Title: The Making of a Masterpiece Part 2
Text: Philippians 1:6
Thesis: God is at work in our lives so that we may become more and more like Jesus…accomplishing his will in us and through us.
Series: Belonging, Believing and Becoming
I invite you to journey with us as people who value:
• Belonging to a caring faith community. (Making everyone welcome and cared for…)
• Believing the truth of God’s Word. (The Written and Living Word of God…)
• Becoming more like Jesus Christ.
Introduction
Last week I spoke of Michelangelo and his work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. I spoke of how just as Michelangelo envisioned what the finished fresco would look like, God envisioned how we, as his masterpieces, would look upon completion. God envisioned that each and every follower of Jesus Christ would be conformed to the image of Jesus.
Today we will look at how that conformity happens.
Some say that Michelangelo’s monumental achievement is the Pieta… a statue of Jesus and his mother Mary.
The Pieta was commissioned in 1498 and for that sculpture Michelangelo searched quarries for just the right type of stone. It is said that he spent months selecting the marble and oversaw its extraction and arranged for its transportation to his studio.
When the cube of marble arrived he went to work… for two years he labored over it. He chiseled away in the sweltering heat of summer and the shivering cold of winter. The overall structure, down to the smallest detail is a work of unsurpassed craftsmanship and beauty.
The sculptor begins with a pitching chisel to knock-off the unwanted chunks of marble. Then the sculptor uses a tooth chisel and then moves to rasps and rifflers and rough abrasives and finally smooth abrasives to bring the piece to perfection.
Similarly God is at work in all things chiseling and rasping and sanding away to transform our character into conformity with Jesus.
So we, as God’s masterpieces, might see ourselves as pieces of marble and God as the sculptor shaping us into the image of Jesus.
II. God’s work “in” us
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finished on the day that Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6
There are three things that immediately jump out in my understanding of the nature of God’s work in us.
A. God’s work in us has a beginning and an ending
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finished on the day that Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6
William Barclay points out that the two words used to describe God’s beginning and finishing work in our lives are words used in a Greek sacrificial ritual.
• A torch was lit from the fire on the altar and dipped into a bowl of water… cleansing the water.
• The purified water was then sprinkled on the sacrifice and the people to make them clean.
• A sacred silence during which the worshipper offered prayers to god.
• Then the ritual sacrifice was carried out to completion.
This imagery is consistent with Romans 12:1 where Paul wrote, so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice, the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Romans 12:1
Though not culturally familiar we understand the concept of an altar upon which a sacrifice is offered to a god. So we might envision an altar upon which we stand offering ourselves to God… not as dead sacrifices but as living sacrifices. And we might envision God them beginning his work which continues until it is finished on the day of Christ’s return.
In between the beginning and completion is an ongoing process.
B. God’s work in us is a process
So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord, who is the Spirit, makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. II Corinthians 3:18
We know…
1. We know God’s will is for us to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. Romans 8:29
Last Sunday we noted that it is the express will of God that we become conformed to the image of Jesus… God’s desire is that we become like Jesus. God’s will is that when people see us they see Jesus. Romans 8:28-29
2. We know that God’s work in our lives is a process. II Corinthians 3:18
I’ve always been kind of interested in how some married couples come to resemble each other after many years of marriage. They say it takes 25 years for the process to take place… studies show that couples who look nothing alike when they get married come to resemble each other over time. That’s not good news for Bonnie.
Actually the resemblance is primarily facial and is likely the result of decades of shared emotions and experiences. They say couples unconsciously mimic the facial expressions of their spouses. Shared emotions leave their mark on our faces in wrinkles and lines… happiness and sadness and gentleness and meanness show.
They call the process of couples becoming more and more alike in appearance “convergence.” The individual appearances converge so that each resembles the other. When things converge, as in the case of two lines or say, lanes of traffic, tending toward a single point it is called convergence.
Convergence is a long process that takes place over a period of years.
Conformity on the other hand has to do with adapting to a specific standard. Say, I am me and Jesus is the standard, we do not converge so that Jesus and I meld ourselves together. In conformity Jesus is the specific standard and I conform to that standard. Jesus does not become anything like me… I become more and more like Jesus.
3. We know we have an active role in the work of God in our lives. Philippians 2:12-13
So while it is true, God is at work in us… we have a responsibility to be adaptable. The Scripture says, Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you giving you the desire and power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:12-13
When we act upon that desire is shows. In our Philippians text the Apostle Paul gives us some insight into the nature of what is supposed to be happening in this process. He prayed for these things to be happening in their lives.
• Your love will overflow more and more
• You will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding
• You will] be filled with the fruit of your salvation [which is] the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:9-11
4. We know that becoming conformed to the image of Christ takes practice. Ephesians 5:1
If there is any question about our involvement in becoming conformed to the likeness of Jesus we are challenged to imitate God, therefore in everything you do, because you are his children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. Ephesians 5:1
And so with us, we are children of God, currently engaged in the life long process of being conformed to the image of his Son and our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Ultimately we see that there is a purpose for God’s ongoing work in our lives.
C. God’s work in us is for the praise and glory of God
May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation – the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ… for this will bring much glory and praise to God. Philippians 1:11
Interestingly, while I was growing up in small-town Iowa, I was always known as Owen Newton’s son and that knowledge was always lurking in the back of my mind. In small-town Iowa whatever I did be it good or bad, reflected on my dad. And I can remember one particular instance when Dad said to me, “I did not raise you to be like that.” I always knew that whatever I said or did, it ought to reflect well on my Dad and our family name.
I’ve always had a soft place in my heart for Prince Harry… dubbed Prince Henry Charles Albert David on December 21, 1984. He has grown up with a great deal of tragedy but he was also born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He has had every opportunity a person could have and has emerged as a pretty decent and likeable person at the ripe old age of 30.
But he is also known for his shenanigans. He’s brawled with the paparazzi. He smoked marijuana. He dressed up in a Nazi uniform for a costume party. And then Prince Harry spent that infamous weekend in Las Vegas that did not bode well with his father, Prince Charles or the Queen Mother.
I have the impression that when Prince Harry returned to England he had your basic “come to Jesus” chat with his betters. And though I was not there I would guess that somewhere in his scolding was the reminder, “Harry, you must always remember who you are!”
This is consistent with Paul’s teaching in I Corinthians 10:31 where he reminds that that whatever it is we do, we are to do it for the glory of God.
God’s will is not only that we be conformed to the image of Jesus and live in ways that please and honor God… God wants us to do his work in the world.
III. God’s good work in the world “through” us
For we are God’s masterpieces. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10
We would all like to think that God put us here and keeps us around for some good reason. I suppose the one really big reason is that we bring glory to God. But maybe it’s just because God really likes us. He likes having us around. He thinks we are the best thing since sliced bread. As Max Lucado might say, “Hey! Face it! God is crazy about us!” At least we would like to think that is the case. (Max Lucado, A Gentle Thunder (Word, 1995); submitted by Greg Asimakoupoulos)
John Beukema tells of attending a community prayer breakfast where he sat at a table with a group of men he didn't know. In the course of their conversation, the subject of retirement came up. The man sitting next to him, who appeared to be in his early fifties, was quite excited by the prospect. He said how much he was looking forward to the end of his career and related a conversation he had with his wife that morning.
"My wife asked, 'What are you going to do when you retire?' I told her, 'I'm going to sit on the couch and watch TV all day every day.'"
The table was silent, but not for long. "If you do that," John said, "you'll be dead in a year."
The man looked shocked and asked, “Why?”
He told him, "If the lack of purpose in your life doesn't kill you first, your wife will." (PreachingToday.com, John Beukema, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania)
The good work going on inside us is purposefully designed to have the outward result of good works in the world. We aren’t just pretty faces. We have substance and character and purpose for existing. We exist for the good of others and the glory of God.
Conclusion
I understand that children in Texas learn to take great pride in their state and receive a thorough education on Texas history. So if you are a native Texan and you know what I am about to share is false… just keep it to yourself for now.
But I’ve read that near the main entrance to the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, is a portrait with the following inscription: “James Butler Bonham – no picture exists. This portrait is of his nephew, Major James Bonham, deceased, who greatly resembled his uncle. It is placed here by the family that people may know the appearance of the man who died for their freedom.”
No literal portrait of Jesus exists but people may know something of the appearance of Jesus because we greatly resemble him.
God is at work in our lives so that we may become more and more like Jesus…accomplishing his will in us and through us.
