IKEA

I had the opportunity to assemble a bunch of Ikea furniture shelving recently. While I find this a somewhat enjoyable task, I know other people find the prospect daunting and scary. I knew of one pastor who included assembling a bookshelf as part of the curriculum for his pre-marital counseling. He said it brought a lot of stuff to the surface to know what the couple needed to talk about. I think it was an excuse to get people to build his bookshelves.

In theory, it should be easy. The pieces are all there. The hardware is all there. The instructions are laid out step-by-step. And the whole process is ruled by the national symbol of Sweden: the tiny Allen wrench. Part A goes into part B. Oops grabbed the wrong screw. Which piece is next? Here we go, oh I think it’s upside down. Maybe? WHY AREN’T THESE HOLES LINING UP!?! Followed by a series of long increasingly frustrated sighs and salty language.

Eventually it all works out and your stack of boards becomes a beloved piece of furniture. I think Ikea furniture can be a metaphor for our own sanctification (growing in holiness). We start out easy by dwelling on the words of Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Then our resolve gets tested, and we need to remind ourselves of who we are called to be. Then face a time when you fall flat on your face, and it can feel like you’re starting over from scratch. And we remember the next verse, Galatians 2:21 “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”

We get better by allowing God to work in us and through us. We can’t follow enough rules but we can hand the tools over to God and allow him to build us into what he would have us become.