Charcoal Fire
Date: April 20th, 2025—Easter
Cost: $700
Canvas: 30” x 30”
As I listen to the music being sung on Easter morning, I hear the lyrics, “I will rise from the ashes of defeat,” [Resurrecting, by Elevation Worship] and I think of Jesus bursting out triumphantly—gleaming like a hot coal—arm in arm with his disciples. Then, just as I start to paint the figures, Doug approaches me and tells me the theme is literally about charcoal fire. I think to myself, ‘OK, image confirmed—I’ll just make sure one of the figures is Peter.’ Doug says the word ‘charcoal fire’ is used only two times in the New Testament—first, on the night Jesus is arrested, Peter warms himself by a ‘charcoal fire’ as he denies being Jesus’ disciple for the third time; second, after Jesus has been resurrected he makes a ‘charcoal fire’ to cook some fish and bread for his disciples. As Jesus is cooking he asks Peter three times, ‘Do you love me?’—once for each denial. Jesus intentionally uses the ‘charcoal fire’ to symbolize the redemption of Peter’s greatest failure (and my own greatest failure.) My friend, Laura, would later say, ‘It looks like a phoenix,’ which I did not intend, but I also see—Jesus’ feet merge with the charcoal fire to form the tail. So Peter, Jesus, and Mary Magdalene all tuck their feet up under them like birds and take flight. Though difficult to fully comprehend, on Easter morning 2000 years ago, all of humanity—ignited in Jesus Christ—soared to victory over death!