I have been reading a book on John 3:16 at the same time that I am taking a class on the Names of Christ so naturally I’ve been thinking a lot on Christ and His titles that effect my life.
It was this mindset that I found my self in while looking for some new art for my home. What is a piece of art that can reflect a title for Christ that would have significant value in my life. I started with some paintings by Thomas Cole as he has some nice painting that show case the American Sublime, which is one of my favorite styles. I found his painting of the Angels Ministering to Christ in the Wilderness and although it is a fantastic painting it didn’t capture a Title of Christ clearly enough for what I wanted.
Then I turned to Caravaggio, who painted a beautiful piece of St Jerome that I have hung above my TV. As I scrolled through his painting of Christ, I was of course struck by the bright rends and dark blacks that characterize his art, but I once again found none that so captured a Title of Christ in the way I had hoped. I briefly considered painting something myself but felt I may not be up to the challenge with my limited skill. So I began a less artist directed search and more of an idea inspired one.
But then I found that there was so much out there. Millions of paintings of the Savior many could work for what I wanted and yet as I looked at them, I found that they were not catching my eye. As I pondered on it, I found in my heart that I was not looking for just any Title of Christ represented in painting but a specific one. But as these things tend to go my heart and subconscious neglected to tell me exactly what title it was that I wanted a painting of, and so I began to ponder and study on it.
I knew from my reading on John 3:16 that it was a title expressed in that scripture but as everyone knows that scripture is not teaming with titles. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” God and Son- accurate titles but not what I am looking for. The title was built into the idea that this scripture holds. But I can’t very well google “Paintings that kinda remind me of the idea behind John 3:16”
So I got to thinking what is it about this that holds this unidentified Title? What does that scripture say? What does it offer? A way out? It does just that, it offers a way out of what would other wise be our fate. It is a well-established fact that people die. Even Lord of the Rings gets that “Nine for mortal men doomed to die” Billie Eilish gets it with her song “Everybody Dies” Dr House gets it in his last episode, Mark Lawrence gets it in his book King of Thorns. Everyone dies, that the way it is. And yet this scripture offers something different. Life when there should be death. That’s more boiled down but not quite the full idea for the title, notably it also didn’t bring up any art that I wanted.
But it was a direction to look into. Life when there should be death. On a sinking ship and Christ there with a life vest. And then Daniel occurred to me: chapter 2 verse 27-28 “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries” Same idea different words. Knowledge when there should not be. And again I thought of Moses and the brazen serpent “everyone who is bitten, and looks at it, will live” Health when it should be venom. Then the red sea dry land where it should be water. Then the Nephites on the ocean, calm seas when it was storms. And so many more.
When everything in the world say it should be one way and Christ makes it another. That was the idea. That brought me peace. And then I remembered John 16:33 “I have said these things to you that you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart. I have overcome the world” that was the idea fully flushed out. That is not really a title. But Overcomer is. But what is a normal word that means some one who has overcome something? Cause honestly overcomer sounds weird. Conqueror.
We can have life where the world offers death because Christ has conquered the world. Life vest on a sinking ship, knowledge instead of not, dry land instead of wet, health instead of venom, calm instead of storm, and peace instead of tribulation because He is Conqueror.
And searching Christ Conquers found me this painting:
Christianity triumphing over Paganism. Paganism was the religion of the world. In essence it was a representation of the world and in this painting by Gustave Dore we see Christ and the Hosts of heaven overcoming that world. That captures the Title of Christ that I wanted to be reminded of perfectly in my opinion.
Its easy to feel overwhelmed in this world, beset by temptation and evil on all sides. But if we can remember that Christ is the Conqueror then we can find the strength in Him to help us come off as conquerors as well. When we are in the darkest of deeps if we can remember that Christ is the Conqueror there too, we will find so much power to follow His example and overcome the world.
Let me know what you think, are you vibing we me or am I totally off the mark here
As always I’m praying for thee please pray for me.