The Beauty of the Lord
Vincent Van Gogh’s paintings offer insights into the artist’s beliefs, experiences, and perceptions of God and the world, but sometimes his paintings were just an outpouring of joy. That appears to the be case with some of his paintings of flowers. They serve as a reminder that value is not always found in usefulness. Beauty can be its own blessing apart from anything practical it may accomplish.
G.K. Chesterton, a brilliant Christian and witty journalist, validated the importance of beauty. Responding to the rise of atheism in his day, Chesterton argued that advocates of atheism had no way of valuing the impractical. He wrote:
“Then there is what there always is in such philosophy, the setting of the cart to draw the horse. They do not see that digestion exists for health, and health exists for life, and life exists for the love of music or beautiful things. They reverse the process and say that the love of music is good for the process of digestion. What the process of digestion is ultimately good for they have really no idea. I think it was a great medieval philosopher who said that all evil comes from enjoying what we ought to use and using what we ought to enjoy. A great many modern philosophers never do anything else.”
Chesterton’s critique applies equally today, and not just to atheism. A great deal of Christianity has also lost the ability to value the impractical and the beautiful. This aspect of God’s character and his creation is increasingly pushed aside by the overwhelming practicality of our consumer culture. Rather than seeing the Creator as a beautiful God to be worshipped, many churches sell Jesus like he is a duct tape/WD-40 combo pack—all you need to fix just about anything. We praise him as the Almighty Improver and the means by which our dreams and goals can be achieved. As a result, our worship often carries a hidden, exceedingly practical, agenda. We believe that our praise and sacrifices will obligate God to act on our behalf.
Worship means “to ascribe worth.” It sees the intrinsic, rather than the transactional, value of that which is being praised. Unlike religions fueled by superstition, divination, or fear, true Christian faith does not worship God with a utilitarian goal in mind. It is not transactional. It is not useful. Worship is an impractical and beautiful act of adoration that flows from a heart transfixed by the beauty of God. True worship cares for nothing in return but the presence of God himself as David displays in Psalm 27:
One thing have I asked of the Lord,
that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
This post is by Skye Jethani from his Daily Devotional.
Faith should be lived out in practice
- God is Hiding in Plain Sight - 10 December 2024
- Consumed by Fire - 13 August 2024
- Attitudes, Actions and Outcomes - 14 June 2024
