Why Stained Glass Windows?

Stained Glass is an ancient, unique, and beautiful art form that utilizes light passing through colored glass to depict images. Glass would be mixed with silica, soda, and lime and then heated together. Eventually, other chemicals were added to make the glass take jewel-like colors. Churches have made use of this for the previous thousand years. Historians believe the earliest stained-glass window is from St. Paul's Monastery in Jarrow, England, dating back to 686 AD. Throughout the years, this art form changed and became more complex. Churches have used stained glass to depict the historical accounts of the Holy Scripture. But why did churches use stained glass? Of course, a practical reason to use stained glass in a church is to dim direct sunlight. Churches could have dyed large panes of class to one color to provide something like a tinted window. But they didn't. This is because stained glass wasn't for practical purposes only.

Christians had deep theological reasons for it. The motivation comes from Revelation 21. God revealed "The New Jerusalem" to St. John. This is not a description or a promise of any political success for Israel, Palestine, Jerusalem, or any place on a world map. What God reveals to St. John is heaven itself—This is the New Jerusalem. This is the promise of salvation, where God and His people dwell together forever.

In this vision, St. John begins to describe what he sees. He then writes, "The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass.. The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst" (Revelation 21:18–21). St. John says the walls of heaven were filled with these beautiful jewels and gorgeous colors. And so, churches began to use many colors in stained glass windows to portray the biblical image of St. John's vision of The New Jerusalem, a radiant city with streets of gold and walls of precious stones and beautiful, heavenly light. When churches have stained-glass windows, they are confessing faith. The Church is saying, "The New Jerusalem is the Church. The New Jerusalem is where Christians eternally dwell with their dear Lord." Churches also confess that God has promised to take us to the New Jerusalem, heaven. All who belong to the Church while she lives in this vale of tears will also be in the Church when she is clothed with an eternal weight of glory beyond compare (2 Corinthians 4:17).

Early on, Christians began depicting Christ the Lord in stained-glass windows. This was done as a reminder of the glory of Christ. In the Transfiguration of our Lord, the Bible says, "And He was transfigured before them, and His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light" (Matthew 17:2). Jesus also said, "I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" (John 8:12). Even more, in the following verses of Revelation 21, St. John tells us that the source of this beautiful, radiant light is not the sun or moon or any other star. The source is Christ the Lord. "And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it" (Revelation 21:22–24).

In addition to depicting Christ, Christians showed the prophets, martyrs, and saints with stained glass. And this is because of what the Scriptures say of those in God's presence. After Moses saw God, the Scriptures say, "the skin of his face shone" (Exodus 34:30). This is true not only of Moses but also of the saints of God who dwell in His glory. "Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever" (Daniel 12:3). Matthew 13:43 says, "The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father." 

So, Christians used the stained glass art form to make these confessions of faith about Christ and His saints. They also depicted the historical accounts from Scripture to teach the faith to the illiterate. In early church history, few people could read. So, stained-glass windows served as a "Layman's Bible." In the 20th century, shamefully, churches began to use abstract stained-glass windows that didn't depict anything. Instead, they were used only for "effect" or to set a certain "mood." Early on, and for most of church history, teaching was the purpose of stained-glass windows. 

Stained-glass windows were also placed in specific places in the sanctuary. For instance, Christians depicted scenes of the Old Testament on the shadowy north side of churches, where the sun doesn't shine. This was to show that the Old Testament was only a shadow of what was to come in Christ. On the east side of sanctuaries, Christians depicted images of Christ. This was to combine Christ's appearance with the sun's rising. On the south side of sanctuaries, Christians depicted scenes from the New Testament. This was a bookend of the Old Testament scenes on the south side. However, a sanctuary's south side also receives the most sunlight. So, the New Testament scenes were placed here as a confession that the entire plan of God is revealed in all its brilliance and majesty in the birth, life, suffering, and death of Christ the Lord.

All this has been said to emphasize the significance of this beautiful art form. Each stained glass window has its unique meaning and importance. 

 • God gave man dominion over creation, including materials (Genesis 1:26, 28). 

 • Man should use his own creations for the glory of God (1 Peter 4:10; Colossians 3:23). 

 • Art is a good gift from God, and it is used to its fullest potential when it teaches the truth of God's Word. 

 • Stained glass, which looks like jewels, reminds us to look forward to the heaven God has promised to all who believe in Him.

 • Stained-glass windows on the bright south side of the sanctuary confess that Christ is the Light of the world and that He is the complete revelation of God's plan for our salvation.