God's Workmanship - Mark 6:3
God's workmanship is the transformation of our lives to make us useful for the tasks He has assigned to us.
Bernard Fell preaches about Jesus, the Carpenter of Nazareth, highlighting His wisdom, mighty works, and sovereignty as the Healer and Controller of all things. Despite His divine nature, Jesus humbly toiled in a shop, showcasing perfect workmanship and skillfulness. Just like a joiner's shop, the world is where Jesus continues to work in our lives, shaping us for His purposes with care and discipline, enhancing our character through life's storms.
Text
Is not this the Carpenter?
Mark 6:3
The Carpenter of Nazareth!
"Who is He?" was the cry;
"Whence hath this Man this wisdom deep?"
His mighty works reply-
The Healer of all dread disease,
Controller of the sea,
Who flung a trillion stars in space,
The Sovereign Lord is He!
Yet in that humble shop He toiled
With hammer, plane, and saw;
And many a needed useful thing
Passed through that Joiner's door.
How perfect was the work He wrought
With skillfulness of hand!
No carpentry was e'er like that,
No workmanship so grand!
The world is like a joiner's shop;
His hands still work anew
To make lives useful for the tasks
He has assigned to do.
With utmost care He seeks the trees
The tempests have withstood;
The storms that test will but enhance
The graining of the wood.
Hark! in the Master Craftsman's shop
The sound of tools is heard,
The saw of discipline at work,
The hammer of His Word;
Love's gentle plane smooths out the way
His purpose to fulfil;
The tenon of our life must fit
The mortise of His will.
O take this poor material, Lord,
Thy gracious work begin,
Until Thy likeness is ingrained
Indelibly within.
Then in a world so deep in need,
Fresh from Thy hand to be,
Useful, sincere, without veneer,
An instrument for Thee.
Sermon Outline
- The Carpenter of Nazareth
- The work of the Master Craftsman
- God's work of transformation
- Discipline and the saw of God's Word
- Love's gentle plane and the tenon of our life
- The material we are made of
- The work of God's gracious hands
Key Quotes
“The Healer of all dread disease, Controller of the sea, Who flung a trillion stars in space, The Sovereign Lord is He!” — Bernard Fell
“No carpentry was e'er like that, No workmanship so grand!” — Bernard Fell
“Hark! in the Master Craftsman's shop The sound of tools is heard,” — Bernard Fell
Application Points
- We should allow God to work in our lives through discipline, love, and His Word.
- Our purpose is to be useful for the tasks God has assigned to us.
- We should strive to be like God, useful, sincere, and without veneer.