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Isaiah 61:4 (NKJV)
4 And they
shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And
they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations.
Once upon a time
there were two skilled stonecutters working diligently at their craft. A young
man walked by admiring their skill and industry. The care they took with the
stone, the intricacy of their work, and the nature of their tools enchanted
him. But most he was struck by their intensity; they were absorbed in their
task. The young man couldn’t resist the urge to learn more.
“Excuse me, Sir,” the young man said to the first
stonecutter. “What are you doing there?”
The stonecutter glanced up at the young man, wiped sweat from his brow, and
gave the young man a quizzical look. “Well,
lad, as you can see I’m cutting stone.” And with that, the man went back to
his work, chisel and mallet in hand, focused and intent.
The young man
moved on to the second stonecutter. He watched the stonecutter for a few
minutes; noted the calluses on his hands; the dust and dirt on his apron; the
blood trickling down the knuckle that he had just caught on a piece of stone. “Excuse me, Sir,” the young man said to
the second stonecutter. “What are you
doing there?” The stonecutter glanced up at the young man, wiped sweat from
his brow, and gave the young man a smile. “Well,
lad, I’m building a cathedral.” And with that, the man pointed behind him
to the plot of ground that had been cleared for the new church.
Today is a
momentous day. Today is a day of transition; a day of new beginnings; a day
when the old things have passed away and, behold, new things have come! You are
graduating, entering into a new phase of your life. As you make this
transition, I would like you to think about what you have been doing thus far
and what you will be doing in the future.
Many young
people are directionless and listless. They think that the purpose of education
is to enable them to get a job; accomplish a task; fulfill a chore. But the
education you have received and the tasks you shall yet pursue – whether that
is further education or vocational training – is about far more than a job. It
is about a vocation – a calling, a summons from God to use your gifts and
talents for the glory of His Name and the growth of His Kingdom.
John Milton, the
great Puritan author of Paradise Lost,
wrote in an essay on education: “The end
then of learning is to repair the ruins of our first parents by regaining to
know God aright, and out of that knowledge to love him, to imitate him, to be
like him, as we may the nearest by possessing our souls of true virtue, which
being united to the heavenly grace of faith makes up the highest perfection.”
Milton reminds us that education isn’t just about the transfer of information but the process of formation – changing not just our
thoughts but also our habits, our loves, our desires, our goals. Rooting out
the ruins we’ve inherited from our father Adam and that we’ve created
ourselves. The Spirit of God has been poured out upon us to shape us into men
and women of virtue – which, when it is joined with faith in the Triune God,
makes up the highest perfection, the summit of achievement, the end of
education.
And the goal of
being men and women of faith and virtue is that we might be instruments in
God’s hands to advance the Kingdom of God in the world. God repairs the ruins
of our own selves that we might be instruments in repairing the ruins of the
world. Listen to Isaiah’s vision for you: And they shall rebuild the old ruins,
They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined
cities, The desolations of many generations.
Isaiah reminds
us that the work to which God has called you is not merely cutting stone, not
merely getting a degree, not merely doing a job. The work to which God has
called you is to rebuild the old ruins,
and raise up the former desolations. Your task is glorious – it is to
reverse the effects of the Fall by laboring for the expansion of God’s kingdom;
to repair the ruined cities, the
desolations of many generations. This is what you have been doing and what
you are yet called to do. Not merely cutting stones, but building cathedrals.
Do you see that?
When someone asks you in days to come – be you plumber, nurse, teacher,
homemaker, soldier, administrator – when someone asks you, “Excuse me, Sir,” or, “Excuse
me, Ma’am, what are you doing there,” how will you respond? Will you say, “Can’t you see I’m cutting stone?” or
will you remember the end of your labor, the purpose of your labor, the goal of
your labor, and declare with joy, “I’m
building a cathedral! I’m laboring that God’s kingdom come, His will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven!” That is your calling. That is your vocation.
That is the end of your education.
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