We will be
blessed, I believe, by considering Christ as “The Carpenter.” His work is so
far superior to all other carpenters in greatness, quality, and quantity that
this title, “THE Carpenter,” is indeed His alone. Each thing He has made brings
glory to Him and shows us something of His wisdom, power, and knowledge.

The question,
“Is not this the Carpenter?” was asked out of astonishment upon hearing His
teaching and seeing His miracles (Mark 6:1-6). They thought He was out of His
place to be teaching instead of being at the carpenter bench. But was He not
building through His teaching? His words, if believed, cause the person to be
made into a new creature. Was He not building by doing miracles? This was
repair work, which a carpenter does at times, in healing the sick and raising
the dead, as exhibited in the previous chapter, Mark 5.

We may well be
astonished and be in awe as we think of this Carpenter who came into this world
His hands had made. They ask in Mark 6, “What wisdom is this which is given
unto Him, that even such mighty works are wrought by His hands?” Those
wonderful hands did their greatest work when they were nailed to the cross of
Calvary. And there He did the work He came into this world to do—to save
sinners. For all eternity we will marvel and praise Him for that work. He
defeated the world, sin, and Satan and satisfied a holy God about our sins.
From that cross He cried, “It is finished.” Nothing can be added to that work
and any who try to do something to save themselves are saying that His work was
not good enough. How serious such a charge is to Him who “has done all things
well!” God was satisfied with His work and raised Him from the dead and seated
Him at His own right hand in heaven. If God is satisfied, we should be too.

We read that
those who asked the question that day, “Is not this the Carpenter?” were
“offended at Him.” They would not own Him to be more than a mere man. But He is
THE Carpenter, the Creator. For “all things were made by Him, and without Him
was not anything made that was made” (John 1:3). In creating, He did what no
mere human can do—He made from nothing. It is by faith we understand this,
“that the things that are seen were not made of things that do appear” (Heb.
11:3).

His first act
of creation was angels, it appears, for we are told they shouted for joy at the
creation of the world (Job 38:7). Then in Genesis 1 we have three creative
acts:the creation of matter in verse 1, the creation of the soul in verse 20,
and the creation of the spirit of man in verse 27. It is man’s spirit that
makes him in the image of God, for “God is a Spirit” (John 4:24). Man is made
of all three—body, soul, and spirit. Man’s soul is different from an animal’s
for it is never dying:“For God breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life
and he became a living soul” (Gen. 2:7).

Isaiah 45:18
tells us that God created the earth not in vain but to be inhabited. But we
find in verse 2 of our Bibles, after the original creation of verse 1, that the
earth became “without form and void.” So the Carpenter went to work and in six
days remade the earth for the good of man. This remaking is a beautiful picture
of what He does in saving a precious soul from perishing. The Spirit of God
moves and gives light to the soul. Then fruit is brought forth in the life.

Another thing
God made was woman out of a rib in Adam’s side. A deep sleep had to fall on him
for her to be made. So Christ died so that His bride and wife—the Church—could be
made. The Lord Himself declared, “I will build My Church” upon the solid rock
foundation of His own name—“the Christ” (Matt. 16:16-18). To do this He “gave
Himself for it” (Eph. 5:25). Each soul who believes on Him is added to His
Church (Acts 2:47). It is called His “body,” for it displays His every
attribute and is controlled by Him who is the Head of the Church (Eph. 1:22).
It is called “the house of God” for His order and care are manifest there. And
it is called His temple, for praise issues forth from it. Think of the
thousands upon thousands who have been saved since the day of Pentecost, when
the Church was formed, who are part of the Church. Each one also, in Himself,
is a special creation to do good works (Eph. 2:10). And each one is specially designed
with gifts to function as a part of the Church for the good of all. Some day
soon all will be displayed to be “admired” as we show Christ to the world (2
Thess. 1:10).

View
the vast building, see it rise;

The
work how great! The plan how wise!

O
wondrous fabric! Power unknown!

That
rears it on the “Living Stone.”

Very soon the
last stone will be put into that building. Then He will call us home to that
place He has gone to prepare for us. At the cross He began the preparations for
that place and now from the glory He continues to prepare that place for us
(John 14:1-3). He also is now teaching those who are saved through His Word in
the power of the Spirit of God and thus preparing us for those many mansions of
the Father’s house. When He takes us there, the Carpenter will again work. For
He will change our physical bodies to be like Christ’s own resurrected and
glorified body (Phil. 3:21). That body walked through closed doors and ascended
into heaven, and so will we in our bodies fit for glory.

Dear reader,
are you made fit for glory or are you yet perishing in your sins? God made you
in His image so that you could be in His presence. But like Adam, you have
sinned and only through Christ can you be part of that new creation through
faith in His work on the cross. We urge you to avail yourself of that work by
trusting yourself to Him.

Do not be like
those who “were offended at Him.” This is the result of not believing on Him
and not owning Him to be the Lord of all. He owns all He has made by right.
Only man and the fallen angels will not give Him that place as Lord. How
foolish, for some day soon every knee will bow to Him (Phil. 2:10). Is it any
wonder that the Lord Himself “marveled because of their unbelief” (Mark 6:6)?
His creative works alone will make men without excuse (Rom. 1:20). Why spurn
such love offered to you in your need? Bow your knee now and the Carpenter will
make you a “new creature” (2 Cor. 5:17). Also, you will have “a house …
eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1); there you forever will adore “The
Carpenter” and His wonderful works.

(From Scripture
Almanac, 1988.)