Welcome to Unveiled Faces, a Redeemer Presbyterian Church podcast. Please enjoy our feature presentation. Let us hear the holy and inspired word of God. The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the bones. And this concludes a reading and hearing of God's holy and inspired word. Let us pray his blessing upon it. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your words. We thank you that it can go forth this morning from the pulpit. And Lord, we pray that it would land upon fertile soil, that indeed our hearts would rejoice and our bones would be refreshed as we consider the great mercy of our triune God demonstrated to us in the love of Jesus Christ. So Father, show us Jesus through this sermon today. We pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. I'd like to start with a little inquiry, a little challenge. In fact, think about the most beautiful place you have ever seen. Yosemite Valley, Point Reyes, Lake Tahoe, Hawaii, Niagara Falls, Right, all throughout the world, there is stunning beauty in God's creation. And it's not just oceans and waterfalls and mountains that are beautiful. There's beauty everywhere you look. Look up into the sky. If you're near the North Pole or the South Pole, when the Northern Lights or the Southern Lights are visible, and these are beautiful displays of color in the light, or I should say in the sky. Or grab hold of a telescope and peer into space. You'll see beautiful arrangements of stars and planets and solar systems and galaxies. You'll see gases such as hydrogen and helium interacting with tiny particles of interstellar dust to form nebulae, which are these beautiful space clouds. Space clouds made up of all these various different shades of colors of purple and blue and red and yellow. But then exchange your telescope for a microscope and witness the beauty of the tiny. Have you ever seen a cross section of a banana under a microscope? Have you ever seen the intricate detail of a fly's foot? Or of the eye of a honeybee? or what chalk looks like under a microphone. Isn't that amazing? If you know how to look at something, you can even find beauty in some of the most odd things. Here is a highly magnified image of the head of a maggot. And while this may, This may look like something from a claymation cartoon. This is actually a real image taken from an electron scanning micrograph of a blue bottle fly maggot. And he created with such beauty that you and I need only to look at his creativity with our eyes and we experience an appropriate internal response. And I trust that as you look upon this maggot and you observe the bulging eyes and the little buck fangs, this generates an appropriate internal response within you. Which of us looks upon the immense stature of an African lion and doesn't experience a sense of the animal's imperial status? Or which of us doesn't look upon the flamingo and begin to contemplate the engineering and the design and the vibrancy of the color that God created this creature with? There are all sorts of Intrigue in this world, including that of motion. Watch in amazement as a gazelle dances across the savanna. Or stare in disbelief as a mountain goat climbs the rock on these narrow little ledges. These are all beautiful things for our eyes to behold. And these are just a few examples of the immeasurable creativity that God has established within his creation. The ability for us to see beautiful things is what Solomon refers to as the light of the eyes in our sermon text. It is the internal reaction that we experience when looking upon beautiful things, and it is what rejoices the heart. And so when we read the light of the eyes rejoices the heart, Solomon is affirming that our internal being is affected in a positive manner when we look upon the beautiful aspects of God's creation. And this is why people go on vacations to beautiful places. Much more than just being in a different location. The visual beauty of Hawaii or Tahoe or Yosemite does something to our soul. It has a very favorable impact upon our inner person. And this is also why people pay big dollars for a home site that has a beautiful view. And this is why we spend much time and energy adorning our homes and our yards and our cars. We make all sorts of attempts to increase the aesthetic value of almost everything within our living environment so that our eyes can look upon knowing that this will bring pleasure to our hearts. The eye is a portal. whereby the inner person is being pleasantly affected. Ecclesiastes 11.7 says, it is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. And that sun there is spelled S-U-N. It is pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. Have your eyes looked upon a sunset recently? Or was that a pleasant experience? Adam Clarke was a early 19th century theologian who lived in England, and he's quoted to have said, nature and art are continually placing before our view a multitude of most resplendent images, each of which is calculated to give pleasure. And what Adam Clark is saying is the same thing that the first sentence of our sermon text is saying. When Adam Clark says, nature and art are continually placing before us a multitude of the most resplendent images, that's what Solomon is referring to as the light of the eyes. And when Adam Clark says that images is calculated to give pleasure, that's what Solomon is referring to as rejoicing the heart. Now, notice the second sentence of our sermon text, how it begins with the word and. This is an indication that the proverb is a synonymous parallelism, meaning both sentences in the proverb are saying the same thing. And therefore, when Solomon writes, good news refreshes the bones, he's identifying another way in which our inner being is positively impacted by the world around us, our environment, the pleasant, the good. And whereas the first sentence has to do with the joy that's derived from things that we see with our eyes, the second sentence has to do with the joy that's derived from the things that we hear with our ears. Good reports are what bring joy to the heart of people. When Winston Churchill gave the victory speech on May 8, 1945, this brought joy to the hearts of the people in the United Kingdom as well as all the other allied nations. When a publicly traded company announces that its quarterly earnings exceeded their targeted goals, shareholders rejoice. And when a pastor announces the newlyweds as Mr. and Mrs. So-and-so, families and friends rejoice. And when we hear of justice being carried out in a righteous manner, our hearts rejoice. In 2004, Scott Peterson was on trial, being charged with the murder of his pregnant wife, Lacey Peterson. And I was living in Modesto at the time, and Scott and Lacey Peterson lived in Modesto, and so there was a lot of emotions surrounding the Scott Peterson trial. And so much, in fact, that they ended up moving the trial from Modesto to Redwood City. And I remember watching the news when the verdict was being read. There were hundreds, had to be over 1,000 people standing outside the courtroom in Redwood City. And when the report went out that Scott Peterson had been convicted of first degree murder of his wife Lacey, everyone started to rejoice. That was good news to the heart, made the bones refresh. And people were pumping their fists in the air, happy that justice was being served. And then a minute later, when the people heard that Scott had been convicted of second degree murder of his unborn son, Connor. then the people began to rejoice even more. All the more reason for rejoicing, because justice was being served. And this was good news to the vast majority of the people who were following this case. It was refreshing to them. And they experienced the internal joy that comes from hearing a good report. So when we read this proverb, we understand Solomon is affirming people have the capacity to experience internal joy from external factors. God created us as people who can see and hear, and when we see beautiful things, we derive joy from those things. And when we hear good news, we derive joy from that news. And this capacity, to experience internal pleasure from external factors points us to something profound about the composition of humans. It's an indication that we're not just physical beings, but that we possess a soul as well. And the rejoicing of the heart and the refreshment of the bones that Solomon is writing about is not The pleasure that's derived from the biological process of seeing, as if the experience of light landing upon the retina and sending electrical impulses down the optic nerve, is gonna give the person pleasure. If that were the case, then people's hearts would rejoice looking at anything in the world, even ugly and disgusting things. Nor is the pleasure that Solomon is writing about obtained from the biological process of hearing, as if the sound waves vibrating the eardrum is going to give this type of pleasure. The rejoicing of the heart and the refreshing of the bones that Solomon is writing about is that which is experienced in the soul of man. It's an internal pleasure that the soul experiences when eyes pass images of beauty to the soul, or when ears pass good information to the soul. These are the things that bring pleasure to the inner man. But now let me ask you a clarifying question. If the inner man experiences pleasure when looking upon beauty, Does that beauty always have to be that which is created by God? What about things that man creates? Does man have the ability to create that when looked upon brings pleasure to the soul? Earlier in a sermon, I took for granted that man does have this ability because I spoke about how people spend time and energy trying to beautify their homes and their yards and their cars. And the presumption is that by decorating the house or by landscaping the yard or by painting the car that we create an environment that's pleasing to our soul. But what justification Do we have to presume that we can create beauty? Creates beauty. In answering this question, let me introduce yet one more component, that being art. To create beauty, you must be an artist. It probably goes without saying that not all people possess the same artistic abilities, but let me assert that God has given everyone some type of artistic skills. For example, consider when God explained all the details of constructing the tabernacle to Moses. Those details were God's instructions for man to create art. So when we read Exodus 31, we read that God equipped certain people with the necessary skills and craftsmanship to use stones and metals and woods and dyes and animal products to create things that are artistic. Listen as I read from Exodus 31. I'm beginning at verse two. See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with an intelligence, with knowledge, and all craftsmanship, to devise, get this, artistic designs. to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, and cutting stones for setting, and carving wood, to work in every craft. Notice how God referred to Bezalel as an artist. Bezalel was given ability of craftsmanship to devise artistic designs, it says. But this artistry was not limited only to Bezalel. God gifted others as artists as well. And I'm gonna continue reading from Exodus 31, where I left off. And as I read this, listen to God describe all the different pieces of art that he is gifting people with the ability to create. And behold, I have appointed him Oholib, the son of Ahasemoc of the tribe of Dan. And I have given to all able men ability that they may make all that I have commanded you, the tent of meeting, the ark of testimony, the mercy seat that is on it, and all the furnishings of the tent, the table and its utensils, the pure lampstand with all its utensils, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, the basin and its stand, the finely worked garments, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons for their service as priests, and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the holy place. And so in summary, Exodus 31 defines everything associated with the tabernacle as art. From the building of the furniture, to the fashioning of the utensils, to the sewing of the priestly garments, to the mixing of the incense. The ability to create all these things was an artistic gift that God gave to a host of different people. So as we look at other parts of the Bible, we see this concept of art expanded even further. was an artisan of music. And 1 Samuel 16 describes how King Saul's soul was tormented by an evil spirit. But when David played his beautiful music, verse 23 says, quote, so Saul was refreshed and was well. You see, this is an example of the good and pleasant coming through the ears and penetrating into the soul. In 1 Chronicles 6, we learn that the sons of Korah were gifted as singers who were put in charge of the service of song. That too was art. The sons of Korah created art with their voices. And when we read elsewhere about other artists, we see that they were artists who were skilled at masonry, at carpentry, at glassmaking, embroidery, weaving, tanning, tent making, pottery, cooking, and the list goes on and on. Of how people are equipped by God to be artists. Artists. And the reason I'm laboring to show just how great the diversity of artisanship is, is because many of us have way too narrow a view of what art really is. We think that art is applying paint to canvas. But that's only one form of art. Remember the book that was made into a movie called The Horse Whisperer? This is a story about a man who was an artist at training horses. In real life, the man's name is Buck Branaman, and Buck is an artist when it comes to working with horses. Whenever you see the skills that God has given to people used in an effective and cogent way, that is art. And whenever you use the skills that God has specifically equipped you with, then you are working as an artist. And when you do your work well, and other people look upon your work, they will see the beauty that you have created, and they will experience pleasure within their heart. And here's what it comes down to. God is a God of beauty. He has demonstrated this to us throughout His creation with all the beauty that we see within His creation. And since man is made in the image of God, man shares in the communicable attributes of God, the ones that can be attributed to man, communicated, and one of those is creativity. And so to answer the question, yes, we can create beauty. We can create beauty, not to the same extent that God, because he has the ability to create out of nothing, whereas we must create from the resources that God has given to us, but we do have the ability to. Let's make no mistake about that. Planting spring flowers in front of your house is creating beauty. And while the beauty of the flower is entirely God's creation, bringing that flower into the landscape of your yard has the effect of adorning your home and thereby creating beauty where you live. Writing a poem is creating beauty. You're putting words together in a careful and skillful manner to connote richness of meaning. Richness of meaning that exceeds even the summation of all those words. And you present it therefore in a metrical verse. That is art. Every person is made in the image of God. And therefore, every person has creative artistic abilities. And these creative artistic abilities are manifest in different people in different degrees with different skills. But every person is equipped to create beauty. What needs to be said, is that these artistic abilities do not only flow to those who are believers in Christ. Because all people are made in the image of God, all people are equipped with creative artistic abilities. In other words, all people are artists. But that doesn't mean that everybody is going to use those gifts to the glory of God. The unbeliever, who does not honor God or give thanks to him, will use his creative ability to honor some false god, whether that false god be himself, which is the sin of self-deification, or some other god of his imagination. And I don't think it's a coincidence that the story of the Israelites fashioning the golden calf is found in Exodus 32. Earlier, just a few minutes ago, I read from Exodus 31, which is where God gave special artistic abilities to Bezalel and Aholiab and a bunch of other people so that they can use those artistic abilities to build the tabernacle and all the furnishings and all the things that God had prescribed. But in the very next chapter, before we get to the actual construction of it, We read about how the Israelites built this golden calf and began to worship that calf in an idolatrous manner. And the Bible indicates that Aaron was responsible for building that calf. But I'm not sure that Aaron was actually the artist who fashioned the golden calf. Exodus 32, four does say that Aaron received the gold from the people and fashioned it with a graving tool to make a golden calf. But even this description leaves room for Aaron being the person who commissioned some other artist to actually fashion the calf. But even if Aaron was the one who fashioned the calf, it really doesn't matter. The point is that no sooner do we read that God... People... with special artistic talent so that they could work in the manner in which God defined them to work, we read that there were people misusing those very same gifts, those very same talents, in a sinful and idolatrous manner. I have a pretty good suspicion that from a purely aesthetic perspective, the golden calf was a beautiful piece of work. In terms of the display of talent and craftsmanship, the Golden Calf was probably not much different than the golden statue of Moroni that you see on top of Mormon temples today. Whatever artist or perhaps team of artists is responsible for fashioning the Moroni statue, standing there majestically with one arm extended, holding a trumpet to his lips, that took talent. Let's make no mistake about it. That took talent. or consider the happy Buddha statue that you see in some Chinese restaurants. A lot of those statues are mass produced, and so you don't see a lot of detail or a high level of craftsmanship in that statue, but there are some that do include a lot of intricate detail. And if you look closely at the robe that's falling off of the Buddha's shoulders, there's a lot of detail carved into his robe. And it takes skill, a skilled artist, to create a statue like that. But here's the question. Does God see the Buddha statue as beautiful? Does God see the Moroni statue as beautiful? Did God see the golden calf as beautiful? The answer to all these questions is no. Listen to what God said through the prophet Hosea. This is Hosea 8, four through six. With their silver and gold, they made idols for their own destruction. I have spurned your calf, O Samaria. My anger burns against them. How long will they be incapable of innocence? For it is from Israel, a craftsman made it. It is not God. The calf of Samaria shall be broken to pieces. Speaking of a day where the people will repent and return to God, Isaiah writes in chapter 31 verse 7, for in that day everyone shall cast away the idols of silver and his idols of gold. And listen to this, which your hands have sinfully made for you. Which your hands have sinfully made for you. So the answer is no. God is not impressed with people's artistic skills when those skills are used to create things that go against God's command. And it doesn't matter how well the idol is carved or engraved, it's an abomination to God. And there's no beauty in that form of artistry. As Christians, we are people who must take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, which means we must learn to appreciate art and beauty according to God's standard of beauty, which means there is a higher value than mere outward beauty that we must place on the work of men's hands. No matter how excellent the craftsmanship or detail might be, that's not what makes it, quote, light to the eyes that brings rejoicing to the heart, end quote. Real beauty is attained only when the artist uses his skills and talents to obey God and honor God. And that is, after all, why God gave those creative abilities in the first place. And so when the Israelite uses his skills to make a golden lamp stand for the tabernacle, that's a beautiful creation. Why? Because that's what God told him to make. The lampstand honors God. But when the Israelite uses those same skills to make a golden calf, that is not a beautiful creation. Why? Because God has commanded that idols not be made. Therefore, the golden calf does not honor God. All art, therefore, is not beautiful. To say the same thing in different words, The workmanship of man that does not honor God should never be light to the eyes that brings rejoicing to your heart. The only type of art that is genuinely beautiful is that which is done in the honor and glory of God. But now let's take this to the next step. You are an artist. as image bearers of God, you have been given some special skills and instruction on how to use those skills. And the most significant piece of art, and I'll put that in quotations, that you're currently in the process of crafting is the life that you are living. Your life is your masterpiece to be presented to God as the work of your hands. Is God going to find beauty in that artwork that you've created? When you look on your life, the art that you are fashioning, does it look more like a golden lamp stand or a golden calf? And don't fool yourself by taking refuge in the quality of detail that you're able to engrave into the gold, because if that detail that you're taking confidence in happens to be the hair and the eyes and the clove and hooves of a calf, then surely your art will be rejected by the Lord. It is not beautiful. In assessing the value of the life that you are fashioning, a question you must ask yourself is whether or not you are seeking to do the will of God. And that depends, I suppose. People will ask, how do I know what the will of God is for my life? Well, let's start with 1 Thessalonians 4, verses three through eight. For this is the will of God, your sanctification. that you abstain from sexual immorality, that each one of you know how to control your own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God, that no one transgresses or wrongs his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warn you, for God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore, whoever disregards this disregards not man, but God. So the will of God for your life is that you live in holiness, which is defined here as controlling your body and not transgressing your brother. The light of the eyes that brings rejoicing to the heart, therefore, must be the beauty that arises from the pursuit of holiness. It must be the life that is sanctified, which is the life that is lived according to the command and expressed intention of God. Let me bring this picture back. The maggot ought to be considered a beautiful piece of artwork. On what grounds, you ask? On the grounds that the maggot is doing exactly what God created the maggot to do. Did you know that maggots only eat flesh that is dead? If you had a festering sore somewhere on your body and you took a handful of maggots and you dumped those into your sore, those maggots would begin to feed upon your flesh. But the interesting thing is, they would eat only the dead and rotting flesh from your wound. Maggots don't eat living flesh. And so they wouldn't harm any part of your body that's healthy. And so drop some maggots into an infected wound and within a day or two, those maggots will have completely cleaned your sore and disinfected it from further disease and decay. This is called maggot therapy. It was approved for medical use by the FDA in 2004. The truth is, maggots will clean your festering sore much more efficiently and with less damage to the healthy tissue than a surgical operation can. So what does this say about the maggot? Is it beautiful? If beauty is first and foremost established in doing the work that God instructed to be done or created you to do, then yes, the maggot is a beautiful creature. This maggot illustrates that aesthetics, that is the way things look on the outside, is not what determines real beauty. No matter what something might look like, what does matter is honoring God by doing the will of God. And so if God created you, with the sure-footedness of a mountain goat, then get out on the edge of the mountain and do whatever God will have you to do. And if God has given you speed and agility like a gazelle, then figure out what direction God wants you to go and start running. And if God gave you the stature of a lion, then use your status and authority for a right created you with the vibrant color of a flingo, then let your public life be full of grace and compassion, pointing people to the Savior, Jesus Christ. If your life is going to be a beautiful piece of art, the type of art that God intended it to be, then realize that God has perfectly equipped you with the specific form of abilities for your specific service within his kingdom. And so, if you have buck fangs sticking out of your mouth, then let those buck fangs clean and disinfect false teachers and putrid heresies that are presently in the church. The true light of the eyes that brings rejoicing to the heart comes from seeing the beauty of Jesus Christ. Let me repeat that. The true light of the eyes that brings rejoicing to the heart, real rejoicing, comes from seeing the beauty of Jesus Christ. But not all people have the ability to see this beauty. Isaiah had prophesied of people whose eyes are deaf, and nearly 800 years after that prophecy, Jesus affirmed that that prophecy was being fulfilled in his day. In Matthew 13, 13, Jesus said, seeing they do not see, hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. But the astonishing part of what Jesus says there in Matthew 13 is not that certain people's eyes are closed or their ears are deaf. The astonishing part is that anybody was able to see the beauty of Jesus or hear the good news of the gospel. After acknowledging the spiritual blindness and deafness prophesied by Isaiah, Jesus then said to his disciples, but blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear. And Jesus then went on to explain to his disciples that their ability to see and hear and understand the kingdom of God was a gift that had been given to them by God. Their eyes had been opened. so that they could look upon the Lord Jesus Christ and see that he is the Christ, the son of the living God. Moreover, their ears had been opened so that they could hear and understand the gospel of salvation. And it was only because God had great wisdom to give them the eyes to see and the ears to hear that the disciples were able to read Solomon's proverb and discover that the fulfillment is Christ. Our need today is the same as it was back then. All people are born with spiritual eyes and ears that are closed. Absent the grace of God, nobody will see the beauty of Jesus. Nobody will hear the good news of the gospel. But praise be to God that he has shown great love for us, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. And just like the disciples were given eyes to see and ears to hear, so God the Holy Spirit is presently working in the lives of his people to bring rejoicing into their heart and to bring refreshment into their bones. It is he who began the good work in us and it is he who will bring it to completion. Your role, as one who has been redeemed from your sins is to spend the remainder of your days on this earth glorifying God with the talents and endowments that he has given to you. God has created a beautiful world for us to live in. Moreover, He has given us creative abilities to work within this world, subduing it to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. And so may we be faithful in this task. May we pursue this task with much zeal, pursuing the will of God as we go. And may He equip us with the power, the strength, and the resources necessary to make good and beautiful art in this world. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, thank you for being a creative God, a God who didn't just create for the utility value of the things that you placed in this earth, but that you made things beautiful. And Lord, when we learn more about your character, your nature, the way you are working in this world, we understand beauty in even a more deep and rich and more perfect sense. And Lord, we understand that beauty can take on many forms, and that Your beauty, the beauty which brings rejoicing to the heart, finds its fullest expression in our Savior Jesus Christ. It is to Him that we look as the beautiful Savior. And so, Father, we thank you for opening our eyes, for giving us the ears to hear the gospel, to be able to see the beauty of our Savior, to be able to run to Him, to cling to Him, and now to be able to serve Him with all the artistic abilities that you've given to us. Father, sustain us in this mission. We pray that you would keep us close to you. May we not drift from you. May we not forget you as you pour out your riches upon us and you give us prosperity and you give us resources abundant for the future. May we not forget you or walk away from you. May we always be reminded of our state of misery from which you have redeemed us, the pitiable state of wretchedness. And so, Father, it is with much great joy and delight that we as your people have been adopted into your family, called children of God, and have the privileged status of being artists, creating beautiful art in this world, art that reflects you, your nature, your character, art that points people to the Lord Jesus Christ, and art that brings joy, rejoicing to the bones, rejoicing to the heart, and brings refreshment to the bones. We pray all these things in Jesus' name. Amen. This has been a presentation of Redeemer Presbyterian Church. For more resources and information, please stop by our website at visitredeemer.org. All material herewithin, unless otherwise noted. Copyright Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Elk Grove, California. Music furnished by Nathan Clark George. Available at nathanclarkgeorge.com.