Do you think this picture is Jesus? Why or why not

[RDKirk]

Possibly Roman

If He had not looked firmly Jewish, Mary would have been stoned. Joseph wouldn't have been able to save her.

 

[RDKirk]

Only if His Father was of middle eastern stock.

Or if His Father intended that He be able to blend in with the locals.

 

[RDKirk]

Yes.. a little known fact. When Jesus resurrected the blinding light bleached his skin white.

You tread close to Poe's Law, except I know who you are (at least by your profile and previous postings).

 

[RDKirk]

I would add that exterior beauty -- like icing on a cake -- isn't absolutely essential.

However, just going by my own spiritual experiences, the love I had for God was definitely reinvigorated upon having a beautiful image associated with Him. Up to that point, I knew He was beautiful on the inside, and that would've been just fine leaving it at that. But when I became really convinced that He's just as gorgeous on the outside, it was like a B-12 shot in the arm.

I mean, in theory, He's likely the most gloriously beautiful entity one will ever lay eyes on, no doubt. That's probably why we can't see Him, because if we did our eyes would pop, and who has time to clean that all up?

But believing He's physically beautiful in theory and having a concrete image of beauty with which to associate Him are completely different experiences.

Just think of what an impact worldly beauty has on the heart. People can fall in love with each other based just on good looks alone. Now, why on earth would I let mere mortal beings have that kind of an advantage and not God? Such attraction benefits mortal relationships, why shouldn't it be permitted to benefit what should be The Most Important Relationship, the relationship with God? Why omit it based on some sterile, sanitized, churchy-saintly insistence upon seeing through the glass darkly and only darkly? Personally, I'm not much into such voluntary blindness.

If an image helps, I say go for it. God is the Author of all appearances, so whatever beauty you find has His watermark on it and was His beauty all along. He's just lending it out to folks.

"Know that all beautiful, glorious, and mighty creations spring from but a spark of My splendor." -- Bhagavad Gita 10:41

Just my 2.5 cents on that whole ball o' wax.

What is "beauty?"

Being a black man, that picture of "Jesus" isn't necessarily beautiful in my eyes.

 

[RDKirk]

A few church fathers thought Jesus was genuinely ugly, but most understand the prophesy to be referring to his humiliation and beating. I would think if he was exceptionally ugly, the Bible would have said so, and he would have been ridiculed for his looks. Most likely, he had a typical appearance for a man of his day.

Confucius, on the other hand, was unusually tall and awkward looking, and that has been recorded as such.

Based on scripture of Jesus' post-resurrection appearance, He still bears the marks of His passion.

 

[RDKirk]

I remember reading somewhere about how Billy Graham saying that when he prayed, he had the image of Jesus portrayed in his mind from actor who played Jesus in the Passion of the Christ. I cannot seem to find the quote now.

Anyway, there seems to be plenty idolatrous images of Jesus going around these days.
They can take the form of artist renditions to movie actors.

If someone says the picture in his mind is specifically from "The Passion of the Christ," I suspect this is the image they mean:

If someon

 

[Bible Highlighter]

If someone says the picture in his mind is specifically from "The Passion of the Christ," I suspect this is the image they mean:

View attachment 339099
If someon

So are you in approval of this idol image of Jesus?
If not, then do you regard other idol images of Jesus?
Or do you see all images of Jesus as idol images?
Personally, I find this image offensive because that is not what He actually looked like.
Even if we did know, we are not to make images of God.
That's kind of the whole point of the idolatry commands in Exodus, etcetera.

 

[RDKirk]

So are you in approval of this idol image of Jesus?
If not, then do you regard other idol images of Jesus?
Or do you see all images of Jesus as idol images?
Personally, I find this image offensive because that is not what He actually looked like.
Even if we did know, we are not to make images of God.
That's kind of the whole point of the idolatry commands in Exodus, etcetera.

That was the last of a whole series of my posts. Did you read those?

 

[Laodicean60]

Why does anyone care what Jesus looked like, anyway?

And can you imagine what he smelt like in those days? He did a lot of walking in the middle eastern heat.

 

[Ephesians321]

We shouldn't make images of Christ. Everyone who has witnessed him in his earthly ministry has gone to their eternal homes and I think they would and did refuse to leave any artist renditions.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

That was the last of a whole series of my posts. Did you read those?

Please provide me with post numbers, my friend.

Thanks you and may God bless you.

 

[Bobber]

I know a post like this is just for casual amusement. But I think Jesus, and we know he sees all things, multi dimensional attention, is looking upon this conversation. I'm thinking he's thinking,

People getting concerned about what I looked like. The real focus should be are they we obeying my instructions.

Or to put it another way. The one who has the looks isn't looking to happy about people getting in any fuss over this. In the Spirit he might be saying, Knock it off! When his glory rises up within him his face would be brighter than the noon day sun. Paul experienced that. Acts 9:3

 

[Rajni]

What is "beauty?"

Being a black man, that picture of "Jesus" isn't necessarily beautiful in my eyes.

My goodness, this thread is five years old; why am I being sucked back into this? I don't even do forum debates anymore.
Anyway, I'll simply repeat what I said prior, in post #88, and then re-Unwatch the thread once more:

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; it's subjectively determined.
What seems unremarkable to one person could stop traffic to someone else.

As a matter of fact, that statement was quoted in the post you responded to, so the question was already answered there.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

I know a post like this is just for casual amusement. But I think Jesus, and we know he sees all things, multi dimensional attention, is looking upon this conversation. I'm thinking he's thinking,

People getting concerned about what I looked like. The real focus should be are they we obeying my instructions.

Or to put it another way. The one who has the looks isn't looking to happy about people getting in any fuss over this. In the Spirit he might be saying, Knock it off! When his glory rises up within him his face would be brighter than the noon day sun. Paul experienced that. Acts 9:3

Uh, no. God says clearly in His Word not to make idols. The Israelites were to destroy idols when they conquered pagan nations per God’s instruction. Today people do not understand God’s ways because they love the things of this world, etcetera.

 

[Robban]

Psalms 115

4,Their idols are of silver and gold, the product of human hands.

5,They have a mouth, but cannot speak, they have eyes but cannot see;

6,They have ears but cannot hear, they have a nose but cannot smell.

7,Their hands cannot touch;their feet cannot walk, they can make no sound in their throat.

8, Those who make them will become like them-all who put their trust in them.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

My goodness, this thread is five years old; why am I being sucked back into this? I don't even do forum debates anymore.
Anyway, I'll simply repeat what I said prior, in post #88, and then re-Unwatch the thread once more:

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder; it's subjectively determined.
What seems unremarkable to one person could stop traffic to someone else.

As a matter of fact, that statement was quoted in the post you responded to, so the question was already answered there.

The problem with this is that if truth is in the eye of the beholder, then there is no absolute truth and one can say there many ways to God. If that is the case, then people do not need Jesus or the Bible; But we know that is false. We also know that there are things in God’s Word that have a primary meaning that He wants us to understand. For God’s people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

See this video here on the amazing proof of the Bible:

 

[Laodicean60]

The problem with this is that if truth is in the eye of the beholder, then there is no absolute truth and one can say there many ways to God. If that is the case, then people do not need Jesus or the Bible; But we know that is false. We also know that there are things in God’s Word that have a primary meaning that He wants us to understand. For God’s people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

See this video here on the amazing proof of the Bible:

I miss understanding you but didn't she say beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

 

[Rajni]

I miss understanding you but didn't she say beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

Thank you for catching that equivocation, Laodicean60.
Now if people would please stop tagging me in this thread, I'd appreciate it.

 

[Bible Highlighter]

I miss understanding you but didn't she say beauty is in the eye of the beholder?

Ah yes. My mistake. But it does not change the meaning of their misinterpretation. The Bible is obviously conveying a particular truth that has a primary meaning (absolute truth). If Jesus is not said to be super handsome according to the Word, then that is what it means. To say so otherwise is to say truth is in the eye of the beholder. Beauty is a particular truth in our universe.

 

[BPPLEE]

I believe just having the idol is condemned.

The first part of the instruction in Leviticus 26:1 is not to make any idols or graven images, etcetera. So this suggests that just having the idol is wrong.

For example, in Deuteronomy 7:1-5, we learn that when the Israelites take the land, they are to destroy their Images, altars, graven images, etcetera.

Deuteronomy 7:1-5 (KJB)

1 ”When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;​

2 And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:​

3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.​

4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.​

5 But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire.​

6 For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.”​

If there was no problem in having the idol, then we would see examples of this in Scripture. When something was regarded as an idol by God’s instruction of what an idol is, it was to be destroyed. Nowhere do we see any example of a pagan idol being kept around and it was okay with God to have it as long as they did not worship it. God instructs idols not to be made and or to be destroyed. Granted, we are under a different covenant and we are not a nation led by God to conquer other nations like in the OT, but we should at least strive to put away all forms of idols out of our home. This could be any image that is an animal, which was generally regarded as idols to be worshiped by pagans throughout history. I know. It can be difficult. One’s very home could be decorated with these kinds of things, and it could have taken a lot of hard work and money to put these things in one’s home. But we serve the living God who is the true God, and His will comes before our own in all things.

Yes. Those are all examples of idols that were worshipped. Having an idol is condemned. But a painting of Jesus is not an idol unless you bow down and worship it. Just to be safe I don’t have such things but I don’t think artworks are necessarily condemned