I hate that I feel I should begin this with a definition of beauty. We know it when we see it. The kaleidoscope of amber and gold a sunset paints across the sky. A horse running. Wind through tall grass. The sound of laughter. Dodging social interaction earlier today, I stumbled across a line of poetry so beautiful I stopped and read it again three or four times, just to savour the words in meaning and sound. When real, objective beauty is set before us, we know it well. 

But a definition still seems useful, and I enjoy words, so I’ll tell you a few things I have in mind. Oxford Dictionary will tell you that beauty is “a combination of qualities, such as shape, colour, or form, that pleases the aesthetic sense, especially the sight.” But no; that can’t be it; that’s subjective. Sheldon Vanauken says beauty is what evokes emotion — especially joy and a sort of pain. “What is beauty but something that is responded to with emotion? Courage, at least partly, is emotional. All the splendour of life. But if the best of life is, in fact, emotional, then one wanted the highest, purest emotions: and that meant joy. Joy was the highest.” His definition may be closer to what I’m thinking of. We all know the catch in the heart. My working definition of beauty, though, is what aesthetically reflects God’s character — with the caveat that we know it when we see it. 

The fact that this objective sort of beauty exists both reflects and suggests several points. 

First and foremost, the fact of objective beauty suggests the existence of God. Vanauken points out while still an unbeliever that the idea of a materialist world is “ugly.” C.S. Lewis’s response points Van toward the source of beauty: “You say the materialist universe is ‘ugly’. I wonder how you discovered that! If you are really a product of a materialist universe, how is it you don’t feel at home there? Do fish complain of the sea for being wet? Or if they did, would that fact itself not strongly suggest that they had not always been, or would not always be, purely aquatic animals?”  

If there were no higher standard for beauty, we humans would never know the difference — but we do. If our universe simply existed, it might be aesthetically pleasing, but it would be empty. There would be no awe, no wonder — no real beauty. 

Furthermore, the fact of objective beauty highlights various truths about God’s character. 

For one thing, believers and nonbelievers alike can appreciate and find joy in the beauty of God’s creation. This fact reflects the meaning of God’s common grace. God has set beauty throughout His creation for the benefit of all. 

Beauty is one way in which God displays His own glory. Psalm 19 tells us that “the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.” John Piper elaborates on this theme: “If someone asks, ‘If earth is the only inhabited planet, and man is the only rational inhabitant among the stars, why such a large and empty universe?’ the answer is, ‘It’s not about us. It’s about God. It’s about His greatness and His glory.’ The universe is declaring the glory of God, and the reason we exist is to see it and to be stunned by it and to glorify God because of it.’”  

Beauty, then, is tied to at least two of God’s attributes: His kindness (in setting beauty in all creation for all to enjoy) and His glory (in reflecting His majesty through the beauty of His creation). R.C. Sproul adds another aspect of God’s character that shines through the beauty He creates. 

“[There is] a significant relationship between the holy and the beautiful. We are accustomed to thinking in terms of an inherent relationship between goodness and holiness and between truth and holiness. But truth and goodness are merely two legs of a three-legged stool. The third leg is the element of beauty. In Biblical categories, there is a triad of virtues, all of which point beyond themselves to the holiness of God. This triad is composed of the good, the true, and the beautiful.” 

He goes on to explain what he means by God’s beauty, and to describe the appropriate human response. “The beauty of God is a sane and rational beauty in that His being is one of perfect sanity and order. Insofar as the beautiful bears witness to these qualities, they bear witness to Him.... When we are ‘moved’ by great works of art, we are gripped by an affective sense that stirs the soul as well as the mind. To cultivate an appreciation for beauty is to set out course to follow after the sublime Author of all beauty.” 

This human response to beauty is displayed in art as a reflection of God in His glory, but it is also shown in the mundane tasks of everyday life. Sharon James’s biography of Elizabeth Prentiss offers a description of how details of everyday life can reflect God’s character. “Women often asked [Elizabeth] whether it was ‘worldly’ to devote time to making a home beautiful. Elizabeth was convinced that God made a beautiful world, and that He gifts people with creativity. He is glorified when human beings make their surroundings clean, attractive and pleasant. She would sometimes joke about her [decorations] being her ‘idols,’ but in reality she believed that enjoying the creation and giving God thanks for it brings glory to the Creator.” Creativity, both through art and through things as simple as keeping a home tidy, is part of being made in God’s image.  

This is where the idea that we must “strive for beauty” comes from. If God created objective beauty to bring glory to Himself, we should be compelled to enjoy and create beauty as an act of worship. Whether through music, painting, architecture, writing, or any of the many art forms God created, we should use the talents God gives us to glorify and worship Him. Our adoration of the God of beauty should be displayed as we strive for beauty.