“Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.”
Isaiah 51:1
This verse was written to comfort and encourage the Israelites living in exile because of the nation’s continued disobedience and refusal to hear God’s calls to repentance. God reminds Israel that they are still His chosen people, He is still their God, and His promises still stand. This passage is written for YOUR comfort and encouragement, as well. God calls you to listen to Him and to remember that you are His.
The image of “the rock from which you were hewn…the quarry from which you were dug” is beautiful to me. In my mind’s eye, I see a master sculptor making his way down cobbled streets to the outskirts of the little village he calls home. As he walks through the quiet Italian countryside, he begins to hear the sounds of workers and hammers striking chisels into stone, his heart begins to beat a little faster and his steps quicken, he knows the beginnings of his next masterpiece awaits.
At his destination, the sculptor closely examines the many blocks of marble that have been cut away from the marble walls of the quarry. After a lengthy search, he selects the perfect piece that to the untrained eye looks like nothing more than a large block of stone, but the skilled eye of the master sculptor sees the beauty that will be unveiled once he carefully, artfully carves away the excess marble. The cost for the stone is high, but he knows that ultimately the beauty and the value of his completed work will be more than worth it. He hurries back to his studio to await the delivery of the block of stone.
Once in his possession, the work of transforming the stone begins. Patiently, intentionally he removes every unneeded sliver of stone, careful always not to stress the stone beyond its endurance causing it to fracture and break.
The master sculptor steps back and views his almost completed masterpiece from every angle with a keen and critical eye. He looks for chips, slivers of marble that need to be removed, and any flaw or blemish that would mar the beauty of the sculpture. Satisfied that nothing more needs to be cut away, he begins the refinement process using varying degrees of sandpaper with splashes of water to smooth and polish the sculpture revealing the beautiful glory of its rich colors and the patterns no longer trapped within in the stone.
At long last, the sculptor’s work is done, his masterpiece complete. The long days and sleepless nights, exhausted muscles and sweat covered brow, the bloody aches and pains caused by nicks and cuts from sharp chisels and jagged bits of stone, all now forgotten as the sculptor beholds his work of love. A thing of great beauty destined for the court of the King.
“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.”
Michelangelo
As a believer, you and I are that block of stone desperately in need of the Master’s skilled hand. The sculpting process is not always easy, in truth, much of the time it is not. It is at times more than you think you can endure. But his hand will not stress you to the breaking point or beyond your ability to bear. He knows the precise amount of pressure that must be applied to the chisel to produce each perfect angle, each delicate curve. He will carefully, intentionally and with great love, carve, chip away, sand, smooth and polish until at last His masterpiece is revealed.
It is not an angel that has been freed from the stone, it is so much more. It is you, His new creation conformed to the matchless beauty of Jesus Christ.
“I am so much more than anything you can imagine.
I have so much more for you than you could possibly dream.
I will do this work in you.
If you will only listen.”
Dear one, God has a beautiful work that He wants to do in you, for you, and through you. It is a work that is unique to you and that was designed specifically for you before the foundations of the world were laid. It is a work that began the moment you accepted Christ as your LORD and Savior. It is a transforming work that will continue to shape you into the image of Christ until one day you will stand in the presence of your Heavenly Father complete. The transformation accomplished. You will be a new creation beautifully reflecting the sinless nature of Jesus Christ – truly a masterpiece. But until that day, for the transformational work of God’s Holy Spirit to proceed as God intends, you must open your ears and surrender your heart to the call of the most Holy Sculptor – the Creator of the Universe – God Almighty.
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Eph 2:10 ESV