There is an unlikely tale about the brilliant Renaissance artist Michelangelo. He was asked about the difficulties that he must have encountered in sculpting his masterpiece, David. He replied with an unassuming and comical description of his creative process: It is easy. You just chip away the stone that doesn’t look like David.
In our study this week, after approximately 15 years of pain, trial and difficulty, David will finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Over half his life has been an upward ascension towards the fulfillment of God’s promise to him. In the process, he has achieved what probably feels like a PhD in Pain. But God has changed him. God has been chipping away at all the parts of his life that don’t look like Christ. The problem was never making David king. God could have removed every obstacle and established David as king immediately. The ultimate goal, however, was not just to make David king, but to make David look like Christ.
What God did in David’s life is not unique to him. God works in a very similar way in our lives. He gives us promises and His Word and then goes to work chipping away at all the parts of our lives that don’t look like Jesus. The process can be painful, but the byproduct is beautiful. I pray you will join us this weekend as we look to the Word of God and the One who divinely sculpts our lives for His glory.
