“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary…” (Mark 6:3)
God the Father could have chosen for Jesus to be born into a family of whatever trade he desired. He could have been a blacksmith and learn to work with fire and shape steel. He could have been a doctor, or merchant, or politician. All the possibilities that existed at that time, but he was born into the family of a carpenter, a man working with wood. So Jesus learned carpentry, and I’m sure he was a good student. I’m sure he became a Master Carpenter.
One thing about carpenters is they understand how important it is for something to be “level” and “square”. In this blog site I have spoke often of the church “short-forming” things. Cutting things short. Cutting things they ought not to have cut to begin with. We’ve talked about getting back to the early church fathers so we can get back to what Jesus actually DID, and what Jesus actually BUILT. Here is a real life story of what happened to me just this last week.
My dad is 86 years old and he decided the farm barn needed a new door. Not a small door, but the big roll away door that hangs on rollers. I offered to help build it, but he said no. All he needed me to do was help hang it. He wanted to build it.
A few days later I get a call and he is at his wits end because the door is not going together right, and he doesn’t know why? He’s wore himself out trying to figure it out. I told him I’d be out tomorrow. He said he would be gone all morning and half the afternoon before he would be home. I did not say this, but I thought to myself, “GOOD!” Because my dad likes to take over on things, and it’s his farm, his barn, and his door! So I knew what would happen. How could I tell him what to do with his door? He wanted my help because he was wore out, but tomorrow he would be ready to take over again. So me having a chance to figure out the problem while he was gone, was PERFECT!
When I got there I found the partially built door laying on the cement floor. There was a long 2×6 board running across the top and one across the bottom. He had tongue and groove planks to be interlocked and nailed to the two long boards. He had one plank nailed to one end of the long boards. This is where the door would start. Then he also nailed one at the other end. This left a big space of no planks between the planks, and my first thought was: “Is the door square?” So I took my tape measure and did the “X” thing from corner to corner and it was not. Got to fix that first.
So I knocked the door around a little, trying to square it up, but no matter what I did, it refused! What am I doing wrong? What is wrong with this door? I was beginning to see what my dad meant. I took the end plank loose and played with the boards some more. Still no luck! Forty minutes went by and I began to fear my dad would get home before I figured this out, and then I wouldn’t be able to think because of his constant talking. It was a real fear! So I prayed under my breath.
The door simply had to be square or it would never be a proper door. It would be nothing but trouble! But what is the problem? Finally…in desperation, I saw dad had cut the two long boards to a certain length. I assumed he cut them so they would properly fit the door opening. I saw the two end pieces he had cut off the boards. Picking them up, I compared their sizes. They should be the same size. But they were not! There was almost 6 inches difference! One board was 6 inches shorter than the other! This wall would never square in the normal way with two different size boards! And then I found out later, that he should not have cut them at all! They were already the right size! So I had to splice the cut off pieces back on!
This difference of 6 inches was very hard to see with the naked eye. Because of the way the wall was laid out, and two planks nailed on, the 6 inches just didn’t stand out. But when I compared the two cut off sections, I knew the boards had to be different. Once I discovered the real problem, then I was able to square the wall a different way, and we were soon on the way to building a proper door. I had it three-fourths done when he got home, and he could not believe I had it almost fixed and finished.
When Jesus laid the foundation for his church, I’m sure everything was exactly square and level. The Master Carpenter set it right, but since that time men have built upon that foundation walls not level and not square. They cut short things they ought not to have. And what they have built will never square! I had to undo almost everything my dad did, before I was able to fix the problem he had created! But had my dad not been away, for me to have a chance, I don’t know if it ever would have been made right.
Over my many years of being involved in church, I’ve had the chance to offer direction many times, but since I was not the Pastor, my insight never seemed to be accepted, and we ended up down roads I eventually walked away from. And this is why I finally realized I needed to start something that fit the vision in me, and see what God would do?
How we build on what the Master Carpenter laid the foundation for is of utmost importance! As the leader of a flock, it must be taken with extreme seriousness!
“…But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have — Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials — gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value.” (I Cor. 3:10-13)
It goes on to say much more, and I advise reading it all. We have done much at this blog site to expose how far our Modern American Church (MAC) has drifted from the original four-square pattern the Master Carpenter created. Many people seem to think it is no big deal. Believe me, if it were YOUR house, level and square would be a really BIG DEAL! But it’s time for this site to teach of other factors involved in our “unsquare” modern teachings. What is simplicity? What is serenity? Would you describe your life as simple and serene? Why is it we seem to be stuck in the fast lane of life while God flows in the slow?
These are factors also affected by our modern way of living, a way not square and not level with what Jesus taught. The unsquare and unlevel modern church says you are successful and full of the wisdom of God, and yet you have become slave to many things, and Jesus taught a different way. These modern builders are building houses of cards that will not stand the test of God’s fire. Jesus is still the Master Carpenter. Lets get back to what Jesus DID. What would Jesus do (WWJD), and what Jesus DID should be in HARMONY.
This message has been brought to you by “Fellowship of the White Path”.
Signed: Grandpa White Feather.
Path Without End 