The Workshop of God
E.A. Johnston teaches that every believer is a living workshop where God, the master craftsman, shapes and refines His people through trials and obedience to prepare them for His purposes.
In "The Workshop of God," E.A. Johnston explores the powerful metaphor of the believer as God’s workshop, where the master craftsman, Jesus Christ, shapes and refines His people through trials, pruning, and the refining fire. Johnston emphasizes that this process is ongoing and personal, taking place in each Christian’s life as they grow in faith and obedience. This devotional sermon encourages believers to embrace God’s transformative work and trust His perfect design for their lives.
Full Transcript
There is a room full of tools stacked high upon the shelves. Some for cutting, some for breaking, some for shaping, some for sharpening. Each has its usefulness and purpose deep to alter the object that is being worked upon.
This room is unlike any workshop, and the craftsman is like unlike any man, for this is the workshop of God, where his work is done. But this workshop is not in heaven, but on earth, and this is not a single workshop, but many spread throughout the entire earth. This workshop walks and talks and moves about, for the workshop is man himself, God's man, for whom Christ died, God's man, upon which the Spirit of God works each day.
For every true Christian is a workshop of God, where the master craftsman works with his tools to mold and shape the instrument for his use, where obedience is hammered out upon the anvil of affliction, and faith is tested and strengthened through trial and tribulation, where the prayer life is built through nights of desperation, and in this workshop the branch is cut back beneath the divine pruning knife for further fruitfulness, where all is purged in the refiner's fire, so all dross and impurities are separated from the gold, the useless lump of clay is remade again and again, until the imperfections are no longer visible, shaped by the master's hands, until it emerges a vessel fit for his use and his glory. Yes, this is a busy workshop of God, full of activity, as Jesus the carpenter lovingly perfects the work of his hands, for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Let us pray.
Sermon Outline
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I
- Introduction to the workshop metaphor
- Description of the tools and their purposes
- God as the master craftsman
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II
- The workshop is not a place but the believer
- Christ died for the workshop—God’s man
- The Spirit’s daily work in the believer
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III
- Trials and afflictions as tools of shaping
- Pruning and refining for fruitfulness
- Purging impurities through the refiner’s fire
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IV
- The believer as a vessel fit for God’s use
- Walking in the good works God ordained
- Jesus as the carpenter perfecting His workmanship
Key Quotes
“This workshop is not in heaven, but on earth, and this is not a single workshop, but many spread throughout the entire earth.” — E.A. Johnston
“Obedience is hammered out upon the anvil of affliction, and faith is tested and strengthened through trial and tribulation.” — E.A. Johnston
“We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” — E.A. Johnston
Application Points
- Trust God’s process of shaping and refining you through life’s challenges.
- Embrace trials as opportunities for spiritual growth and deeper faith.
- Commit to walking in the good works God has prepared for you.