There’s a great painting by Thomas Blackshear II called ‘Forgiven’ that is a wonderful picture of the Christian’s faith in Jesus Christ.
I came across this many years ago at a Christian festival, and it caught my eye. To cut a long story short, after discussing it with them, they were able to provide their own version of it, with me pictured in it!
Therefore, this is what resulted in a younger version of myself:
What the painting portrays
Turning to Blackshear, who first painted the original, he’s quoted as saying, “I always say that I did not create ‘Forgiven’. It was given to me; it also came to him after a period of prayer and fasting.
His view conveys a man who has gone as far as he can on his own merits and now seeks forgiveness, comfort, relief, grace, and mercy from the Messiah. It then captures Christ’s embrace and forgiveness of a fallen soul, and the Saviour's everlasting love and forgiveness.
There's also someone called Roy Lessin who has created a devotional gift based on this picture and the theme of forgiveness.
Drilling down further, here are a few pointers on:
1. The main appears very normal, in a modern and casual t-shirt and jeans. He’s clearly tired, even exhausted, and struggling to stand on his own – a powerful picture of the human condition without reconciliation to God.
2. The man behind him in white is clearly symbolising Christ, and when He was on earth in human form. He’s the one who is not only just holding up the front man but firmly holding and embracing him.
3. There’s a nail in one hand, and a hammer in the other. This helps reinforce the interpretation of Christ being him, and in particular His death at Calvary, where he was literally nailed to a cross. However, this goes deeper as symbolising the sin and condition of the main that has actually caused Christ to die, with himself being the culprit holding the nail and hammer.
4. At the bottom of the picture, there is a broken chain, potentially highlighting how Christ has broken the chains of sin and death, and then, even in one account, lilies growing around where Christ’s blood had fallen symbolise new life and the Resurrection.
5. There’s a sun (or moon) picture behind Christ, and maybe symbolising the way this is being highlighted and given importance.
What this painting means
In short, I found this a powerful way to summarise what Christianity is all about – Christ’s Atonement for human sin proving reconciliation back to God the Father.
It contrasts our human weakness and the need for Christ’s death, His divine mercy is greater and enables life back to the former sinner. It’s about releasing the guilt and burden of sin and being forgiven.
A fantastic portrayal of forgiveness and grace.
