Romans 1:18-20
Why do humans stare at beautiful paintings of nature? But when we see nature as it is in the real world, we often gloss over it and move on with our daily tasks. Perhaps it is because a painting is in a format we don’t often see.
Like an old man married to his bride for 50 years, waking up next to her every single morning may have dulled his senses to her beauty, something that would never happen in their first year of marriage.
So when we see the beauty faintly glimmering through in a different format, even though it is veiled compared to the real and raw things we can touch and feel in the world, the portrait awakens our senses to what we’ve taken for granted. Therefore we love paintings because they remind us of the beauty that is real, captioned in the painting but captured ultimately out in reality.
A good painting awakens our heart to what we can no longer see because of our sinful familiarity, and we love it for that.
What Is the Point of Creation? Creation Is to Remind Us of the God We Have Forgotten
Perhaps God is seeking to do this very thing through his creation. Perhaps this world is meant to be a painting, a parable, a story which stirs our heart not so much because of the art, but because of what (or Who) this masterpiece is reminding our hearts of.
When we look out over a placid lake with the morning fog still hovering, with the sun gently dancing on the face of the smooth reflective surface, and our hearts begin to swell at the majesty before us, perhaps the joy is really stemming not from the natural beauty but what it is reminding our inner being of – God’s beauty.
We have forgotten him. He is everywhere all the time, and humanities familiarity with him has grown deep and is rooted in each child born. We’ve taken his protection, his provision, and all his common grace given to each individual life for granted. But he is calling us through his art, his creation.
He seeks to remind us through our children about the real Father-to-child relationship we long for with him. He seeks to remind us through young love, passion, and romance of our spirits longing to be intimate with his Spirit. A new house which brings comfort and joy to its owners is reminding us of the comfort and joy we long to have in his eternal mansions prepared for his people. The point is this: All good in life is a work of art picturing something much more ultimate and profound – God himself.
We love the pictures we find in this earth because of what they are captioning, but we must remember they are not truly capturing what we ultimately are looking for. God is the real subject of all the natural paintings we find on his earthly canvas.
What Is the Point of Creation? God Is the Point of Creation
Art is a means to remembering the real beauty in the world. Likewise, God’s creation is not the real point, but is reminding us of the Real Point. Therefore, like a painting of a mountain which makes us want to walk out of the gallery to see the real Alps, when we look out over the beauty on earth, we must try to look past the natural and go out from this gallery and seek the Supernatural One we’ve been reminded of.
To stay forever inside looking at books and pictures describing the amazing creation outdoors is a wasted life. How much more a waste to look at all of God’s creation and stay focused only on this worldly beauty while missing God and his glory all together? God’s creation should cause us to go look for the real Beauty, the Beauty the painting is reminding us of.
So what’s the point of God’s creation? Creation is a painting meant to draw us to the real subject pictured. Don’t let the world’s beauty blind you from the greater beauty of God.