We do not hear many sermons highlighting this part of the Lord’s life. However, most of Christ’s life on earth was spent as a carpenter.
We read about the last three-and-a half years Jesus spent on earth in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In their accounts we read that He went everywhere preaching, teaching, and doing miracles.
In those three-and-a-half years He made an impact on the world as no one else has ever made!
Yet, I would like to draw your attention to Mark 6:3, where the Bible says when Jesus preached in His home country, the people said this of Jesus, “Is not this the carpenter...” For perhaps 12 to 15 years of His life, Jesus was known as a “carpenter.”
• Most of Jesus’ life as an ADULT was spent as a carpenter.
• Most of Jesus’ time spent on EARTH was spent as a carpenter.
This message focuses on those thirty years that most of us have heard so very little about. We shall see how God, the Father, had a purpose in Jesus spending most of His life as a carpenter.
The Lord could have taken up any number of occupations before He began His ministry, although usually sons did follow the occupation of their fathers. We are often guilty of telling children today that they can be anything they want to be. However that is not the truth!
Illus: A child might grow up wanting to be a brain surgeon, but regardless of how hard he tries, he can never be a brain surgeon.
However, the Lord Jesus could truly have been anything He had wanted to be. Nevertheless they asked, “Is not this the carpenter...” They asked that because that was what Jesus had been. But remember, He could have been anything. For example, let me show you...
I. WHAT HE COULD HAVE BEEN.
A. He could have been known as a great SHEPHERD.
In God’s Word we see Jesus likened to the greatest shepherd who ever walked on earth. Most of us are familiar with this.
• King David of old came along and said, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
• We see in John 10:11, where Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.”
• In Hebrews 13:20 we read, “...our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep...”
• In I Peter 5:4, we read that Jesus is the “...chief Shepherd...” Who “...shall appear...” one day! The fact is, there never was a GREATER SHEPHERD than the Lord Jesus.
Nevertheless, in those thirty years the Bible does not say that anyone asked, “Is not this the SHEPHERD?” No. That was not what God chose for His beloved Son to be as He grew to manhood.
B. He could have been known as a great LAWYER.
There has never been a lawyer that had the wisdom and skills that our Lord Jesus had. He has plead more cases than any lawyer has ever plead.
Look at I John 2:1. We read, “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:”
Why do we need an advocate? The Bible tells us, in Revelation, that we have an “accuser.” of the brethren.
Look at Revelation 12:10. We read that Satan, “...the accuser of our brethren is cast down...”
Our great lawyer, the Lord Jesus, has never lost a case!
He has taken every lost sinner by the hand and taken God by the other hand and has brought us together. Never has there been a mediator like Christ.
However, again I would remind you that for the first thirty years of His life, Jesus did not practice law. The Bible does not say that they said of him, “Is not this the lawyer?”
Again, as we look at the first thirty years of His life, we know...
C. He could have been known as a great PHYSICIAN.
Why do we say that? Because, never has there been a physician like Him.
• He opened blind eyes.
• He caused the deaf to hear.
• He caused the dumb to speak.
• He healed those who were crippled.
• He raised the dead.
The Bible tells us of a woman who had a blood condition. She had tried every physician she could find, yet we are told she steadily became worse. Then she met the Lord Jesus and she touched only the hem of His garment and she was made whole!
No doctor was able to do for her what the Lord did for her! However, I must remind you, Jesus spent thirty years on earth before His ministry began. He could have been anything He wanted to be, but God did not see fit for Him to practice medicine. The Bible does not say that they said of Him, “Is not this the PHYSICIAN?”
No wonder He is now known as The Great Physician, for never has there been a physician like Him!
D. He could have been known as the world’s greatest FISHERMAN.
No one has ever fished as He fished!
Illus: After Peter denied the Lord, he told the other disciples, “I am going back to fishing.” The disciples said, “Hold up, we are going with you.” They fished all night and did not catch a thing. The Lord appeared to those experienced fishermen and told them to drop the nets on the other side of the boat. They had tried everything else and had not gotten any results, so they gave it a try. The Bible says that they caught such a mess of fish that they could hardly haul them in.
The Lord knew where the fish were. He was the greatest fisherman Who ever lived!
However, for His first thirty years of life, the Lord did not choose fishing as His occupation. We do not read in the scriptures that they asked of Him, “Is not this the FISHERMAN?”
For those thirty years, He had not been a
(1) Shepherd.
(2) Lawyer.
(3) Physician.
(4) Fisherman.
He excelled in all these things. He could have been a shepherd, lawyer, or a fisherman. Instead, as people spoke of Him, they asked, “Is not this the carpenter...”
We have looked at WHAT HE COULD HAVE BEEN, but let us look at-
II. WHAT HE WAS.
He was called the carpenter because He was the MASTER BUILDER.
The Bible tells us many things about what Jesus did that lets us know it was not by accident that He was known as “...the carpenter...” That was exactly what Jesus was. He was a builder. He was the Master Builder. He was a “finish” carpenter.
Illus: I know that many folks love to see Michael Johnson shoot basketball. They could watch him for hours. There is no doubt about it; the man has a talent when it comes to doing that.
However, many are fascinated when watching a master carpenter.
As you watch, he can take pieces of lumber that seem to have no order, and begin laying out, measuring, and sawing. In his mind he has something planned. At first one might wonder if he knows what he is doing. Then, all of a sudden, something beings to take shape. He continues measuring, cutting, and assembling boards together, one by one. In a few days you can come back to that same spot of land and see a house sitting there.
God, in His wisdom, saw fit for the Lord Jesus to spend time in a carpenter shop. JESUS WAS A MASTER BUILDER. What did He build?
A. He built a universe.
When God built this universe, He did it with such skill and wisdom that scientists have been studying it for centuries. They can not help marveling over His creation!
The Bible says only a fool can look at this creation and not acknowledge there is a God.
Illus: In his book, “Growing Deep In the Christian Life, Charles Swindoll tells how some would have you think that cars were invented: He said, “Many, many centuries ago, all this iron, glass, rubber, plastic, fabric, leather, and wires came up out of the ground. Furthermore, each substance fashioned itself into various shapes and sizes. Holes evolved at just the right places, and the upholstery began to weave itself together. After a while threads appeared on bolts and nuts and--amazing as it may seem--each bolt found nuts with matching threads. And gradually everything sort of screwed up tightly in place. A little later correctly shaped glass glued itself in the right places. And you see these tires? They became round over the years. And they found themselves the right sized metal wheels. And they sort of popped on. They also filled themselves with air somehow. And the thing began to roll down the street.
And one day, many, many years ago--centuries. really--some people were walking along and they found this vehicle sitting under a tree. And one of them looked at it and thought, ‘How amazing. I think we should call it an ‘automobile.’’ But there’s more! These little automobiles have an amazing way of multiplying themselves year after year, even changing ever so slightly to meet the demands of the public. Actually, that process is called ‘automutations.’”
That is what evolutionists would have you believe about how the universe came about. Is that what happened? No! All that we can see, and that we can not see, came about because the Master Carpenter built a universe!
Look at Colossians 1:16-17. We read, “For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Also...
B. He built a church.
In Matthew 16:18, He said, “...I will build my church...”
He builds His church out of the His saints.
In Ephesians 2:19-21, we read, “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord.”
Notice how He used the term, that we are “framed together.” God is building His Church. He is taking some over in this community, and some over in that community and bringing them all together--”fitly” putting them where He wants them.
God has “fitly framed” His church together for a purpose. However, many today have no idea what that purpose is.
Illus: According to the July, 1996, issue of “Focus On the Family” magazine, baby boomers expect these six things in a church:
• Good music.
• Social groups.
• Big meeting rooms.
• A quality kitchen.
• Ample parking.
• Clean restrooms.
Notice, nowhere in this list did it indicate they were looking for any spiritual thing.
God still is building His church, where men and women can come together and worship Him in His greatness.
C. He built a city.
In John 14:2, He said, “...I go to prepare a place for you.”
God made everything you and I see in six days.
In John 14:2, I know the Lord Jesus was speaking of Calvary. But, it is not taking this out of context to say this--if God build this earth and all we can see in six days, can you imagine what heaven is going to look like after He has been working on that glorious place for almost two thousand years?
He said that eyes have not seen, nor have ears heard what God has prepared for His people.
Conclusion:
We can not help getting excited as we know He has built...
• The UNIVERSE, for us to live in.
• His CHURCH, for us to enjoy.
• A CITY for us to dwell in eternally.
Listen, the thing that excites us is that the Lord is building lives.
Illus: I can see someone with an old ox pull up before the Lord’s shop and dump off a huge log. All we might see is the log. But, the master builder can look at that log and see a chair, a table, some wooden bowls to eat out of, and some plow handles for a plow.
The Lord takes that log and begins working on it. He sees it through the eyes of a master carpenter.
I tell you, Jesus is the Master Carpenter! He can take a man, that the world has discarded, and make him into something that the world will marvel over. Some of us may still need some “sanding” to get rough edges off, and some “shellacking” to help us not seem so rough. He works on us as we turn ourselves over to Him.
I. WHAT HE COULD HAVE BEEN
A. He could have been known as a great
SHEPHERD
B. He could have been known as a great
LAWYER
C. He could have been known as a great
PHYSICIAN
D. He could have been known as a great
FISHERMAN
II. WHAT HE WAS
A. He built a UNIVERSE
B. He built a CHURCH
C. He built a CITY
Note: You can hear Dr. Odell Belger preach on Youtube. Go to Youtube and type in the word Lykesland
