Title: Era
The title “Era” evokes more than a measurement of time—it signals a divine shift, a prophetic season, a sacred threshold. From the moment the stone was rolled away, we stepped into a new era: one shaped not by law alone but by grace and truth (John 1:17), by the life, death, resurrection, and reign of Jesus Christ. This painting is not merely a work of art—it is a prophetic declaration that we live in the most beautiful era so far: the Era of Redemption. And Blessed are our Eyes to witness it. (Matthew 13:16)
At the center stands a man with a book covering his face, symbolizing the Word of God as both our mirror and our identity (James 1:23-25). On the front cover, an eye gazes outward above the word “Gospel”, representing the call to keep our spiritual eyes fixed on Christ and His message. “Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you” (Proverbs 4:25). This eye signifies the clarity and vigilance that come from immersing oneself in the Gospel truth. Beneath it, lips proclaim “the truth”, reminding us of our mission: “Speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15) and “Proclaim the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15).
On the back cover of the book, another eye appears—but in this one, the pupil contains an image of the world, symbolizing the fallen state of humanity into which we are born. As Romans 3:23 states, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” This backward-facing eye warns us against returning to our former ways: “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). The book metaphor reinforces the idea that, just as one reads forward, we are to move forward in Christ—pressing on toward the goal (Philippians 3:13-14). Beneath this eye are the words: “Don’t Look Back.” “But he lingered. So the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord being merciful to him, and they brought him out and set him outside the city. And as they brought them out, one said, “Escape for your life. Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley. Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.” (Genesis 19:16-17) “But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”(Genesis 19:26)
Above the man’s head, the hand of God is seen pulling out a strip of film—a powerful image of sanctification. The film represents impure thoughts, sins, and spiritual toxins—pride, lust, sloth, and more. As Psalm 51:10 says, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” The removal of this film is symbolic of the transformation that happens through being born again: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This painting draws particular inspiration from Matthew 13:16: “But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” The man in Era is in the process of seeing—through the lens of the Gospel—what truly matters, shedding the blindness of sin, and embracing spiritual vigilance.