Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills—to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts. (Exodus Chapter 31, verses 1-5)
One of the ministries I believe the Lord will make more prominent in these last days is that of the prophetic artist. In Exodus 31, we see that Bezalel was anointed by the Spirit of God with wisdom and understanding for the creation of artistic works. The most prominent work of Bezalel was that of the Ark of Covenant.
The purpose of prophetic art
The same Spirit that was upon Moses to see the heavenly tabernacle was upon Bezalel to artistically create what Moses saw. One of the effects of such artistic designs was to create a visual effect on the beholder of the real image which is in the heavenly tabernacle.
If the Spirit of the Lord was upon Bezalel to create artistic works, then the works he created were anointed by the Spirit of God. They were not mere artistic works, but they were portals into the mystical realms of God.
“David appointed the following Levites to lead the people in worship before the Ark of the LORD—to invoke his blessings, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel” (1 Chronicles Chapter 16 verse 4).
The goal of David in appointing the Levites to lead the people in worship before the Ark of the Lord was not just to worship before the ark, but to worship before the throne of God. The Ark only gave them a visual representation of the throne of God overarched by the cherubim.
“LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth” (Isaiah Chapter 37 verse 16).
What we visualize naturally influences our minds. Prophetic arts give our minds images of eternal realities. Our imagination is very important in our interactions with God. Prophetic arts help to empower our minds with imaginations of eternal things.
The need for modern-day Bezalels
"Art is the gift of God and must be used to His glory. That in art is highest which aims at this." Michelangelo
In a world where we are bombarded with images filled with lust and violence, it is time for the sons of God to invade culture with images birthed from heaven. I believe we underestimate the power of art in shaping the minds of men. How many young people are addicted to sex and pornography today because their minds were bombarded with lustful images at a young age?
Over the past couple of months, I have seen many Christians protest online about certain images that depict perverseness displayed on children's animations—rightly so, but how many Christians have risen to the occasion to create exciting Christian movies that depict the eternal wonders of heaven? There is such a need at this point in history for modern Bezalels to produce movies, games, paintings, sculptures, virtual realities, etc. that would draw people closer to God.
Speaking truth through art
When we read a story, we naturally visualize the story in our minds. In a way, we all create little movies in our minds every time we read a story; we have such an amazing gift of creating worlds and events with our imagination, but some are more gifted than others in bringing these imaginations to life.
We still draw lessons from The Lord of the Ring series, Paradise Lost, and Chronicles of Narnia because these stories came from hearts that were eager to reveal God’s truth in creative ways.
In a world of rapidly advancing Artificial Intelligence and virtual reality, there exists a void that needs to be filled. There is a call for the prophets to speak through modern expressions of Art.
Imagine the book of Revelations, the teachings, and miracles of Jesus, the creation story, and Ezekiel’s visions all in virtual reality—it will revolutionalize the training and equipping of the saints. It’s time for the artists to prophesy.
Rume Kpadamrophe is a graduate student at the University of South Carolina. Before leaving Nigeria, he mentored several youths in prophetic, intercession, and evangelism. He is a revivalist, a writer, a researcher, and an enthusiastic lover of revival history. He desires to see revival ignited and sustained in the nations of the earth. He currently serves as the president of The Carolina Church, a campus ministry at the University of South Carolina.Rume’s email is rumekpadamrophe@yahoo.com.