The Way Of Beauty - Finding Rest in a Restless World

“The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display his craftsmanship.” (Psalm 19:1, NLT)

“So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.” (John 1:14, NLT)

“Jesus replied, ‘Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory.’” (John 12:23, NLT)

In this study, we’ve touched on how the human heart experiences a restlessness that C. S. Lewis compared to homesickness. In his book Mere Christianity, he suggested that when nothing in this world can satisfy our deepest desires, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world. Beauty awakens a similar recognition. Just as God is the source of all truth and goodness, He is also the source of all beauty. “The heavens declare the glory of God,” the psalmist wrote, and “the whole earth is full of his glory” (Psalm 19:1; Isaiah 6:3).

God does not simply create beautiful things; all beauty flows from Him.

When feathered clouds glow with the warmth of the sunset, when we walk beneath starry skies, when the fresh snow sparkles in the morning light, our souls are stirred. A longing is awakened, designed to point us toward the Fountainhead of beauty itself. Yet, while all beauty flows from Him, Isaiah tells us that in Christ there was “no beauty that we should desire him” (Isaiah 53:2, KJV).

It feels unexpected.

Before His birth, before creation, the Son shared eternal glory with the Father, the glory of perfect communion, the full radiance that surrounded the Eternal Word in the presence of God. When the Word became flesh, that glory did not disappear. Jesus revealed “the glory of the one and only Son” (John 1:14). The same dazzling luminance that absorbed the burning bush illuminated Mount Sinai as a pillar of fire, and filled the Tabernacle was now present in Christ, displayed through His miracles, His teachings, and the transfiguration.

Yet when Jesus said that His hour had come to be glorified, He was referring to the cross (John 12:23). As the Son, glory already belonged to Him from before all worlds. By taking human nature upon Himself, in its humbled, suffering, and tempted form, Christ united it eternally with His own divine life. In this union, glory was no longer revealed as radiance alone, but as an infinite fullness of self-giving love. His passion was inseparably interwoven with His glorification.

The darkest path was gilded with glory.

And it was for love. The love by which you were made. The love for which you were made.

The love that calls you by name and offers rest to your soul. The love that draws you through truth, goodness, and beauty. The love that walks beside you all the way home.

Thoughts to Ponder

How might you rest in God’s love today? When you encounter beauty through music, literature, or nature, how might it be drawing you to feel seen and loved by God?