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NASB | Romans 1:23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Romans 1:23 and exchanged the glory and majesty and excellence of the immortal God for an image [worthless idols] in the shape of mortal man and birds and four-footed animals and reptiles. |
Subject: Is it wrong to have pictures of Jesus? |
Bible Note: Retxar,that's a good question and a tough one to answer. Where does one cross the line between "innocent" re-enactments of manger scenes, Passion plays, etc. and erecting "graven images?" Scripture tells us that God is Spirit and we must worship Him in spirit. Truth to tell, I really don't know whether we err in our dramatizations and in our art. I should think it a rather drastic measure to destroy our heritage of fine religious art by masters such as Michelangelo. At the same time I believe there is a potential for making the piece of art an object of intense adoration bordering on worship. Perhaps a more balanced view is that religious art and drama, if viewed at all, should be viewed in proper perspective, i.e., that it is merely a product of human imagination and never to be thought of as being anything else...... In Eureka Springs, Arkansas -- no great distance from my home -- they present an outdoor Passion play every year. I've never seen it but hear good reports about it. Some years ago a friend, upon returning from the play, remarked, "It was simply wonderful. And the fellow who played Jesus looked just like Him." To this day I've wondered just how she knew what Jesus actually looked like. --Hank |