Idolatrous Pictures Of Christ
“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:4-6).
In this second commandment we are forbidden to make any graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. We are forbidden to bow down to them or to serve them. Now the question has been asked whether or not this commandment forbids the use of pictures of Christ. Naturally the commandment forbids the bowing down before such pictures and worshipping them. There can be no question of that.
But in many Protestant churches and in many evangelical churches pictures of Christ are used in teaching, and in the homes of Christians pictures of Christ are hung up to remind them, I suppose, of Christ.
Is that Scriptural?
Does it meet with the approval of God?
Is it sinful?
Is it another way of breaking the second commandment?
No doubt, if I state that the use of pictures of Christ is unscriptural; that it does not meet with the approval of God; that it is sinful; and that it is a breaking of the second commandment—I will be considered as a fanatic, a reactionary, and perhaps not quite normal. But before you have such unkind thoughts please hear me out. If we are Christians our service and worship will be regulated by the Word of God. The Bible is our infallible guide in faith and worship.
Now here is the surprising thing. Nowhere in the Bible, either in the Old Testament or New Testament, is there a physical description of Christ. Isn’t that strange if God wanted to use the picture of Christ in spreading the Gospel or in worship, that we are not told whether Christ was tall or short, fair or dark, light or dark hair, blue eyes or brown eyes?
With all their love for the Lord you would think that Peter or John would have given a description of him—unless, of course, they were forbidden. They wrote under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Surely it is significant that neither they nor any other of the Scriptures gave a physical description of the Lord. Surely if God desired the use of pictures of Christ to further the cause of Christ he would have had a physical description of his Son in his Word.
Why should we consider ourselves wiser than God and provide what he has deliberately left out?
The second amazing fact is that in the first four centuries of the history of the Church no picture of Christ was used. These were the years when the Church made her most astonishing growth. These were the years in which the Christians conquered pagan Rome. It is so frequently stated that we need pictures of Christ in order to teach people the Gospel. The apostle Peter did not need pictures of Christ to instruct the young or bring the Gospel to adults. The apostle John did not need pictures of Christ to convert pagans and instruct the Church. The apostle Paul did not need pictures of Christ to convert Barbarians and Greeks. The early church did not need pictures of Christ to conquer paganism. They accomplished it by preaching the Word in the power of the Holy Spirit.
When pictures of Christ were first introduced they were opposed. The Church historian Eusebius, who lived in the fourth century, declared himself in the strongest manner against images of Christ in a letter to the Empress Constantia who asked him for such an image. Amongst other things Eusebius wrote: “Who can therefore counterfeit by dead and insensible colors, by vain shadowing painter’s art, the bright and shining glistering of such his glory? whereas his holy disciples were not able to behold the same in the mountain; who, therefore, falling on their faces, acknowledged they were not able to behold such a sight.”
Here Eusebius touches on one of the reasons why it is impossible to have a true picture of Christ.
If you want a picture of Christ do you want it as he was upon earth or as he is now in heaven?
If you want a picture of him as he was upon earth you have quite a problem. There was no picture of him painted. The so-called pictures of Christ which are present today are from the imaginations of the artists. That is why there are so many different pictures. Not one of them is a true picture. So every time you say this or that is a picture of Christ you are uttering a lie. You cannot teach truth by a lie. Christ is the Truth, and surely he would not want the use of a false means to point to him. Christ abhors lies and falsehoods.
How would you like it if someone who never saw you painted a picture and told every one that it was a picture of you?
Certainly you would resent it. And certainly Christ must resent all those counterfeit pictures of him.
But supposing you wanted a picture of Christ as he is now. The disciples had such a vision of him on the mount of transfiguration. We read in:
Matthew 17:2
“And his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.”
This was the glorified Christ. No artist could give us a picture of Christ which would show the glowing of Christ’s face as the sun and his raiment as white as the light. They would only rob Christ of his glory by miserably falling short of a true painting of Christ in his present glory.
But someone will state that at least we can depict the humanity of Christ as he appeared upon earth. But who are we to separate his humanity from his divinity!
John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”
Notice that the apostle states that even while Christ was in the flesh they beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father. In other words, they beheld his divinity as well as his humanity. This one cannot paint. So one must behold his humanity as separate from his divinity. Then one falls into the ancient error of Nestorius. He stated that Christ consisted of two persons: one human and the other divine. There was, according to Nestorius, a separation between the human and the divine persons.
That was the ground on which the Council called by Constantine V condemned paintings of Christ. You see, this question of pictures of Christ was the subject of controversy throughout the eighth century. So Constantine in 753 called a council of three hundred and thirty bishops. Their conclusion was this: “If any person shall divide the human nature, united to the Person of God the Word; and, having it only in the imagination of his mind, shall therefore attempt to paint the same in an image; let him be holden as accursed. If any person shall divide Christ, being but one, into two persons; placing on the one side the Son of God, and on the other side the son of Mary; neither doth confess the continual union that is made; and by that reason doth paint in an image the son of Mary, as subsisting by himself; let him be accursed. If any person shall paint in an image the human nature, being deified by the uniting thereof to God the Word; separating the same as it were from the Godhead assumpted and deified; let him be holden as accursed.”
This council points out the difficulty and indeed the impossibility of painting a portrait of Christ. Christ is more than man. He is God-man. It is impossible to depict by a painter’s brush the almighty power of Christ; the glorious majesty of Christ; the infinite knowledge of Christ. You cannot localize by a painter’s brush the everywhere-presence of Christ. One can only succeed in degrading Christ. When one considers the deity of Christ it is no wonder that the apostles did not attempt a physical description of their Lord and Saviour.
There is always, also, the danger of worshipping the picture of Christ and attaching power to it. Even a Protestant publishing firm stated that there is power in a picture of Christ. It stated: “When one plants deeply and firmly in his mind the picture of Christ, it has a strong and powerful influence in his life.” Thus instead of attributing this influence to Christ and the Holy Spirit they attribute it to the picture they are trying to sell! That is a breaking of the second commandment.
But can it not help in the saving of souls, it is asked.
But how?
Looking at a picture of Christ hanging upon the cross tells me nothing. It does not tell me that he hung there for sin. It does not tell me that he hung there for my sin. It does not tell me that he is the Son of God. Only the Word of God does that. And it is the Word of God that has been given us to tell the story of salvation through the blood of Christ. It is not through the foolishness of pictures that sinners are converted but through the foolishness of preaching.
It is amazing how slowly unscriptural practices enter the Christian Church. We must at all times go back to the Scriptures. The Bible is our infallible guide. And if our practices and doctrines do not conform with the teachings of the Scriptures, then we must eliminate them. The Bible instructs the Church not to make any likeness of Christ. The present day pictures of Christ are false and no one would make a serious claim that they resemble Christ upon earth. They separate his humanity from his deity. They do not at all give us a glimpse of his present glory. They are not condoned by the inspired apostles.
God has ordained the foolishness of preaching to evangelize the world. He has promised to attend the preaching of the Word with the power of the Holy Spirit. The so-called pictures of Christ are a hindrance and a temptation to idolatry. Let us cleanse the Temple of God from them.
Author Unknown
I agree 100% on the author’s comment. Ironically, what I am witnessing today in many so-called conservative Baptist churches and ALL Proteestant religions especially those within the 10/40 Window World is indeed worrying; the current trend is toward Roman Catholicism in its manifestations. A year ago, it is considered a heresy to use picture Bibles in a Baptist church, but today, it is the “in thing”. I even hear a Baptist pastor saying: “LET US NOT MONOPOLISE EVANGELISM TO OURSELVES ONLY BUT INSTEAD EXTEND OUR HANDS OF FRIENDSHIP TO OTHER DENOMINATIONS ASKING THEM POLITELY TO SHARE WITH US THE BURDEN OF PREACHING THE GOOD NEWS OF THE BIBLE TO THE UNSAVED…” Excuse me!!! That statement includes an invitation to the Roman Catholic religion! What has become of the Baptist churches today? Picture Bibles? Why the need of it? For ease of understanding of the Gospels? Isn’t that what the papists were saying when they first introduced picture bibles in their religious studies? There is hardly ANY genuine Christian church in the whole of Asia for that matter that can be referred to as a 100% Bible based church! They all have demons and devils sitting in their ‘house of prayer’ pews. I am one of the FEW genuinely Born Again follower of JESUS CHRIST who have denounced and renounced the use of the names of other demon gods like Shang-Ti, Allah, Kinoringan, et al to refer to the true Elohim named YAHWEH. To me, the use of picture bibles is an idolatrous act that must be condemned and rejected. That is why I do NOT associate 100% with a Baptist church where I am a member. I tell them that I must associate with others who call themselves ‘Christians’ that I may become God’s instruments one way or another. I really don’t care whether my Baptist brethren are disgusted with what I am doing (they prefer me to stick with them 100% though; an idea which I do NOT agree with). I do believe that God has a purpose for me in this life….; who knows the Lord may ask me one day to start with my own house church… or may be to study the Bible full time and become an evangelist… the Lord willing. Amen
Praise God for your stand on images. I too took this same stand and was called similar names in the church I belonged. This church would never have any image in their house of worship -not even a cross, but 40 years later and you would think you are in a Catholic church rather than a Protestant. We are seeing all these changes –to look the same, to believe the same and to act the same because of their association with the World Council of Churches. The day is soon coming when we will have a One World Religion and that is the WCC mission and goal.
On its own, it makes good logical sense to never make or possess or use an image of anything in heaven, earth or sea. biblically speaking we must remember that most all of the Jews problems were a result of idolatry and it just didn’t happen overnight, but gradually and influentually.
The seed to idolatry starts with a mental image because you cannot make an image unless you first form it in your mind. Once that image is in your mind, when you worship with that image in your mind you cease from worshipping in Spirit and in Truth. In Spirit, because God is Spirit and no one has ever seen God nor can anyone discribe Him, and in Truth because that mental image in your mind is false, a lie and you cannot mix truth with false.
Mental images of God or Christ or angels etc, are the worst kind of idolatry because they are hard to remove. They are fixed in your mind for as long as you live. For this reason the Jews were given no image or similitude at Sinia, not even the brightness of God’s glory. Jesus and hosts of angles were present but no image. I also understand that there was no moon or sun or stars present –so they could not use those to recall what God looked like. In other words, God took painstaking efforts to ensure there was no image whatsoever when He came to speak to the Jews at Mount Sinia. As well, before the Jews entered the heathen nations they were to take possession of, God had all the images and idols and even pictures destroyed –pulverized, burnt, buried BEFORE the masses of people came into that idolatrous nation which signifies God wanted no image of these gods in their minds –God was planing to put His image in their minds –His revelation of both existence and character; i.e., I AM that IM, love, mercy, forgiving, etc. He shows us His character so we can worship Him with these images (of love, mercy and forgiveness, etc.) because it is these atributes we are in most need and if we behold them, we will become like them.
Even if you think you are strong enough to avoid idolatry by making or possessing an image, you are then tempting God and quenching the Holy Spirit because we know we are prohibited by the second commandment to make any image –let alone worship them. But I ask you to do a test and get that image of Christ and deface it. I already know you cannot do it becasue of the fact that you believe it really is Christ, you think Christ will punish you for doing it. On the contrary, He will reward you! He wants that image out of sight and out of mind becasue He will not be able to put His image in you until you empty yourself from all worldliness, and images of Christ or God are just that, worldliness.
Finally, I would caution you to watch out for translations. They say the devil is in the details and this is no exception. For example, most new translations such as the NIV replace image with idol. Image being similitude, copy or facsimilie and idol meaning the worship of an image. To use idol in place of image automatically assumes worship so for translations to say, “thou shalt not make an idol” automatically assumes you are worshipping what you have made or you are making it to worship it. If that is the case –that idol and image are one in the same, why would God then say “thou shalt not bow or serve them?” In other words, once idol is used, the relevency of the second part of this 2 part commandment –to bow and serve –becomes redundant! An idol is already bowed to and served! Furthermore, if they are one in the same thing, why would God use both image and idol in the same sentence or verse?
No friend, the only reason idol is used is precisely to get you to think that making or possessing or using an image is okay so long as it is not worshipped (an idol) and these various denominations prove it to you by erecting their images, but tell you not to worship it so it doesn’t become an idol to you or them. That makes no sense at all! A church putting temptation in front of you! I wonder, how is it that they know you are not worshipping it? Can they read your heart, your desires? Your mind? Are they with you every second to ensure you don’t worship it? And what about the mental image it leaves with you all your life so when you do pray, you are forming that same image in your own mind?
While the Catholic Church removed the second commandment altogether –to justify their images, the Protestant Churches just change words to justify their images. While both are abominations to God, it is the latter that actually does more damage because with the commandment left in and words changed, the more justification is needed (more lies) when questioned by those who study their bibles and question their use.
I just got rid of all the pictures that were on wall that were other people’s interpretations of what they think Christ look like that I may have the PEACE of THE ASCENDED JESUS CHRIST…
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