday, April 15, 2013

Jesus Is My Carpenter.

"And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience - among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind." - Ephesians 2:1-3

We were dead. We followed Satan. We let the spirit of sin consume our lives. We gave into our flesh. We were children of wrath. We rebelled. We spat in the face of Jesus. We made his grace cheap. We were hurting. We were broken. We were crooked. We didn't know what to do. We were clueless. We were full of doubt. We were bruised, battered, burnt, and bent pieces of wood, just as the branch of a tree broken by the weight of a hurricane. We were hopeless.

Notice how they are all in past tense. Trust me when I say that it does not end there. Just as Jesus rose from the dead, we can also resurrect from the sin that was literally eating us alive. Every time I come across a "but" in the Bible, I highlight or underline it. "But" initiates an exception, dispute, or a turn of events. Although something appears in some sort of fashion, once you insert a "but," everything changes.

Let's say we have a prodigy baseball player. This kid can hit the ball 500 feet, he's able to hit for average, he steals bases left and right, he's able to throw a guy tagging up at third with ease, and he makes plays in the outfield that appear on SportCenter's Top Ten almost every night.  He's an obvious 5-tool player. He's a first ballot Hall of Famer before he even gets drafted. Needless to say, he's a stud. But, he has developed heart problems, and his doctors won't allow him to play baseball ever again because it could risk his life. All the potential that this kid could live up to is taken away, just because of this one "but." Once we introduced this "but," the entire plan for his life took a turn of events. Everything changed.

There's different degrees of these "but"s. It could either be "All of these are green, but this one is blue" or "This kid would have been a Hall of Famer, but he has a heart problem." While the "but" in my example is a very unfortunate and tragic, the one that I'm about to show you is the complete opposite. It's the "but" that gives us our biggest hope. I'm certain that the "but" that is coming in verse 4 is the biggest "but," not only in the Bible, but in the history of mankind.

"But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ - by grace you have been saved - and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is a gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." - Ephesians 2:4-10

We were dead, but he made us alive together with Christ. We were in chains, but we have been liberated. We were broken, but now we are formed. We were resting our heads in the pit of hell, but he seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ. We were lost, but now we are found.

I'm sure that Jesus wasn't a carpenter on accident. My English 4 teacher explicitly tells us to find details in the novels or passages that we read. I've started to read my Bible with the same detail that I read any other piece of literature. (mostly due to repetition, I'm forever forced to look into the details about everything, not necessarily a bad thing.) I think Jesus being a carpenter is just a detail that creates a much bigger metaphor for what he will do for each of us. He took pieces of wood that don't have much purpose, and reshaped them into chairs and tables. His calloused hands cut the wood into specific shapes and sizes. He sands down every detail of the pieces. Every nook and corner of his work is perfected. It is being fashioned into something that can be of daily use. He takes a simple (sometimes broken) log of wood, and shapes it into something that is beneficial.

Some of us were just modest logs of wood. We lived our lives with ease. We did good things. We tried to live a good life. We got into our routines and lived a normal life, but it didn't have very much purpose. Jesus didn't come just to give us a normal life; he came to allow us to live life in abundance. Jesus can take the normal, modest man or woman, reshape her life, and allow us to live with a greater purpose. He makes us into something useful, and effective. If you feel as if your life is just normal, ask him to come and change you into something that has a greater purpose than anything this earth could ever offer. The process is a joyride, lemme tell ya. I'm still in the middle of it.

On the other hand, some of us are logs of wood that have been completely shattered. We have gone through a hurricane, and we are broken. Your parents get divorced, your brother dies in a car accident, you continually get broken-hearted, or some other life event that leaves you lost. Let me tell ya something: nothing that is of this world could piece you back together. Not a girl, not a boy, not sex, not drugs or alcohol, not judgement, nor anything else that you could ever try to make you feel complete. The only thing that could leave you 100% satisfied is not of this world: that is Jesus. If you feel like you've gone through a living hurricane, ask Jesus to come and start a great work in you. He can rebuild you as well! His grace and love will never return void, no matter how crushed you may thing you are. Nothing is too hard for him, because he's God. Maybe you've been burned and battered, but I promise he can make you into something beautiful.

Jesus has changed my life. The path towards sanctification is definitely a joyride. There's unexpected twists and turns, ups and downs, and detours, but the road always leads to greener pastures, higher hills, and sweeter waters. It's hard sometimes, but it's always worth it. Jesus is my carpenter, and he is continually making me new. He will never stop the work that he has started in me. This truth goes for every single person in all of creation, and all you have to do is allow him to start it.

"I am sure of this: that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." - Philippians 1:6

P.S. Lift up a pray for Boston today. Some people who have a passion for running will never be able to run again.