cover image Lessons from the Carpenter: An Apprentice Learns from Jesus

Lessons from the Carpenter: An Apprentice Learns from Jesus

H. Michael Brewer, . . WaterBrook, $12.99 (124pp) ISBN 978-1-4000-7120-3

Brewer (Who Needs a Superhero? ) is a Presbyterian pastor, but he grew up working on houses with his dad, a carpenter. In this slim book, Brewer teases out Christian lessons from carpentry. Jesus, Brewer reasons, was a carpenter, so carpentry must tell us something about discipleship. One can't do heavy carpentry alone—it requires teamwork and community, just like faith. As a good carpenter takes pride in his work, so God adores each of us, his creations. Perhaps the most insightful discussion is Brewer's explanation of what the Bible means when it says that we dwell in Christ and he in us. That expression is a tad confusing at first blush—how can something dwell in the thing that dwells in it? Well, says Brewer, a dovetail joint, in which the carpenter "notches the ends of two boards and fits the notches together like interlacing fingers," does just that. Only occasionally does it feel like Brewer's stretching—as with his claim that just as a master carpenter will pay whatever it takes to get his job done right, so Christ was willing to pay a very high price to redeem us. Overall, though, this metaphorical musing is surprisingly substantive. (Feb. 21)