By: Emily Marschner
“Art,” is one of those loaded words. What does it mean? How do you define it? What makes it good? Is it important? Should we as Christians be concerned about art? I’m not sure about you, but sometimes I brace myself when I hear the phrase, “Christian art.” I think because a lot of “Christian art” tends to be cliché. But the gospel of Jesus is the antonym of cliché. It is the most riveting, unexpected, shocking story I have read. And it’s true.
There is, thankfully, Christian art out there that is good (“good” is another one of those loaded words), because it makes us stop in our tracks and stare. But the staring doesn’t end with the art. Good art shifts our eyes and hearts and minds to something truer. It reveals something that we have to grapple with. Jonathan Rogers said, “There’s a kind of art that gives people what they think they want. And that’s not going to set anybody free. And then there’s the kind of art that says, ‘You didn’t know you wanted this, but here’s what you need.’”
Jesus did this so beautifully through his storytelling, his parables, his hospitable way of inviting others into conversation. He is a masterful wordsmith, the Word made flesh.
There was a time when Jesus was in Galilee, surrounded by a crowd. He had been listening to the murmurs of his disciples, the questions of John the Baptist’s disciples; the grumbling of the Pharisees. They were all talking about the rising number of Jesus’ followers. How had he gained so much attention, they wondered. Was it his miracles? His way with words? (The right hashtags and algorithms?) How could they get more followers? Meanwhile, as they argued about numbers, Jesus went for a walk. He left the crowd to go meet up with one individual soul.
He met her at a well in Samaria and asked if she could please give him a drink.
“Why are you asking me for a drink?” She probed. Jews didn’t associate with people like her, let alone drink from the same cup. Was this some sort of twisted joke to humiliate her?
“If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water,” Jesus said.
“Give it to me,” she said, “so I don’t have to keep coming back here.”
And so began the discourse between Jesus and this dear woman as he began the holy work of unveiling. The unveiling of her heart and the unveiling of himself. Jesus was not hurried about the process. The patient unveiling of her past wasn’t to shame her. The unveiling of himself wasn’t to belittle her. As her inner darkness was exposed, he covered her with his light. Over and over, she tried to shift the conversation to justify herself, but instead of evading the truth, she said the very thing Jesus had been shepherding her toward the whole time.
She said, “I know the Messiah is coming…he will explain everything to us.”
Then came the mic drop from Jesus:
“I who am speaking to you am he.”
It wasn’t an arrogant mic drop. It was a cupping of her face in his hands, waiting for her gaze to meet his, “Hey, look at me. I am the Messiah. The Messiah has come to you.” What more was left for her to say? Was there anything worth arguing about now?! In this final sentence Jesus spoke, the eyes of her heart were opened – were unveiled – and she left in wonder and awe and joy. She even left her water jar, to go tell people about Jesus.
What a day for that woman. She had a normal, mundane task, like folding the laundry, or emptying the dishwasher. And when she mustered up enough motivation to go get it done, God was waiting for her there. He was waiting at the well to fill her up. But he filled her up with a truer thing. She had come for water that she needed to survive, but he gave her the water of life that she might live. It’s true – she still needed literal water from that well. She may have come back later for her jar. Or maybe Jesus brought it back to her. But ultimately, Jesus gave her the greater thing she needed and when she received it, she forgot all about the other. That’s what Jesus does. He makes true things truer. I think it might be a part of making all things new.
This October 26-29 we will hold our second Creative Arts Conference where we’ll gather together to cultivate the creative arts within the church. There will be hands-on workshops as well as lectures in which we’ll discuss how we can use our art to edify one another within the Body and to shine the light of Jesus in the world around us – to lift people’s chins to Him and unveil that Truer Story. Join us as we put our hands to work for the Glory of God.
Emily Marschner has lived at Hume for 18 years, working in various departments. She also works at Hume Lake Charter School and recently illustrated a children’s book. She loves living the mountain life with her husband Lucas and their kids, Clara and Everett.
For more information on the Creative Arts Conference, click below!