Are Images of Jesus A Violation of the Second Commandment?

In Eastern Orthodoxy, images of Jesus were considered heavenly ideal and not the works of man. In our culture, we see images of Jesus in various places. We have some on t-shirts. We also have portraits of Jesus sold in most Christian bookstores. Churches will have portraits of Jesus somewhere in their church whether in the pastor's office or show in a powerpoint presentation during corporate worship.

Some of these images seem innocent, but at the same time, they don't represent the true Jesus of the Bible. One of the Facebook groups that I am apart of have gone to the extreme that the administrators of that page will remove any images of Jesus because it violates the second commandment. The second commandment refers to the Ten Commandments which says:

You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments (Exodus 20:4-6).

Granted I have never been to a church service that calls for the worshippers to gaze upon a picture of Jesus and sing to it as if Jesus was standing in front of us. I have never seen people kiss a portrait of Jesus before going inside a worship center although it probably happens in some Christian circles not just other religions. So the question is are images of Jesus, whether on portraits, in books, on t-shirts, or even watching a movie about Jesus, a violation of the second commandment?

There are different opinions regarding this question, which I recently discussed with some of the men in our church during our men's study group. So my answer to the question is based upon my discussion as well as my own personal opinion. Once again, here is the question: Are images of Jesus a violation of the second commandment? It really depends on how you use the image.

Do you have a portrait of Jesus in your home and make your child gather around it? Do you pray facing that portrait thinking you are praying to Jesus? That is making a "craved image." If you have a portrait of Jesus that you require your members to touch before coming into the worship center, then you have created an idol.

God has revealed Himself through the person of Christ which He has revealed Himself through the pages of the Bible. We don't need portraits, t-shirts, or even window decals to show Jesus. We demonstrate the love of God by loving our neighbors. Pictures of Jesus, to my knowledge have never led anyone to Christ Himself.

Here is another question, did the artist sin by creating the image? My answer is what was the artist's intention. Did the artist make it an act of worship? It is possible, but who is the worship direction towards the Savior or the portrait? Did the artist do it as a means to get people thinking about Jesus? If it does, then I hope God opened the door for someone to share the gospel with that person because faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17), not looking at a picture.

Should a church have a painting of Jesus in their building? I would say no. Should a church have a cross? Yes, as long as there is no image of Jesus hanging there because He did not stay dead. Should a Christian have a portrait of Jesus in their home? Once again, what is the intent of having the portrait? Should a Christian wear a t-shirt with an image of Jesus? This one is tricky because you hope to make it a conversation starter but unfortunately there are some really bad ones out there. If you don't believe me, go into a Christian bookstore.

This subject goes down to the intent of the heart. Why do you have a portrait of Jesus on your wall? Why should you not have one? There are a lot of different opinions on this subject. If you have a similar opinion or a different opinion, I would love to hear it. Please keep the comments civilized because we are just sharing our opinions.