Flatford Mill by John ConstableThis is the question Tony Reinke posed and tackled today. Here’s Reinke’s conclusion and summary:
- The artistic gift in man is intrinsic.
- The artistic creativity of God is on display in his creation.
- The human artistic impulse is, at least in part, a reflection of God’s image.
- God delights in Himself and therefore delights in the reflection of his own character, artistic beauty being one reflection of Him in our culture.
- Non-Christian artists, while remaining in a state of enmity with God, will never achieve their fullest artistic potential.
- Finally, it will remind us that God’s highest purpose for art is beautiful work that flows from an artist who lives and works under the fear of God and under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and expresses that artistic talent with the goal of bringing glory to The Artist.
- It will remind us that while there is beauty in non-Christian art to be enjoyed, art is not a “neutral territory” that should be pursued without a concern for God and truth.
This perspective offers the Christian a wide foundation for the appreciation of non-Christian art in these ways:
- It will open our eyes to God’s common grace in the art around us.
- It will remind us that in every gifted artist we see a reflection of The Artist, the source of all goodness, truth, and beauty.
- It will help us appreciate the gifts of non-Christian artists and the beauty of non-Christian art.
- It will protect us from glorifying the glittering mirrors rather than the Sun.
- It will remind us that the artistic potential of non-Christians, no matter how great, is tragically limited.
What do you think? Do you think Reinke’s findings can apply elsewhere like music or sports?
Read the full post.
HT: JT
Hey Caleb, I saw this tweet but I just now got around to reading the article. Good post! Brandon, Mike, and I had a long debate/discussion on this topic for about the last 2 weeks of the semester following me and brandon’s mutual amazement with Jonsi’s album "Go". He’s not a christian…yet his music is amazing.
We didn’t know exactly what conclusion to come to on this issue because of several questions we raised:
– while a lot of non christian music is good, are there other spiritual forces at play in their music (aka subtle demonic influences) that negate the ‘beauty’ it intrinsically carries?
– what is the role of the artist’s heart in the musical expression?
– One GREAT point Brandon made is this: why should we even bother finding the "sacred in the secular"? Is there not enough sacred in the sacred? We should be working to bring the sacred INTO the secular.
I don’t remember what else we came up with. It’s a challenging topic for sure.
Hey Thomas,
I guess I missed your comment before leaving the country. Glad I can get to it now. I’ll address your questions as best as I can:
While a lot of non christian music is good, are there other spiritual forces at play in their music (aka subtle demonic influences) that negate the ‘beauty’ it intrinsically carries?
Just to clarify, what Tony Reinke’s expressing with intrinsic artistic ability is what Augustine calls "common grace." Though non-Christian musicians will never reach their full potential artistically, as they will not fully reflect God’s glory, God has given a common grace to humanity. What this means is that God reveals his love for all people, just not in a saving way.
With that said, your question could be answered a few ways. Music is definitely not a "neutral territory" as Reinke affirms above. Music conveys more than just a grouping of beats and harmonies. Bob Kauflin, a worship leader said this well, music is a "carrier of at least three elements: content, context, and culture." So when you have non-Christians putting out music, it is bound to convey worldly lyrics, carry a worldly context, and communicate a worldly value system. For example, a popular rap song today could lyrically be entirely ungodly, spur on materialism, and promote sexual immorality. On a subtler note, a remote emo-band that puts out a song nobody’s ever heard of could prompt emotionalism ("to feel is to know"), spur on rebellion or independence, and instigate selfishness or narcissism ("poor me, it’s all about me." This probably includes any song that was written about a break-up, ha!). The important thing to take from this is that music is not merely transmitting lyrics, nor merely transmitting stylistic riffs. Music reflects a value system. And the Christian value is to love God and reflect His glory through the artistic ability he’s given. So to say that spiritual forces might be at work is a given. I wouldn’t leap to say the devil’s behind every non-Christian door; the sinful heart is definitely at work though. I wouldn’t say that the sinful heart "negates" the beauty of the art as much as it steals the glory due to the Artist. The non-Christian artist is missing out on why music even exists in the first place. It was His idea. So to Him be the glory!
Just for help in discerning what you’re listening to, Bob Kauflin provides two great questions to think through:
1) Does the music you listen to lead you to love the Savior more or cause your affections for Christ to diminish?
2) Does your music lead you to value an eternal perspective or influence you to adopt the mindset of this "present evil age"?
What is the role of the artist’s heart in the musical expression?
The artist’s heart plays a fundamental piece in musical expression; in fact, it is the most important piece. The truth is, an artist can say whatever they want, but at the end of the day, God judges the heart. If an artist’s desire is to pump out the "next big worship song" that’s going to take the church by storm, they may do it…God may give that grace. At the end of the day though, God will see past every motive, and judge the heart. I know this sounds weighty, but I don’t think you can give this topic enough attention. We’re so prone to wander and bent to seek the praises of men. As a Christian, you have to be submitted to community and seeking God, inquiring like David, who said: "Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!" (Psalm 139:23-24).
One GREAT point Brandon made is this: why should we even bother finding the "sacred in the secular"? Is there not enough sacred in the sacred? We should be working to bring the sacred INTO the secular.
This is actually why Tony Reinke wrote this post. Because of God’s amazing common grace, we can catch glimpses of His beauty and goodness through gifted artists. You can appreciate the gift without compromising your faith in the Gift Giver. As Kauflin says, "He gave us music to make us happy and holy." Don’t forsake one over the other; keep both in view. Remember that the non-Christian world is increasingly great at deceiving you to love the world more. And remember that Jesus is your mediator into God’s presence, not some creative musical piece, no matter how innovative or radical it is.
Hope this helps,
Caleb
Thanks Caleb! That helps a lot!