'Three Good Preaching Words,' Call to Worship: Liturgy, Music, Preaching, and the Arts 42.3

by Mike Graves

The church has always gravitated toward beauty and justice, and for good reason—they describe the very nature of God. As surely as the New Testament declares “God is love,” it could just as easily have included, “God is beauty” and “God is just.” Travel all over the globe and you will discover beauty is one of the hallmarks of the church. Tourists in Paris take as many photos of Notre Dame as they do of the Eiffel Tower. Stained glass, candles, pipe organs, on and on the list goes. Even the simplest of churches usually will nod its head in the direction of some beauty in its worship. Likewise, churches everywhere have always cared about justice—feeding the homeless, speaking out against war, providing sanctuary for illegal aliens, and so forth.