Art can be scary. Especially as it relates to its place in the church.
It’s like a wild animal, we avoid even trying to tame.
I love ministry. The work I get to do is such a privilege – leading worship, pastoring people, raising up volunteers, making disciples.
But I also wonder if the walls we’ve made between art and ministry need to come down.
I used to sit down and play the piano for the sake of beauty – getting lost in the moment while I created tones for God’s glory. Now, I sit at the piano to pull off a worship song.
I’ve lost the mystery. I’ve lost the expectation. I’ve lost a the sense of beauty and majesty as it relates to art.
We haven’t known what to do with art. We know we need to preach God’s Word, lead worship with music, observe the sacraments, and have small groups.
But where are the artists? Are we fostering an atmosphere where artists can flourish?
Art in Scripture
God is a fan of beauty. Think about His creation. He could have simply created what was practical – the things that are necessary for the survival of human life. But no – He created spiders. He created mountains. He created breathtaking waterfalls. Almighty God’s attention to detail in creation is mind blowing.
In the Old Testament, God gave Solomon instructions to build the temple. Did God simply say, “Throw up some posts and toss a curtain over the top? I just need the job to be done.” Hardly. God gave very specific instructions about the tabernacle. He had an artistic vision. He wanted to create a thing of beauty. Consider this one item: the priests garments.
“And upon the skirts of it thou shalt make pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the skirts thereof” (Ex 28:33).
Remarkable. The temple was filled with detailed, beautiful works of art.
Christian vs. Secular
Tension arises when we introduce the categories of Christian art and secular art. This is not a new discussion. We all do it.
- Is this a Christian song?
- Is she a secular artist?
- Is that a Christian book series?
- That’s a Christian movie, right?
But what we see in the Bible isn’t a distinction between Christian and secular art. What we see is both – but all created for the glory and praise of God. We have freedom to create because our God is the creator of the arts. He values beauty.
Rather than limiting our artists to create “Christian” art, we should teach them how God redeems the whole man. He is the Lord of the sacred and the secular.
We need to teach our artists that it’s OK to create beauty, even if it doesn’t have an intrinsic, “Christian” message attached to it. It’s more about being surrendered to Christ, creating for His glory – that when we observe beauty in the arts, we can appreciate and enjoy the glory of God through it.
Francis Shaffer once said,
“Do we understand the freedom we have under the Lordship of Christ and the norms of Scripture? Is the creative part of our life committed to Christ? Christ is the Lord of our whole life and the Christian life should produce no only truth-flaming truth, but also beauty.”
So where do we go from here? As leaders in the church, what are we doing with our artists? Are we releasing them to create beauty or are we constricting them to an unnecessary, narrow niche? Are we limiting what God wants to see released in the arts?
I challenge you to be released in your creativity and release those in your ministry. Be released to glorify God in new, creative ways. Be released to create beauty. Stop categorizing your art – it’s all His.
“For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:36)
Question: Where do you stand on the Christian art vs. Secular art debate? What does this look like in your church? You can leave a comment by clicking here.
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Great post, David.
Where does the Schaeffer quote come from?
It’s from his book, “Art & the Bible”, which is fantastic!
Ah… ok. I read that a number of years ago – it was a paradigm shifter for me, but don’t remember any specific lines. I’ll have to revisit it! Cheers.
Definitely. One of my favorite books.
David,
Good post. I think the debate between Christian art and secular art absolutely exist…..but in some churches, it’s not a discussion because they ignore art, period. Or those churches don’t know how to handle artists or there art. I recently read a great article about art and artists in the church. The interesting thing about the article was that the writer approached it from the perspective of how to discourage artists in the church. It’s a good read.
http://thegospelcoalition.org/mobile/article/tgc/how-to-discourage-artists-in-the-church
This is great, Brian. Thanks for sharing the resource! What would you say to church leaders who “ignore” art? How would you encourage them to foster it?
I would remind church leaders who ignore art that God is a creator and he gave us the desire to create as well. We all create things. They may not look the same or speak the same way or to the same people but we all do create. It’s our ability to create that allows us to express our love to God from our hearts. Imagine if our worship services were scripted out in the Bible. What songs to sing, how to sing them, liturgy, etc. Worship would be more about rules than heartfelt expression. I would encourage all churches to try to think outside the box and see the beauty of someone pouring their heart out to God instead of scoffing at what was created.
Well said, Brian.
Bach, “If it is good enough for the concert stage, it is good enough for church. If it is good enough for church, it is good enough for the concert stage.” I book marked the article that Brian mentioned after reading some of it. Looks pretty good. David, thanks for this post.
A great quote, Don! Do you happen to know the context? I’d be interested to know what Bach was responding to.
Something in the back of my brain from college days nearly 40 years ago. Pretty sure its close, pretty sure it was Bach. It spoke to me. I tried to find it on ” Brainy Quote” but could not locate it, but I found a bunch of other good ones about music. To me, Bach embodied the Art vs. Worship issue. Nothing new under the sun. Also ironic that now we have “Worship Arts Pastors”, and the problem still persists. I’ll try to keep looking for it. Maybe someone who is more competent at computer searches could find it.
All of it is definitely true. But where does it fit into the context of corporate worship? Do you set up ways for people to worship God with canvas? or do you make it a part of the stage?
Phil, I wasn’t necessarily speaking of the place of painting in corporate worship, but I’ve definitely seen it done before – a live painter on stage during worship. Anyone else seen anything creative?
Hi David! I really enjoyed your post! Its of great interest for me cuz I’m looking forward into starting a blog around this topic of the arts (encouraging people not to limit themselves to music) and how we can use them as powerful instruments of Worship. I’m currently doing my research and i stumbled upon your awesome blog!…. I totally agree with you on this topic and feel even more encouraged to continue. But, my only concern is that the arts are often used as an expression of the human soul and experience, and in certain situations we might find our sinful nature expressed. For example, we find in the secular arts that some artists try to glorify humanity or even directly insult God. I find this more commonly in the pop music of today! I believe that in your article you refer mainly to the visual arts, if I’m no mistaken, and in that case I find it a little harder for this to happen.
Michael, the temptation to glorify man or the sinful nature is always possible. I think that’s the only restriction we should have on our art. It cannot glorify sin or prize what God has called us out of. Make sense?
Several churches I am familiar with have very dramatic sets, and change them frequently. Not all people enjoy music or singing as much as others. One church I am familiar with has a large stage and a backdrop the size of a theater screen. They use a combination of still photos, montages and videos behind everything. They are so intense in color and message that I am often moved by the combination, whereas the music alone is not near as moving. Someone with an eye for color, texture, implied message and overall aesthetics has looked through hundreds and thousands of images to come up with a handful for each service. It has the effect of putting the music on steroids. The multimedia presentation is much more intense than just the music could ever be. Someone who is a great photographer could take some artsy shots, or be the one to search for shots through, what is it? Flicker. David has found some amazing photos for these posts,said he uses flicker. Dance, Drama, Spoken Word, whatever. And then welcome to the electric church, where occasionally you must turn the lights down and play unplugged to be different. The old cliche, “A rut is a grave kicked out at both ends”. Just don’t get in a rut.
http://www.reverbnation.com/jehncerron/song/4612969-moment-to-go
Hi David…the above is not a song plug…I promise. There is definitely a bridge between different art mediums be they music, visuals, poetry, etc. I believe “art” is that medium which communicates what is not stated or depicted explicitly. “Christian” art does not have to be explicitly stated as such. Rather, “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy…”(Philippians 4:8) is how one could define Christian art. Think about such things—create such things.
Thanks for sharing, Jehn!
You may not post this but here’s a thought, I am a worship leader and I can safely say ‘worship’ is what it says on the tin – its our chosen creative expression ..It is what we do with that expression which is fundamental. If we are worshipping God, then the detail of this art form is between God and that individual. God will aknowledge that heart as a true worshipper. The other given is that it will have perpetuity (flavour of the throne room) written all over it (whether instrumental or song). If not for God then it is for man (flesh) or self gratification, acclamation etc.,.and I am aware God is not interested in it, no matter how pretty or popular it sounds. We can give worship whatever creative title we want, ie inspirational, creative ‘beauty and so on but if it is not created as an expression to worship God…then I feel its a shame to try to pass it off as an acceptable offering to God within His house. Word of God is unambiguous about this. Think about Cain and Abel.. Selah
I love this post – it is something on my heart. I used to struggle with how a church I attended tried to get my ‘gifts’ to fit into the things they had available. But I never felt like ministry was the first thing God required of me … and being hugely creative in nature I often felt like I had to tame myself in church and be more myself elsewhere. These days I am learning that my first duty is to let God love me … and then to let that love spill out of me in every way, including in my art.
Your post affirms me – I just want to create, to join the symphony of the Church (as a whole) in making something beautiful – just for love’s sake. 🙂
Mel, that’s awesome. What do you create?
Food, poetry, short stories … currently I am ghostwriting a book for a client and teaching myself to draw with soft pastels 🙂