Art for God's Sake
Posted by tom | Aug 29, 2006The following posting is this week's Worship Quote of the Week, -- let me know your thoughts.
There are many reasons why some churches have a negative view of the arts. Art trades in images, and images easily lend themselves to idolatry. Artists know this from their own experience. In their work they encounter the glory at the foundation of things, and they feel its power over the heart. . . .
Ultimately this kind of art dishonors God because it is not in keeping with the truth and beauty of his character. It also undermines the church's gospel message of salvation in Christ. Art has tremendous power to shape culture and touch the human heart. Its artifacts embody the ideas and desires of the coming generation. This means that what is happening in the arts today is prophetic of what will happen in our culture tomorrow . . .
It also means that when Christians abandon the artistic community, we lose a significant opportunity to communicate Christ to our culture. Furthermore, when we settle for trivial expressions of the truth in worship and art, we ourselves are diminished, as we suffer a loss of transcendence. What we need to recover (or possibly discover for the first time) is a full biblical understanding of the arts -- not for art's sake, but for God's sake. Then we will be able to produce better art that more effectively testifies to the truth about God and his grace. This goal is important and not just for artists, but for everyone else made in God's image and in need of redemption.Philip Ryken, Art for God's Sake: A Call to Recover the Arts. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2006, p. 11, 13-14. ISBN10: 1-59638-007-1.The author looks at a biblical view of art by examining Exodus 31 where God calls Bezalel and Oholiab as artists to work on the tabernacle.
Chip Stam, Director of the Institute for Christian Worship comments, "I wonder if you and your closest two Christian friends would agree on the appropriate place of "high" artistic aspirations in the service of the local church. Is abstract art anti-Christian? Is the term "Christian rap artist" a laughable idea? Is Stravinsky's SYMPHONY OF PSALMS an example of music that is good, true, and beautiful; or is it just confusing and hideous? Dare we talk about these things with the goal of proclaiming God's glory in all we do?"
Art encompases many expressions of the faith: poetic texts, music, visual, etc. Art is a gift of the Holy Spirit to be used by God's people for the good of all.
Art should be used to point to Christ, Glorify God, inspire believers through the work of the Holy Spirit, nurish and strengthen God's children and bring non-belivers to faith.
God is awesome and mysterious. Art should strive to be awesome and mysterious.
God is NOT shallow, average, finite, or disposable. Items refered to as Art which are shallow, average, finite, or disposable fail to show the world a hint of God's greatness. It is a shame to hear leaders of the church encrouage "art" that attracts people to worship and fills the pews, rather than enrich people spiritually in worship and daily life.
When we the church settle for the lowest common denominator, we insult God and his people. God made us in his image. To say "people who live in the mountains only understand blue grass music and therefore we will only give them blue grass music" or "inter-city people only understand rap, therefore we will only give them rap" is to say God and his people are only "blue grass" or "rap" and cannnot understand anything else. This is insulting!
The church spans time and place. God is a constant NOW, God IS. "I am that I am." To limit expressions of the faith via artistic forms of one period and style is to deprive people of seeing the Church, all of the Church, from the beginning of human time to the end. To connect with the faithful of all times. God IS the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. God did not say I was and will be, but God said IS. God IS. "I am that I am." God is with his people of all times and places NOW. We as a church should use artistic expressions of all times and places to join with our brothers and sisters in all times and places in Praising and Glorifying God. This is indeed a mystery, and is worth sharing.
Even the "highest" form of art cannot truely explain or hint at God's true being. We humans cannot fully understand God and the mysteries of the faith. Such art strenghtens the faithful and shares God, (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) with non-believers. Through the art the Holy Spirit works to bring God's people to faith.
Artists should be encourage by the church to continue to give glimpses of the awesome and mysterious.
Posted by Rachel Spry, Aug 30 2006, 10:38