Enter in All your Glory

Enter in All your Glory

 

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practises abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.

                                                   Revelation 21:22 - 22:2

Each Advent we're reminded of the radically generous gift of God’s only son Jesus and the good news this brings to the poor, the imprisoned and the oppressed, to the marginalised and those facing injustice. It is good news to all creation!

This artwork, 'Enter in All your Glory' was made in response to the vision of this good news revealed in Revelation 21:22 - 22:2.  

I made this painting, using acrylic paint and masking fluid. I painted the masking fluid on first in all the patterns and shapes you see. When it dried, I painted over the top with acrylic paint and then finally (this was the fun part) I rubbed and peeled off the masking fluid, leaving in the background the white of the canvas below.

You'll see as I worked I was creating the cross section of the rings of a tree. What I tried to show was some beautiful attributes of some of my Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage inspired by Revelation 21:22 - 22:2. In this passage there are some striking images. There is the tree of life, the river of life as clear a crystal, there's fruit, there's leaves. There's also an amazing invitation in verse 24 it says, The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, and vs 26, People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations.

What I found myself wanting to express in this work was the amazing character and attributes of my Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, thinking about what our glory and honour would be if we got to present that as a gift to God our Creator, to Jesus our Saviour.

I thought about our strength as a community. How strong we are with our inter-generational wisdom and leadership. 

I thought about our generousness of heart. In our hospitality, our welcome, our honour, our laughter, our teaching, and our forgiveness.

I thought about our intelligence and how creative we are. How dynamic, responsive, and adaptable our culture has been over tens of thousands of years.

I thought about our gift to care for Country. To live sustainably, to protect and care for all of creation, our planet, as an obedience to the call of our Creator to look after and care for all of creation.

I thought about our resilience. Our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have suffered so much, yet there is a strength of character and a strength of conviction to speak up against injustice. 

These are things I feel immensely proud of, and if I were bringing gifts to my God, my Creator and Saviour, I would join my Elders, my ancestors, our leaders and our young people in bringing our honour and glory, our gifts to thank our Creator God for loving our people.  

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As you reflect on Safina's artwork, 'Enter in All your Glory', we invite you to notice the many images within this picture. Can you see the many peoples? The flourishing of creation? The river and the tree of life? The leaves of healing?

What else stands out to you as you reflect on Revelations 21:22 - 22:2 and Safina's work?

Safina Stewart is a proud Wuthithi and Mabuiag Island woman who grew up cross-culturally in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Australia. Safina is passionate about culture, education, the arts, justice and faith and supports and contributes to the work of Common Grace as an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Consultant.

This devotional is the twentieth in a series of daily email devotionals for Advent 2022. This year's series reflects on the hope and joy of the good breaking in with the birth of Christ. 

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