Artist’s Statement

19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them; and whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 And the man gave names to all the cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every beast of the field, but for Adam there was not found a helper suitable for him. 21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh at that place. 22 And the LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. 23 And the man said, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." 24 For this cause a man shall leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and they shall become one flesh. (Genesis 2:19-24, UNASB)

22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. 28 So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 because we are members of His body. 31 FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. 32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband. (Ephesians 5:22-33, UNASB)

So many things can be said about Christian marriage. The two passages quoted above are among the most telling as far as God’s design and purpose for this holy institution. In addition, at times God likens Himself to a smitten groom adoring His bride, the people of God, as in Isaiah 62:5 “For as a young man marries a virgin, So your sons will marry you; And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.” The subject of Christian marriage is so wide and deep that no one sculpture or brief written document (like this!) can possibly capture all its facets. In recognition of that humbling fact, let’s explore the two primary Biblical facets that inspired this sculpture: Christian marriage is uniquely God-reflective and God-reliant.

In a God-reflective sense, a Christian man and woman who come together in marriage do so after the example of the covenant-making God of the Bible. God has, as a King, entered into covenants with His people throughout history. For example, God made a covenant with His chosen people Israel at Mt. Sinai that is described in Exodus 19 and 20. In all of His covenants, God binds Himself to His people and them to Him in an exclusive love-relationship consisting of blessing for His promises kept and curses for His promises ignored. Reflecting God’s example, a Christian husband and wife bind themselves together by making a covenant with each other. After God’s example, they exchange solemn vows (i.e. make promises) before witnesses in a wedding ceremony. These oaths are serious statements of commitment and obligation that bind them together in an exclusive lifelong love relationship.

Knowing that marriage vows reflect God’s covenantal vows with His people lends a seriousness and sobriety to the institution of marriage. Marriage was never meant to be a frivolous, thoughtless, no-fault, till-I-don’t-feel-like-it-anymore institution! Unlike the world at large, Christian marriage is not based on the whims of culture or the unpredictable rise and fall of emotions. It is a reflective microcosm of all that God’s covenants entail. There are blessings of joy, companionship, peace, help, and fruitfulness for Christian spouses who heed their marriage vows. In the same way, there are “curses” for ignoring their oaths, including isolation, heartache, malice, strife, and pain.

Another facet of the God-reflective sense of Christian marriage is that it is to provide a unique picture of the mutual love between Jesus’ and His bride (the Church). Ephesians 5:22-33 (quoted above) comprises a volley of statements that, in part, highlight how the interaction between a married couple reflect Christ’s and the Church’s interaction. This point is strongly made by the meaning and frequency of the little word “as” in this text. “As” is a conjunction that compares two things. Looking back at the passage, one can see that the Holy Spirit is comparing these two love relationships and saying they should be very similar in many ways. When people look at a Christian marriage, they are to see something amazing – an exchange of divine-like love. This, truly, is a unique aspect of Christian marriage.

In a God-reliant sense, a Christian man and woman united in marriage desperately look to Christ at all times for the grace to fulfill their vows. Their hearts are turned toward Christ. The believing couple knows that a lifetime of selfless, affectionate love can only be nourished by individual and corporate reliance upon and intimacy with the risen Christ. In this sense, they depend upon Christ, seeking Him for grace and strength to love.

The world makes one’s spouse the main object of strength and inspiration. In that sense, non-Christian marriages are “spouse-ward.” But the Christian recognizes that there is no strength or lasting inspiration in one’s spouse. Along these lines, a Christian husband once said jokingly, “I might make a good husband, but I know I’ll make a horrible god.” That’s why Christian spouses are to seek Christ, nurture their relationship with Him first, and look to Him first and primarily for grace and mercy to love their partner.

Also in a God-reliant sense, a Christian couple looks to Christ to receive forgiveness and peace from Him when they sin against Him and one another. To find that mercy in time of need, they should preeminently look to the cross where Jesus paid the penalty for the very sins they are confessing. It is from this endless wellspring of mercy and forgiveness in Christ that the couple can freely forgive each other. Notice in this Bible passage that an individual’s fuel for forgiving others (which would include one’s mate) is Christ’s forgiveness of themselves. “And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32).

Christian marriages are uniquely God-reflective and God-reliant. Much more could be said, but it is these two facets that inspired this sculpture, as explained below.

Artistic Details

How to capture the God-reflective and God-reliant aspects that are unique to Christian marriage? They are demonstrated my two intended interpretations of the hands in relation to the cross in the sculpture Christian Marriage. The God-reflective sense is conveyed by how the hands are lifting up, or showing off, the cross. The God-reliant aspect is shown by how the hands are clinging to the cross. Both interpretations are legitimate for this piece, and taken together they convey the meaning intended.

The God-reflective sense is seen is in how the hands of the husband and wife have come together to lift up, or make visible, the cross of Jesus Christ. This husband and wife have a common mission which is to live in such a way as to demonstrate visibly on earth the mysterious form of mutual love between Christ and His bride, the Church. God’s main picture of covenant faithfulness is the cross. A Christian married couple’s main picture of covenant faithfulness is their ongoing selfless love and faithfulness to the vows they made to each other on their wedding day. When the couple does that, then they are lifting up the cross, reflecting God’s covenant love. It is not that Christian spouses wear matching cross pendants or carry around a little wooden cross like the one in this sculpture. It is that their marriage itself - how they love, serve, and care for each other - becomes the “visible” picture of what God demonstrated at Christ’s cross. The wooden cross in this piece in part points to a spiritual reality, the reality that the couple’s marriage reflects the love between Christ and the Church.

The God-reliant facet of Christian marriage is sculpturally demonstrated by how the hands of the husband and wife cling to the cross. They need the cross, or more specifically, they need the Christ of the cross. They need Christ like a rock climber needs and clings to his lifeline. Such an athlete recognizes that if he lets go, he’ll certainly plummet to his death. Similarly, the Christian couple knows that without Christ at the center of their individual and united lives, their marriage is doomed to failure, or at very least, a lingering pallor of self-driven gloom and misery. They recognize that only in Jesus can they find the grace to love each other as God loves them in the gospel. Without Jesus, their Christian marriage will sputter and suffer and struggle. So, they are supremely God-ward. They cling to the cross.

Notice that they are clinging to the cross, and not to any other hallmark of Christian orthodoxy, or even to each other. They do not cling to each other for, as the Puritans used to say, “There is no power in the creature” (i.e. there is no lasting strength in the human will apart from the empowerment of Christ’s grace). They also do not cling to other facets of Christianity, as important as many of those are. That’s because the cross is the singular greatest and most complete demonstration of the essence of Christianity. It is there that the Christian spouses (and all Christians) are captivated and re-captivated by the depth of the riches of God’s forgiveness of their sin. It is by clinging to the Christ of the cross that the couple sees the seriousness of sin met with the overwhelming opulence of God’s mercy. This leads to worship of Christ and thankful, humble service to God and each other. That is why in the sculpture the couple is clinging to the cross.

Finally, notice the cross itself, especially its natural finish. This is not a mistake! I did not forget to paint it or plate it in gold. Instead, the cross has been left with a simple finish to communicate the reality and grit of what it is to lift up and cling to Jesus. To center a marriage on the Jesus of Holy Scripture is not a guarantee of pleasure and smooth sailing. In fact, with Christ at the center, both partners will regularly be brought to the end of themselves, and see their own and each others’ sin. Of course, the deepening recognition of these things must also be met with the super abounding grace of Christ which is found in the gospel (Romans 5:20). So while there are times of conviction and repentance in a Christ-centered marriage, there must also be an accompanying application of the more-than-sufficient grace of God poured out in the marriage for healing and strengthening.