The Sculpture - A Repost

(Source: Worth1000.com, Artist: JetStrike)

I wrote this analogy/metaphor/parable years ago, and I've edited it and tweaked it many times on the many different blogs I've had in the past, and after all this time I still feel like it's a good story to share and still very appropriate to the church's history and current situation.

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The kingdom of God is like a sculpture made by the most talented artist who ever lived. This sculpture was the grand masterpiece of his storied career, and at its unveiling the whole world was in awe. People from all over came to gaze upon this beautifully-crafted sculpture, taking it in its expertly crafted, three-dimensional wonder, with all of it's intricate details and awe-inspiring craftsmanship.

People from everywhere gazed upon this beautiful masterpiece for many years afterwards. Over time many of them continued gazing at the sculpture, but instead of walking around and observing it from all angles, views, and perspectives, appreciating all the rich craftsmanship and techniques on all sides, they all started standing still and silent, seeing only what their particular position in the room would allow them to see. As this continued for years on end, those who stood still became so-called experts of this particular piece of art, and the unwavering stillness with which they observed the sculpture led them to eventually believe that it was not a three-dimensional work of art at all, but instead just a two-dimensional painting - still a beautiful painting, but a painting nonetheless.

Anyone who shifted even slightly - whether due to leg cramping or other discomforts - caught glimpses of its true nature. Some of these wayward observers - the "experts" often called them much worse - caved in to the peer pressure exerted by the experts and said nothing more about their "errant" observations. Besides, who had ever heard of a painting that was actually a sculpture? Others, however, were so impacted by what they accidentally saw that they wanted to see more, and to tell others about it. Of course, this made the experts very uncomfortable, and most didn't take kindly to the challenge, often throwing troublemakers out into the cold.

The experts began to use their expertise in an enterprising way as well, reproducing their 'painting' selling them all over the world. This seemed to be mutually beneficial to all - it was convenient for the masses, who had a picture to look at and didn't need to make the arduous journey to go see it themselves, and the experts became both wealthy and more revered for their work. Most took this for granted and thought this was they way things had always been, the way they were always meant to be.

However, eventually things started to unravel for the enterprising experts. Their pictures were all somewhat different from one another. None of them had known this earlier, as they rarely talked to one another, but when people all over the world began seeing one another's pictures of the artwork and seeing different views and perspectives of it, it began to cause problems. Having believed that their painting was a true, genuine replica of the original, and ignorant of the true nature of the sculpture, many people were told that their paintings were correct and that any that differed were certainly false. Even the experts began to disagree with one another and argue about who was right and who was twisting the reality of it all.


This conflict grew and grew, until it became a part of everyone's nature to argue and accuse others of deception and being misled, expert and customer alike. It became such an ingrained part of so many experts and their customers' way of life that they looked upon anyone else with mistrust and suspicion, calling anyone who didn't agree with them all manner of vile names.

Not everyone was comfortable with this new normal, however, and many people decided to make the arduous journey gaze at the artwork again and see for themselves who was right and who was wrong. The experts tried to coach them all on how to stand, where to stand, and what way to look at the "painting", but many of these newcomers simply couldn't stand still, their legs were far too restless from their journey and the simply could not stand still for so long. So, much to the dismay of the experts they began to walk around.

Suddenly, the painting they were looking at came to life in a different way. It had angles, curves and details that no single stationary expert could ever see. It had more dimensions than a picture or a painting could ever hope to have, and as they began walking slow circles around it, the sculpture seemed to come to life in a way that it hadn't for so many years. Even a couple of the experts, curious about what was exciting these newcomers, swallowed their pride and started walking about the sculpture themselves, their legs sore and unaccustomed to movement, but their shock and delight no less diminished by it.


It was like stepping into a strange new world, where what was once believed to be flat, certain, and two-dimensional, was taking on a new life, one with more dimensions, where nothing was flat, where what was once believed to be certain about the painting was now being challenged by the reality of the sculpture. Of course, not everyone wanted to believe it was true. Many experts still fought tooth and nail to stop this madness, trying hard not to put these wayward wanderers in their place, even going so far as to speak ill of these reprobates to their customers and urging them to have nothing to do with them. And so as word started spreading to people everywhere about the painting that was really a sculpture, so did opposition spread against this new idea, and the venomous accusations towards anyone who spoke of it began to fly in earnest. For so many people, they simply couldn't accept that the painting they'd held so near and dear to their hearts for so long was anything but the painting they'd always known, much less a now-unheard-of idea of it being a sculpture instead.


However, when anyone tries to challenge those who claim the flat painting is actually a multi-faceted sculpture with endless beauty, they don't respond in the popular way of trying to rebut or shout down their detractors, they don't fling venom nor make accusations. Instead, they offer the invitation to make the journey to see the sculpture for themselves, knowing that words and pictures pale in comparison to actually seeing and experiencing it.