We have a worldwide classroom waiting to have the artwork of Christ unveiled.What better resource is there other than education through the arts? One can only teach by first becoming a student and a person who learns from their own ignorance, acquires a greater lesson learned. The Bible says in Proverbs 3:13, "Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding." Why is it that a man who is educated, would withhold wisdom from another, if it was not for personal gain?An allegory of this dilemma can be attributed to a person finding a cure to the world's most threatening disease.Instead of sharing the remedy to the sick on their deathbed, the evil one keeps it for himself. The conclusion, is that the cure finder is the sicker individual, even more than the disease itself. 1 John 3:17 states our accountability, "But whoever has this world's goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?" Ultimately, we commit the same crime by disregarding man's basic need for love, care, nourishment and education, which are essential for life.

Teaching the arts stems from one's understanding for the purpose of the arts.The fruit of that growth is handed out to be hammered, chiseled, shaped, framed, stretched and painted onto the canvas or manuscript of the person's mind.Thus, teaching is an art all of its own. As seen, art is an expressive tool for communication and teaching.From Genesis chapter 1, no one else can fashion their own hands to invent and design the art of life, like the Hands of the Creator. Scripture says in Psalm 95:5, "The sea is His, for He made it; and His hands formed the dry land."The New Testament clarifies His uniqueness, "All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made," (John 1:3). God teaches us through His creation.The gift of learning is God's motive to create. God teaches man about Himself for the purpose of man knowing God thoroughly and intimately. As an outflow cyclic pattern, teaching others is rendering the same gift that we've received. If this is true, when we reject educating people, we deny the gift of knowledge for man to know God. This explains Jesus' anger of the Pharisees, whom would rather be filled with intellect and prosperity. Instead of using their talents to reach the dying people of Israel, Jesus called these men, "…full of dead men's bones…," (John 23:27) and again, "Even so outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness." (23:28)Jesus was addressing those who possessed talents, that neglected those who were in need.So many people in life lack education, inspiration and care because of the ones withholding precious wisdom.

In examining the pictorial role of art in the church, many of the great artists communicated dramatic pictures of the Bible, that were primarily used in the Catholic Church.In the 16^th Century, the artwork of Domenikos Theotokopoulos, called El Greco, who began painting icons in Venice.Later in the spiritual development of his life, he painted beautiful piece called, "Resurrection," which depicted Christ's ascension. His paintings are compositions involving upward movements of light, representing the outer work of Christ's resurrection with the implication of the inner work of the Spirit.Peter Paul Rubens, who worked for Duke of Mantua in Rome, painted his first great commissions, "Raising of the Cross," and "Decent from the Cross," in 1614. His artistry emphasized the stress and strain of the executioners positioning Jesus on the cross, as Jesus looks up trustfully to the Father before sacrificing His life. The "Decent from the Cross," illustrates the complete abandonment and death of Jesus.Blood stained bars of his instrumental torture are lowered to a woeful world of darkness; while the women look upward in faith, they eagerly anticipate His resurrection. Rembrant van Rijn in 1668, painted his most depth centered work, "Return of the Prodigal Son." The painting of reconciliation, personifies unguarded compassion and the receiving of the dusted, lost but unforgotten son, in the protective arms of his father. These images spoke to the people of the 16^th Century in ways that moved their hearts and thoughts to God. Like today, many images and graphics produce feelings that God can use in his ceaseless longing and action to draw us near to himself. Images are the manifestations of the soul. These beautiful expressions ministered to the prodigals and the fathers of Rembrant's time.As mentioned earlier about the opposers of the visual arts, how horrible, for man to destroy such a ministry for the sake of claiming to be "right," or "aesthetically holy." What kind of misery did people face, when witnessing the once beheld, broken relics of art that inspired them of God's love and compassion? This can be attributed to someone shattering the mercy stained windows of a contrite soul, whose only ambition in life was to serve and worship God as their life's duty.

Architecture during the Reformation made its many innovations, reflecting the cognitive and intellectual state of mind in worship.The Puritans of America in the 1600's were impacted by church art, but used it more conservatively for the enhancement for preaching of the Word. Their designs of artistry manifested in the presentations of the first Puritan church buildings, known as "Meeting Houses."Similar to Calvinist churches, these houses were simple in construction and style to maintain the importance of theology and teaching. The visual arts were scarcely used in the church by the influence of Jonathan Edwards, who thought that imagination and creativity were the works of Satan.During the Reformation, wood was primary building material for churches. The carpenters used wood and other raw materials to retain the idea of simplicity of the Word. By the end of the 17^th Century, churches took on a cross-shaped design, which became a popular building icon. Architects and builders were influenced again by their own cultural heritage in designing churches as nostalgic works of art. Rectangular sanctuaries, raised ceilings, wooden domes, foundation structures and floor plans resembled the cultural roots of Renaissance and Baroque eras.Bell towers, pitched roofs and steeples were also developed and architectural form reached its peak by the 18^th Century. Protestants attributed special meaning and significance to their architecture for the purpose of worship.Wooden pulpits and altars were crafted in plain and conservative designs, they reflected the study of doctrine. A contrasting effect took place during this time as seen in the early days of the Reformation.When stained glass, icons, symbols and paintings influenced and enhanced the senses of worship is now replaced by natural earthly elements of wood and stone. These replaced elements suggest cognitive and intellectual thoughts of God rather than feelings and emotions of worship.

When we study Creation to Incarnation, many of God's attributes are seen.In the world alone we can clearly see the Great Artist's work on the leaves of trees, trembling of mountains, raging of the seas, mysteries of creatures and most of all, God extending life to man through the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Throughout the Bible, these images are projected to our minds and captured on our hearts.How beautiful of God is it, to inspire frail and finite hands of man, to illustrate formations of grace, colors of passion and textures of mercy, about His unending love for mankind. As beautiful as the visual arts are on earth, they cannot compare to the beautiful array of heaven and the presence of the Trinity – God himself, whom we will witness and worship for eternity.

God created the arts like a light in the darkness, which ignites and brightens our understanding about Him. Art in its rightful sense is God's beautiful gift to communicate to the world about who He is; most of all, He is glorified through the story. Without music and the visual arts to communicate both emotion and thought, we silence the praise of God's created glory.We have uncountable venues to use in reaching a lost world and teaching a changing culture. Realistically, people have become like the Dead Sea, precious life flowing in and nothing flowing out. Art is one of the estuaries in the church that is restricted and blocked off. When we shut out a world due to our own unwillingness to reach people, we miss the value and experience that the New Testament teaches, being all things to all people by all means to save some," (1 Cor. 9:22). John Piper, in his book "Desiring God," focuses on the value of enjoying God from our understanding of Him.As noted, God has given us all things to communicate His fathomless truth.Piper writes, "If people cannot be saved without hearing and believing the gospel of Jesus Christ, how can God be just to condemn people who have no access to the gospel because they live among peoples who have never been reached with the gospel." (p.354, paragraph 9.2)This is a far stretch of a point to connect with Piper's meaning, but the merit is the statement of people not having access to the Gospel.The visual and all forms of art is an access for people to learn about God.

The sacredness of art in the church needs to be recovered, reconditioned and expressed. How can we learn from the historical events of the Reformation era on church art for today's use? Education and demonstration which can assist art back into the church.Implementing this process is not as easy. Before we can help man comprehend with the mind, we need to get to the heart. It is getting behind the understanding of the role of art and the reasons why God created it, that can give a person insight and inspiration.From inspiration to understanding, from understanding to appreciation, from appreciation to implementation, is an educating process of time.People need to be met where they are in their own understanding, before you can bring them to another level.Once that permission and acceptance is granted, then people are more inclined to listen and participate. Whether if the person agrees or not to use art in the church, is not the challenge, that issue has enough bruises. The challenge is how can we learn, teach and use other venues God has given, to communicate the gospel in accordance with one another.

As stated earlier by Dr. Dryness, through pure preaching of the Word is how one comes to proper faith.The artwork of Ruisdael's "Three Trees in a Mountainous Landscape with a River," depicts Salvation through the cross from the ruin of brokeness.The painting is marked out by beautiful surrounding nature, centering a sunlit broken tree between two others.The trees represent the three crosses in the midst of a broken world by human nature.Pictures really do paint a thousand words.The simplicity of the visual arts in the church can translate the simple message of the Gospel.For a final conclusion,Luther said it best on the declaration of art in how it impacts the heart, he says:

"Of this I am certain, that God desires to have his works heard and read, especially the passion of our Lord. But it is impossible for me to hear and bear it in mind without forming mental images of it in my heart. For whether I will or not, when I hear of Christ, an image of a man hanging on a cross takes form in my heart, just as the reflection of my face naturally appears in the water when I look into it. If it is not a sin but good to have the image of Christ in my heart, why should it be a sin to have it in me eyes?"

(Quote from Martin Luther, "East, West and the LCMS: Church Art and Reflections On the American Context," byDavid Shultz, Online, www.consensuslutheran.org,)