THE BEAUTIES OF GOD’S HOUSE

“One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the BEAUTY of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple” – Psalm 27:4

The BEAUTY of GOD and BEAUTIES of HIS HOUSE are rarely taught among believers! The Lord is beautiful: “Your eyes will see the KING in HIS BEAUTY; they will see the land that is very far off” (Isa.33:17). Moreover, beauty characterises His Sanctuary: “How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lord of hosts!” (Psa.84:1). Also, “Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and BEAUTY are in His sanctuary” (Psa.96:6). In very real and literal sense “strength and beauty” were evidenced in the massive foundations and solid structure of the temple – the strength, splendour and beauty of its rich and lavish adornments. There is something intrinsic to humanity that is drawn to beauty; something of an aesthetic appetite in the human being – a desire for and recognition of beauty. The desire for beauty is unique and almost universal among human beings, as demonstrated in the arts, paintings, music, and drama.

Beauty however transcends the notions in popular culture, which confuse the artificial for the real, the pretty for the beautiful, and the fake for the true. That was the Error in Eden, where our first parents were attracted to the forbidden fruit, in part because it was attractive to the eyes. A false understanding of beauty – the false allure of the evil – is a part of the story of the fall. Sadly, the world’s influence seems to have rubbed off on Christians’ appreciation of beauty.

Biblically, the beautiful is simultaneously the good, the true, and the real, and all four are established in the reality of the Almighty God Himself. He alone, by virtue of being infinite in all His perfections, is the Source, Judge, and End of all that is good, beautiful, true, and real: “For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever, Amen” (Rom.11:36). Far beyond taste or style, there is a moral context and a truth context to every question about beauty. It violates Scripture and indeed the character of God to call something “beautiful” which is not good, or “true” which is not beautiful, or “real” which is not true.

True beauty is seen in the Creator. The more we know Him, the more we observe that the creation bears the mark of its Maker. There is undeniable beauty in creation, but in comparison with the infinite beauty of the Creator, such finite beauty loses its seductive allure. Whatever beauty we behold on earth is merely a reflected beauty of the Creator! In the Old Testament, the word “beauty” is most commonly described as “Glory.” The Glory of God – His inner reality and external manifestation – embraces the good, true, real, and beautiful!  To gaze upon Him is to see His beauty – His Glory! Beauty bursts forth when the creature most closely and perfectly glorifies its Creator; when a sweet alignment or absolute harmony exists between the creature and the Creator. There is also the Beauty of Holiness: “Your people shall be volunteers in the day of Your power; in the beauties of holiness…” (Psa.110:3a). Holiness is beautiful and purity is attractive.

Ultimately, the beauties of God’s House go all the way to His Eternal House – Heaven: “…the LORD made the heavens” (Psa.96:5b). Heaven is not a mythical place, but the dwelling of the Lord Most High; and although we cannot even begin to comprehend its splendour, the Bible provides striking descriptions, and BEAUTY is one distinguishing mark. There are undoubtedly some breath-taking views on earth that depict God’s marvellous creation, but Heaven far exceeds anything we could ever behold. Someone said: “For God to describe Heaven to us in a way we could understand would be like trying to describe the beauty of Hawaii to a three-month-old child. We cannot comprehend, in our finite human understanding, all the infinite glories of Heaven.” To understand beauty is to know the Creator, not merely conceptually but personally, and to have our relationship with Him set right!