God’s Shaping Process

Shop Time

I like wood turning. The process begins with a block of wood placed in the lathe. The block is clunky, so, you’d better turn the speed of the lathe down. In the beginning there are chunks of wood flying off. It is probably the messiest process in the shop. But, little by little, the chunk begins to become rounded, the speed is turned up, and the finer detailing begins.

Romans 6 & 7 give us an understanding of the way that God works in our lives to shape us into a masterpiece. Chapter 8 will help us understand the role of the Holy Spirit (next week).

Shaped By the Master’s Hand

Some Stuff Just Has to Go

A spindle or a leg starts off as a block of wood. The end product of woodturning is to have something decorative that fits the purpose of the woodworker – a column, bannister, spindle, candle holder, on and on. The decorative shapes are called swells, coves, fillets, hollows, flats, and beads. These things are shaped into the wood by the master woodworker but to get them there, material is going to have to go. In our lives, the stuff that needs to go is sin.

Realization #1 - Sin has no place in our lives.

In woodturning, the first thing is mounting the wood — fixing it securely to the lathe. In Christ, God “mounts” us into His grace through salvation. We are set apart for His work. The old block of wood — our life in sin — is now fixed in the Master’s hands, ready to be transformed. If we are going to be shaped by God, we have to eliminate sin from our lives.

Romans 6:1–4 NIV

What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

“Grace” …”died to sin” … “baptized into death”... “raised from the dead”. We have to admit that this is confusing. So, is grace a “get out of jail free” card that could be used over and over? No! Paul recognizes that sin is a problem. It is inconsistent with grace.

Paul cannot imagine that a Christian would live in sin any longer. “What Paul is saying is that God’s abundant grace exceeds our greatest sin. He not only saves us from past guilt and future judgment, but He also delivers us from sin’s control now, in the present. To continue in sin contradicts the very purpose of grace.”[1]

Jude 4 NIV

For certain individuals whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.

Realization #2 – We Must Be Purposeful in Our Sanctification

After we are united with Christ, God continues to work in us, molding us into Christ’s image. This process of spiritual growth is called sanctification.[2]

There are various interpretations about Romans 6:2, “we died to sin”. :One widely held view says, in effect, ‘Christians should react to temptation like a kicked corpse.’ In other words, they should not respond at all! Why? A lifeless corpse cannot react. Those who hold this view reason that, since ‘we died to sin,’ we are dead to the influence of sin and therefore cannot sin. But is this Paul’s meaning?”

That interpretation does not make sense to me. Temptation is all around us. Sin, unfortunately, occurs. If sin is a corpse at our feet, why do the NT Scriptures take the time to tell us not to sin? In just a couple verses (verse 12) Paul will say, “Do not let sin reign in your mortal body.”

This is meaningless advice for a dead person, as is his next statement, “Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness” (6:13). The examples continue: “Let us put aside the deeds of darkness” (13:12); “do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature” (13:14). If our fallen nature has died so that we no longer react to temptation, then these exhortations are meaningless.[3]

I would agree with Stott who says,

It is not the literal impossibility of sin in believers which Paul is declaring, but the moral Incongruity [inconsistency] of it” (1994, 169). It is a contradiction to testify that we died to sin and then continue to live in sin… He concludes that the statement “we died to sin” refers to our justification; that is, death to the guilt of sin. In other words, it is totally inconsistent for a person who is justified—set free from the guilt and power of sin—to continue to live in sin.[4]

Ok, so we are knocking the unwanted material off our woodworking masterpiece. We now know,

Realization #1 - Sin has no place in our lives.

Realization #2 – We Must Be Purposeful in Our Sanctification

Those 2 realizations contribute to shaping our lives and they are a vital part of the process of being delivered from sin.

Living a Balanced Life Under Grace

There are probably an endless variety of tools that can be used in wood turning. But, woodturning chisels can be broadly categorized into gouges, scrapers, and parting tools, each with specialized shapes and uses for different stages of woodturning. Gouges are used for shaping, scrapers for refining and smoothing, and parting tools for separating pieces.

God wants to shape us into his Jeremiah 29:11 vision:

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

His plan includes beautiful craftmanship and the elimination of stuff – to include sin. Now, we must admit, sin is a huge problem. Certainly, each of us have struggled with a sin (or sins) that plague us. Here Paul offers a 3-step process of sanctification – Know…Count…Offer.

3 Step Process of Sanctification – Know…Count…Offer

Know

I think about highly successful programs like Teen Challenge, even the veteran’s program here in Houston called Camp Hope. There is a heavy focus on learning the Bible. What might take years to learn through Sunday messages and weekly meetings is condensed in the classrooms. Leaders have learned that life transformation (sanctification) is heavily influenced by what we know.

Romans 6:5–10 NIV

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.

“Know” these facts

Our old self was put to death with Christ so that our sinful nature is rendered powerless.

We should no longer be slaves to sin. The apostle John wrote,

1 John 3:9 NIV

No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.

God’s seed in this passage carries the idea of human reproduction. Just as a child reflects the likeness of his or her parents, so a believer should reflect the likeness of Christ.[5]

We need to define several terms here. Our old self (literally, old man) is our unregenerate self before we trusted Christ as Savior. The body of sin is a reference not to our physical body but to the sinful nature we inherited from Adam. Done away with (destroyed, NRSV) does not mean “annihilated” or “ceasing to exist” but “rendered powerless” (NIV Study Bible1985, 1714).[6]

Death cannot dominate the believer any longer.

To be dead in Christ is also to be alive with Him.

“Count”

Knowing a fact doesn’t mean that we apply the fact wisely. “Counting” means that we wisely apply what we know. A woodturner begins with rough cuts — large, sometimes aggressive passes to strip away bark, knots, or warped edges. God’s Spirit begins by removing habits, attitudes, and desires that don’t fit the image of Christ. This can feel uncomfortable — even painful — but it’s the first step to revealing the shape He intends.

Romans 6:11–14 NIV

In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.

“The word count (Greek, logizomai) is a bookkeeping term. It does not refer to something imagined or unreal but describes or acknowledges what is real or true.” We can count on because of the concrete facts that we know. In defending against sin: (1) consider yourself dead to sin, (2) do not let sin have the king’s seat, (3) do not offer yourself to darkness.

Offer

Ok, so let’s add the 3rd component – “offer”. The turner now uses finer tools — detail chisels — to form smooth curves and functional beauty. This is the Spirit’s daily shaping in our hearts: love replacing bitterness, self-control replacing impulsiveness, humility replacing pride. We learn to “present ourselves” — staying yielded so the shaping can continue.

Romans 6:14–18 NIV

For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

You are a slave to what you offer yourself to... sexual immorality, impurity, idolatry and witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissension, drunkenness (see Gal 5, the acts of the flesh). Or…better…offer yourself to love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Romans 6:19–23 NIV

I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Warnings About Coming Off the Lathe

My lathe is a vintage 1940’s Sears and Roebuck. It was Cindy’s grandfathers and, until last year, was mounted on a wooden base, but the thing vibrated as it ran. Turned out the shaft was bent. This created some interesting moments – like the piece of wood flying off. I finally fixed it a year or so ago.

There are some toxic myths and misconceptions about sin that create wobbling and dangerous situations.

Myth #1- The consequences of my sin can be managed

Sin is always more impactful and far-reaching than anticipated, affecting not only ourselves but also those around us and potentially the community as a whole. The Bible urges fleeing from temptation, as it is not possible to plan for the consequences of sin.

Myth #2 - Sinful behaviors can be overcome overnight

The belief that deep-rooted sinful behaviors can magically disappear upon conversion is a misunderstanding. While Christ has conquered sin and offers freedom, the process of sanctification, or rooting out ingrained unrighteousness, is a lifelong journey.

Myth #3 - Sinful choices define a person’s identity

The cultural emphasis on "being true to yourself" can mislead individuals into believing that sinful choices are an inherent part of their identity. However, sin is not who a person truly is; it's a distortion of their God-given design. In Christ, individuals are redeemed and are being restored to their original, God-glorifying purpose.

Myth #4 - Progress in overcoming sin is not possible or authentic

Some Christians believe that admitting spiritual progress is inauthentic or that they can never truly overcome sin in this life. This perspective overlooks the transformative power of Christ and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in a believer's life. The Bible encourages believers not to give up in the fight against sin.

Myth #5 - It's too late for grace or forgiveness

Feelings of being "too sinful to pray" or that one's sin is beyond God's forgiveness are detrimental myths. God desires all people to draw near to him, and through Christ, there is no condemnation for those who believe.

Finishing Up

Sanding is patient work — repeated passes with finer grits, gradually removing the smallest flaws. Sanctification is a lifelong process. God’s grace smooths the roughness in our words, our relationships, and our character. Finally, the wood is finished — oil or wax seals it, deepens the grain, and strengthens it for use. God’s Spirit seals us, making our lives shine with the beauty of Christ.

When a woodturner holds the finished piece, they see more than just a bowl or a spindle. They see the hours of care, the transformation from a rough log into something treasured. In the same way, when God looks at a sanctified believer, He sees the story of His grace written in every curve of our lives.

[1]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 97.

[2]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 71.

[3]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 98.

[4]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 98.

[5]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 99.

[6]William F. Lasley and Richard Dresselhaus, Romans: Justification by Faith: An Independent-Study Textbook, Third Edition (Springfield, MO: Global University, 2010), 99.