Do you have any idea how beautiful you are? I mean, you are drop dead gorgeous. It has nothing to do with your face or your body shape, as fine as those may be, and everything to do with the Jesus in you. When you are controlled by the Spirit of God all the beauty of Jesus is seen in you and you stand head and shoulders above everyone else in this world. Because this is our goal, to allow Jesus to be seen in us, we have to be careful that we do not allow the pattern of the world to diminish that light.
What I mean by this is that we cannot allow the goals, agenda and attitude of this world to superimpose itself on our life. We cannot allow the negative to impact the positive and we cannot allow the dark to diminish the light. It should be the opposite. The more we grow in Jesus the more the positive impacts the negative and the more the light gives chase to the dark. Negative thoughts and emotions must no longer find a place to root in us. After all, darkness plays no part in the brilliance of light.
Consider for a moment what should not be found in the life of a beautiful child of God:
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. (Ephesians 4:31)
Again, this is not given as a self-improvement list but instead as a road marker. If these negative things are found in you there is a problem in your relationship with Jesus. I find here the most dangerous of these to be bitterness and malice. These two can fool us into thinking we are okay. They can lay buried in us for a long time and surface when we least expect them to. The whole world can think we are nice people but instead we are plotting our revenge and evil intent toward others.
How many times do we hear in the news "but he was such a nice neighbour"; "he was a quiet guy, wouldn't hurt a fly"; "he was very nice, generous, always willing to lend a hand". That is until the malice in him overflowed into some horrible act of violence. There is a lot of darkness in people, hidden but active. It is why the world needs Jesus. But those of us with Jesus have to make sure that we are not allowing any of these negative seeds to take root. We have to make sure these things are not lying beneath the surface while we put on a good act.
If any of these things come near us we have to allow the light to chase them out, to expose them. When they are exposed and we see them we need to deal with them. And how do we deal with them? By allowing all the goodness of Jesus to wash them away:
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:32)
The big thing here is forgiveness. There is nothing more beautiful and powerful than a forgiving person. Forgiveness prevents bitterness and malice from taking root. Forgiveness cuts off rage, anger, brawling and slander before they can mature into action. Forgiveness is never an option when a person has been changed in the revelation of God's love. To be frank with you: If forgiveness is not an easy thing for you you don't know Jesus. Jesus made it plain, forgiveness is a priority. He said that if you do not forgive, you will not be forgiven. He didn't say it just once but many times.
The way to get rid of ugliness is to allow the beauty to increase in you. When the ugliness is revealed in you allow the beauty of Jesus to overwhelm it. When negative thoughts and emotions come knocking allow the love of Jesus to turn them away. Allow the forgiveness you have been shown to de-root all bitterness and malice. If there is stuff that has deep roots, confess it, talk about it, expose it to the light of God and allow the Spirit to dig it out. You are beautiful, don't let anything rob you of that beauty.
Showing posts with label beauty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label beauty. Show all posts
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
The Value of Beauty
Good morning my friends,
As I am studying early history and even looking at geography with my students I am finding it fascinating to see how societies organized themselves. From the very beginning our societies placed value on craftsmen and artisans. These were people who could invent, build, design, and fashion raw materials into things that were pleasing to the eye. Craftsmen are still highly valued to this day, but maybe more so by some than others.
Knowing this is very much in my fore thoughts I found it interesting that the Spirit would point out this passage this morning:
‘Then the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, 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 son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given skill to all the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded you.’” (Exodus 31:1-6)
Eezalel, Oholiab and many others were given the skills by the Lord to be able to make the things that the community or society of Israel required. Suddenly these people were able to work with precious metals, were given the knowledge to cut stones, could work in wood and any other material that was necessary. These were skills and abilities that God gave to them.
It is sad to see that we have allowed the world to take over much of this while we have neglected it. The church is good at music but not as skilled as it was from many years ago. We make good choruses but gone are the years of the great symphonies. What of the great artists; the painters, sculptors, photographers, playwrights? What of the great architects? Our churches are dull and boring. Absent are the great works of art, the incredible designs, the rich colours. Now we have boxes that we worship in.
Some or perhaps most people would say that the church is not a building. Amen! I agree 100%, but neither are we told to strip our lives of everything beautiful. From the beginning God has inspired man to great things. He has been the inspiration behind most of the Masters and any of the great works that we value today. Does God not raise up the craftsmen any more? In this age of technology have we left behind the value of beauty? Did God intend for us to ignore his great works of art? Do we not feel inspired to great things as we look at his handy work? Do we not have that deep desire to express the deep things in us that words cannot touch? Has God really intended us to set aside the aesthetics of life? I do not think so.
I think we have gone down the wrong path, misguided by wrong understanding. I think we have allowed the busyness of life and society to strip us of the aesthetics that bring so much pleasure to our soul. I think we have allowed the garbage that passes as entertainment to desensitize us to that which is true beauty. When is the last time you sat quietly and simply listened to Mozart? When is the last time you read a great classic like The Pilgrim’s Progress? When is the last time you visited the museum of art or took in a theater production? When is the last time you watched the sunset or the sunrise, or sat by a mighty river or a quiet lake? When is the last time you read a poem or perhaps written a poem?
Our God loves beauty and he birthed in us an appreciation for beautiful things. He birthed in some of us the ability to fashion things into beauty. We should encourage these people. We should value them. We should splash our world in colour, music, and things of great worth that celebrate our God. God gave us the craftsmen so let’s enjoy them.
As I am studying early history and even looking at geography with my students I am finding it fascinating to see how societies organized themselves. From the very beginning our societies placed value on craftsmen and artisans. These were people who could invent, build, design, and fashion raw materials into things that were pleasing to the eye. Craftsmen are still highly valued to this day, but maybe more so by some than others.
Knowing this is very much in my fore thoughts I found it interesting that the Spirit would point out this passage this morning:
‘Then the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, 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 son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to help him. Also I have given skill to all the craftsmen to make everything I have commanded you.’” (Exodus 31:1-6)
Eezalel, Oholiab and many others were given the skills by the Lord to be able to make the things that the community or society of Israel required. Suddenly these people were able to work with precious metals, were given the knowledge to cut stones, could work in wood and any other material that was necessary. These were skills and abilities that God gave to them.
It is sad to see that we have allowed the world to take over much of this while we have neglected it. The church is good at music but not as skilled as it was from many years ago. We make good choruses but gone are the years of the great symphonies. What of the great artists; the painters, sculptors, photographers, playwrights? What of the great architects? Our churches are dull and boring. Absent are the great works of art, the incredible designs, the rich colours. Now we have boxes that we worship in.
Some or perhaps most people would say that the church is not a building. Amen! I agree 100%, but neither are we told to strip our lives of everything beautiful. From the beginning God has inspired man to great things. He has been the inspiration behind most of the Masters and any of the great works that we value today. Does God not raise up the craftsmen any more? In this age of technology have we left behind the value of beauty? Did God intend for us to ignore his great works of art? Do we not feel inspired to great things as we look at his handy work? Do we not have that deep desire to express the deep things in us that words cannot touch? Has God really intended us to set aside the aesthetics of life? I do not think so.
I think we have gone down the wrong path, misguided by wrong understanding. I think we have allowed the busyness of life and society to strip us of the aesthetics that bring so much pleasure to our soul. I think we have allowed the garbage that passes as entertainment to desensitize us to that which is true beauty. When is the last time you sat quietly and simply listened to Mozart? When is the last time you read a great classic like The Pilgrim’s Progress? When is the last time you visited the museum of art or took in a theater production? When is the last time you watched the sunset or the sunrise, or sat by a mighty river or a quiet lake? When is the last time you read a poem or perhaps written a poem?
Our God loves beauty and he birthed in us an appreciation for beautiful things. He birthed in some of us the ability to fashion things into beauty. We should encourage these people. We should value them. We should splash our world in colour, music, and things of great worth that celebrate our God. God gave us the craftsmen so let’s enjoy them.
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