Before Jesus began His public ministry, He worked as a carpenter. He made tools and utensils that were useful in the house and in the field. It is a significant fact that the things He made tended to stability and order. His calling was a symbol of the constructive and productive.
Author John R. Gunn writes, "We can be sure that His work was well done. That He never mad a shoddy table or plow. That He never made a yoke that would gall the neck of an ox. If all workmen would follow His example in this respect, it would elevate and dignify their trades. The man who turns out an honest piece of carpentry is as honorable as the man who makes a poem or a sermon.
No work can degrade a man unless the man first degrades his work. No man need pollute himself in any trade, profession or business. Every man can, if he will, lift up and exalt his vocation. Elihu Burritt, the famous blacksmith, never thought it necessary to swear because other blacksmiths swore. Arthur Tappan, the merchant prince, never thought it necessary to swindle because other merchants swindled. Gladstone, the great British politician, never thought it necessary to be corrupt because other politicians were corrupt.
These men exalted the callings in which they were engaged. Jesus exalted the carpenter's trade; it means more and stands for more to be a carpenter since He worked with the saw and hammer. The status of your vocation is largely up to you. You may dignify or degrade it depending on your own attitude and how you apply yourself to the work to be done."