Sculptors, carvers, and potters have
always amazed me with their talent and ability to make something out of
nothing. I admire how they can take a
raw material and create it into something of art. I look at a slab of marble, wood, or clay and
I see a slab of marble, wood, or clay; but these people see something and
create it out of what I consider to be nothing.
The great artist Michelangelo stated: “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the
sculptor to discover it.” Speaking
of one of his sculptures of an angel he tells the curious that “I saw the angel in the marble and carved
until I set him free.”
In Genesis 1:27 we are told “. .
. God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created
them; male and female he created them.”(New Living Translation Bible) That is what the scriptures tell us in black
and white . . . and, I believe it. I
believe that God created each one of us in God’s image. It is our responsibility to discover that
image and to set it free to be who God created us to be. Just as Michelangelo saw that angel in the
marble and set it free, it is our task to set the holy image of who God made us
to be free.
In using the sculptor, craver, and
potter as the example, we are nothing more than that slab of marble, block of
wood, or lump of clay waiting to be revealed as who God created us to be in
God’s image. We are working on setting
that “angel” free . . . and, we have been since that day we proclaimed that we
would follow Jesus. From that day we
have been embarking on a journey of discovery . . . an adventure of faith . . .
to fully realize who we are in following Jesus.
The Apostle Paul tells his readers in
our scripture this morning that this work of art . . . this work of being . . .
that we embark on is not an easy one.
No, it is filled with lots of distractions and misinformation about
coming into the holiness bestowed upon us through following Jesus. He reminds us that in Jesus God displays the
fullness of holiness, and that through Jesus and our willingness to follow him,
we too can embody the holiness that we have been created to be. Paul writes: “For in Christ all the fullness
of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ .
. .”
All we must do is to chip away the stone
. . . chip away the wood . . . or mold the clay to discover and become who we
were created to be in God’s image. But
we must be careful! Not all the advice
and information that we are given from those around us, especially those who
are grounded in the ways of the world and not the holy, is going to help us set
the “angel” free. No, if we are not
careful, we will be led astray and away from that which is holy and good. That is why the apostle tells us to keep our
eyes on Jesus . . . not just the words that he spoke, but the actions that he
took. If we can do this then we will
complete our sculpture . . . our carving . . . or our pottery of who we are in
the image of God.
We must be careful. There are a lot of prophets and preachers out
there who sound good as they espouse their ministries. But are their words the words that chip away
that which keeps us from revealing the “holy” within us . . . of discovering
ourselves as God created us to be? Are
their words living up to what Jesus asked each of us to live . . . to love God
completely and to love others as we love ourselves? One must wonder when these prophets and
preachers live in million-dollar mansions and jet back and forth to speaking
gigs in private jets. They get rich,
while their flocks struggle to support their ministries. I cannot recall Mother Teresa ever living
such a lifestyle.
Yet, it is easy to fall into the
trap. There are lots of flashy lights,
loud music, and dancing going on. People
look like they are enjoying themselves.
But, are they truly following Jesus?
One must wonder.
As we chip away to discover ourselves in
the image of God . . . of setting the “angel” free . . . we need to focus on
Jesus, especially his actions. In doing
so, we must ask ourselves . . . is this serving God . . . is this serving
others?
This is where the “holy” is
revealed. This is where people see and
experience the “holy”. It is in how one
lives his or her life in loving God and others.
It is not in following a particular style of worship . . . not in
reading one particular translation of the bible . . . not in singing certain
songs . . . reciting certain prayers.
Those might be great tools, but what it all comes down to is how we live
our lives in relation to God and others . . . are we loving?
Jesus showed us the way. He lived it.
In our proclamation to follow Jesus we are stating that we will live as
he lived . . . loving God and others. It
is an all or nothing proposition.
That is something we should think
seriously about because it is hard work.
Michelangelo did not do any of his great masterpieces in a single day .
. . no, it took time . . . lots of time.
It took time to chip away that stone to free the angel within. Thus, it is for us. It will take time as we work towards the full
revealing of that person God created us to be in God’s image. It will take a lot of prayer and discerning
as we consider the witness of Jesus in our lives. And, it won’t be easy as we will make
mistakes . . . take wrong turns . . . and, utterly goof it up at times. But God is a patient God . . . full of grace,
full of love willing to wait for us.
At the same time, we need to remember,
that we are not alone in this journey . . . God is with us every step of the
way because God wants us to be who we are in God’s image. God wants us to be holy. We are about the business of “setting the
angel” free. Our prayer is a simple
prayer summed up in Daniel Iverson’s 1926 hymn, Spirit of the Living God:
Spirit of
the living God, fall afresh on me.
Spirit of
the living God, fall afresh on me.
Melt me,
mold me, fill me, use me.
Spirit of
the living God, fall afresh on me.
Amen.
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