The Artist and the Church

This afternoon the arts consultation concluded. Dr. Colin Harbinson preached on "A Godly Model for the Arts: The Artist and Spiritual Leadership" at both services. Afterwards, there was a concluding lunch that the majority of the folks attended. It was a good way to wrap up and connect with people.

The message was brilliant. Here are some of the points.

The Bible is 75% narrative, 15% poetry, and 10% instructional. This should influence how we present God's Word. Today however we have the opposite of this, as 90% of presenting truth is instructional, which only appeals to a small audience.

Jesus used pictures to capture the imagination. The Church needs to use creative ways because the world has changed. The world values and receives the arts in a big way. The arts present ideas and concepts for living.

Genesis 1:1 shows that God is an artist. We also have the ability to be creators and makers. We need to have a creative lifestyle in which we bring this creativity into everything God calls us to do.

Genesis 2:9 says, "And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground--trees that were pleasing to the eye [aesthetics] and good for food [functional]." Being in the image of God entails the ability to appreciate beauty.

After the Israelites rebel in the wilderness, God sends poisonous snakes as punishment (Numbers 21:4-8). Afterwards He has Moise make a bronze snake and put it on a pole. Any snakebitten person who looked at it [obviously, with his or her eyes] was healed, restored, and forgiven of their rebellion. This is an example of God speaking through a picture.

God has touched nations closed to the gospel through the arts.

Exodus 31:1-11 shows God commissioning the first school of the arts. It mentions 2 craftsmen: Bezalel and Oholiab. God says to Moses, "I have chosen Bezalel...and filled him with the Spirit of God...and with skill, ability, and knowledge in all kinds of crafts--to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver, and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of craftsmanship. Moreover, I have appointed Oholiab...to help him. Also I have given skill to all the crafsmen to make everything I have commanded you."

We have a distorted theology that distinguishes between "full-time" and "part-time" Christian service. There are no "part-timers" in God's Kingdom. The most spiritual thing that we can do is to be obedient to what God is calling us to do.

Before Bezalel could fulfill his artistic calling, he needed to be filled with the Spirit of God.

Godly character involves knowledge of God, understanding of God, and wisdom on living (which is a combination of applying knowledge and understanding of God.

The Christian artist needs the filling of the Spirit, godly character, and artistic competence.

Whatever gift we have comes from God. Many people who have been given artistic gifts by God have thrown these away because the Church did not affirm them. Certainly, sometimes artists haven't helped their image in the Church because of eccentricities and weirdness. Those who have buried or thrown away their gift(s) need to repent, embrace God's gift(s), and develop it for the glory of God.

Exodus 35:30-35 is an example of the spiritual leader (Moses) affirmng the call and spiritual and artistic gifts of the artists Bezalel and Oholiab.

In a 2 year study of the Lausanne Committee, the arts was one of the issues of the Church of the 21st century. Colin Harbison chaired the arts committee that brought together 70 people (including Jim Beise, founder of La Fonderie) around the world involved in arts ministry. Nearly all said that the Church doesn't understand our calling and gifting. There often was little room in the Church to exercise their gifts. This is a worldwide heartcry of pain of artists from around the world.

In Exodus 36:2-7, Moses calls for a freewill offering to support the work of the artists. The people responded and brought so much that Moses had to give an order for them to stop, as the artists had received more than enough for their projects.

Christian artists need "patrons" (the original root for this means "fathers") who will "father" the arts.

This story also shows that the artists were spiritually accountable to the leader. Obedience and accountability equal blessing. The Church needs to recognize the call of artists and nurture them spiritually.

After all the work was done, the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34). Our world needs to see the glory of the Lord. The fruit of artistic work should be to show God's glory. Unfortunately, however, the Church has not done this, so non-Christian artists are doing this, particularly in the film and music industries. We need Christians in every area of entertainment. We need to understand our world and how to communicate with it.

If you are impacted by a story, you'll want to become part of it.