Images reflecting His glory
Genesis 1:24-31
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the
birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over
every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created
man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he
created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be
fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over
the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living
thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:26-28 (ESV)
These three verses at the very beginning of our bible stand as God’s authoritative revelation of what it is to be human. They stand as a solid foundation for understanding and engaging our very existence. They speak to a world full of confusion and deception, a world adrift on a stormy ocean of ideas that swirl about us and drive us here and there and even would wreck us as individuals and even a society upon the rocks of folly. But here in Genesis 1 is solid ground, a mountain of truth that towers high above the raging sea and beckons with its broad beam of light for us to find refuge and security from the storm. Do you sometimes feel adrift on the sea of life, adrift in your own confusion or the confusion of our culture? May God use this passage to anchor us on solid ground in him, that we might enjoy his truth, be transformed by his truth and live according to his truth in every thing we think, feel, say and do. Let’s pray.
There are two main things in this section I want us to get today[1]. One, mankind is created by God and for God and, two, mankind is made in the image of God, mankind is created by God and for God and mankind is made in the image of God. First, mankind is created by God and for God. Take a look at verse 27 here. It says, “ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” If you weren’t familiar with the ancient Hebrew style of speaking you might think this is some sort of quote from Yoda or something. But it isn’t. It is Hebrew poetry. It could be translated like this:
“Create, God did, man, in his image
In his image God did create him
Male and female, He created them”
What you hear in this verse resonating is that God created man. Three times the word create is used in one verse. For a matter of fact, throughout Genesis 1 this word is used over and over again. If anything is clear from Genesis 1 it is that God created everything. If we were to ask who are the main characters from the bible some folks might list Moses, David, Paul, Peter and probably Jesus. But that really wouldn’t be the best answer. Genesis 1 and the whole rest of the bible teach us that the number one character in the bible is God himself. Here is God at the very beginning creating all that is. There is no one else but the triune God determing what everything would be. God wants us to know that, he wants us to feel that , he wants us to live according to that in every way. He is the creator, we are the creation! Many of you have heard of the book and study, “The Purpose Driven Life”. There is nothing wrong with the basic premise of the book in that we were made for a purpose. But, we must be sure to go to the word of God to find our purpose. We must go to Genesis 1 to find our purpose. Because, that purpose is wrapped up in what God says about us. When you make something, you are the one who knows its purpose. You don’t look to the thing you made to tell you your purpose and its purpose. Its purpose comes from you, its maker. God determines your purpose from beginning to end, whether you like it or not. Much of the Christian life is learning to like what God’s purpose is, his good, pleasing and perfect purpose. We squirm, we rebel, we doubt, we worry, we regret, we manipulate, we do whatever we can to live by our own purpose and not God’s. All the while, Genesis 1 says we were made by Him and therefore for Him. He determines our purpose and not us. The whole testimony of scripture affirms that he determines even our days and he determines them all for a singular purpose, to manifest the glorious splendor or his infinite goodness and greatness. "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen." (Romans 11:36, ESV)
All this begs the question, “Is God conceited?” Or as a relative of mine once conveyed to me,
“Why should I have to make God the object of my worship? Why him and not me or
someone else?” I think scripture would
answer us in two ways. First, "But who are you, O man, to talk
back to God? “Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, ‘Why did you make
me like this?’”" (Romans 9:20, NIV) Does the creation have a right
to tell the Creator how to do things? Is
not is obvious that the Creator has an absolute prerogative to do whatever he
likes with the creation? It is
inconceivable that puny little man, like me, should talk back to an infinite
God who made the entire universe and rules over all things. So, first, we have no right to question God
and we better get used to that. Second,
the scriptures show us a God who is fully trustworthy and fully worthy of all
my worship. This is not an egotistical
capricious conceited sadist who delights in the flatter of feeble men. This is a God who made all things good, who
patiently endured the arrogant rebellion of his creation. Who provides daily food, clothing ,shelter,
family, fun, a stable economy, a beating heart, beautiful sunny days etc. etc
for those who would rather he be dead or irrelevant than that he be Lord. Furthermore, this is a God who endured the
full ravages of sin on himself, who took our sin upon himself on the cross and
suffered the most horrific consequences anyone would ever bear – the infinite
wrath of an infinite God toward the infinite cosmic offense we call sin. This is a good God who is worthy of all our
praise. He is not a man so this isn’t
empty conceit. He is God and He is
infinitely good and infinitely glorious.
Conceit is only wrong when the object of conceit is unworthy. That’s why we don’t like conceit – because
the conceited one is unworthy. But if
someone is truly wise and capable and good and kind and patient and humble than
it is right for that one to assert himself.
And if someone if infinitely good in all these qualities than it is
ultimate good to have this One at the center of all things. That is why God is right to have his glory as
the center of all things. And also, the
best thing he could ever do would be to give us himself, to call us to glory in
him. Does that make sense? Maybe not yet. Let’s put it this way. If you really love someone what do you want
to do for them? You want to give them
the best thing they could have. I love
my wife. I want her to be happy and
blessed beyond her best wishes. Now,
since I love her, I can do my best to give her whatever will truly make her
happy and blessed. Maybe that would be a
fur coat, maybe that would be a new car, maybe that would be a long vacation
together walking the beaches of
Are you delighting in his perfect will, something that you don’t like that is going on now or perhaps something in the past that occurred and you regret? Can you trust God to use those things for His glory? Can you trust Him to even use very hard and undesireable circumstances to accomplish his glory? That’s what Genesis 1 teaches us. It doesn’t mean that we are to be fatalistic or to neglect the role we play but it does mean we must see behind it all a glorious sovereign God? What is your situation where you don’t want God to be God? Bring it to Him and let Him be God and trust Him, He is good, He is glorious.
A key truth that stands alongside God’s sovereign rule as Creator is that God has created mankind in his image as individuals, as persons. And as persons, men and women make real choices. The bible never presents men as robots who make decisions automatically without thinking and feeling and willing and standing before God responsible for those decisions. We see hints of that in Genesis 1 in that man is made in God’s image, but also in Genesis 2 and three as God begins to interact with mankind. We see it through the entire bible. Verse like Joshua 24:15: “Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve” and Acts 17:30: “God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent” and Phil. 2:12b: “. . . work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Again and again God relates to mankind as ones who are able and responsible to make choices. And we must be careful to never allow the solid truth of God’s Sovereign rule to obliterate the personhood and responsibility of man. Robert Brinsmead says, “The creaturehood and the personhood of man must be held both, together and in tension. When theology stresses creaturehood and subordinates personhood, a hard-faced determinism surfaces and man is dehumanized. . . . When personhood is stressed to the exclusion of creaturehood, man is deified and God’s sovereignty is compromised. The Lord is left standing helplessly in the wings as if man had the power to veto the plans and purposes of God.” (quoted by Hoekema, Created in God’s Image,., p.7)
Now, don’t hear what I’m not saying. Man is not the sovereign over his choices. Though he has the ability to choose, God is even Sovereign over those choices. It is a small thing for God to be able to do this. We don’t understand how he could be sovereign and yet we are responsible for our choices but that doesn’t mean he can’t do it. He is God, we are not. The bible presents both truths. Additionally, our ability to choose is limited. It is limited to who we are. There is no such thing as truly free will. Not even God has free will. He must make choices according to who he is. He can not choose to do evil. Similarly, we will choose only according to who we are. And the bible would teach us that if we are under the power of sin and not a new creation in Christ, than we will not be able to truly choose to love God because it is not in our nature. Yet, we are still responsible for the choices we make as those created in God’s image.
That leads us to the other key truth in this passage. Man is created by God in the image of
God. Take a look again at verse 26-27. "Then
God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have
dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over
the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps
on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he
created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:26-27,
ESV) God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness. The us here is either the Trinity or the
Triune God with the hosts of angels. I
believe it is the triune God because we don’t see the host of angels making
creation. So, God, as the Triune God
determines to make man in his image.
What an amazing thing! No where
else in Genesis 1 is there any creation made in the image of God. It is clear from this incredible privilege
that mankind has a very special role in God’s creative purposes. Though man is not the main character of the
bible, he is a key supporting actor in the drama of Creation. He alone, among the created beings in Genesis
1 is made in the image of God. It is a
biblical view to have a high view of mankind.
This is why murder is prohibited in scripture. Gen, 9:6: “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by
man his blood shall be shed, for in image of God he made man.” Also, other forms of hatred and disrespect
are forbidden for this reason. Check out
James 3:9: “With [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father; and with it we curse
men, who have been made in the likeness of God.” John Calvin says in light
of this truth “[Scripture] teaches that
we are not to consider that men merit of themselves but to look upon the image
of God in all men, to which we owe all honor and love…. Therefore, whatever man
you meet who needs your aid, you have no reason to refuse to help him…. . Say,
“He is contemptible and worthless”; but the Lord shows him to be one to whom he
has deigned to give the beauty of his image.”[2] This is the foundation for the dignity of
man and our call to love and respect all persons. Although scripture is clear in describing the
ravages of sin and the just judgment of God against sinners, we must never take
that as an excuse for disrespect and anything but treating all men with dignity
as those that are the very image of God.
But what does it mean to be made in the image of God? In what way are we made in God’s image? Does God have two eyes, a nose, a mouth and walks on two legs? Is that what it means? I don’t think so, for we know God is spirit not a physical being. But as we examine scripture we see that man is in the image of God through and through. It is the essence of man to be made in the image of God. Many times we think to be made in God’s image is to have maybe one aspect of likeness to God. However, I believe the scriptures as a whole teach that we are God’s image not that we possess something of God’s image. Man is a rational being, God is a rational God – he reasons, he thinks, he ponders, he considers. Man is a moral being, not an animal operating on instinct but a being who relates based on right and wrong, good and evil. Man is a relational being as God is a relational God. God has known relationship from eternity past among the Godhead. So, man, in the image of God, relates. Man is volitional, he makes real choices, God is a volitional God who chooses. Man is creative and appreciates the abstract and beauty, God is the creator who has made the entire creation as amazing artwork. Man is a speaking creation who communicates and creates with words, God is a speaking God who fashions the universe and creates life through words. Not only is the image of God seen in who we are but also in what we do. Right here in Genesis it says, "Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:26-27, ESV) So God makes man in his image in that he rules over aspects of creation, even as God rules over the entirety of creation. Man is worships, he adores what he considers most worthy even as God adores what he knows is most worthy – himself. Man loves the objects of his affection even as God loves the objects of His affection, his people and His Son. So the essence of humanness is to be the image of God here on earth and as such to act according to the image of God. Mankind is quite amazing and glorious. Now if you are worrying that I am beginning to sound a little bit too much like Barney the Dinosaur hang on. Because while all this is true, and must undergird our view of mankind, there is more to the story.
You see, something tragic happens in Genesis chapter 2. Now we will spend more time on it later. But here’s the bottom line. This beautiful and glorious image of God called mankind is thoroughly damaged and defaced by the horrors of sin. The sin of Adam and Eve have left a scar on mankind that runs through the very fiber of his being. Are any of you Star Trek fans? I grew up on the original series and got into the next generation a little bit. Do you remember the Borg? That was the alien cyborg species that assimilated everything in its path. It got ahold of Captain Piccard and assimilated him and altered him into something other than fully human. While you could recognize it was Captain Piccard, it was a hideous version of him, pale, flaccid, personality less with implants all over him. Well, sin is like the borg, and when it got a hold of mankind it seriously and thoroughly altered mankind into something that retains the image of God but in a warped and corrupted way. So instead of seeing that his creation is “very good” as God does in chapter one, God sees this corrupted creation in chapter 6 and grieves. It says "The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart." (Genesis 6:5-6, ESV)
Now at this point God could have wiped man off the face of the earth. But he had something else in mind. The rest of the story of the bible is God’s work to redeem mankind from this corrupted state to once again be the faultless image of God on earth. You see, if you remember well, there is one other man who is called the image of God. Do you know who I am talking about? Yes, that’s right, Jesus, the perfect image of God. It is not a coincidence that Jesus is called the image of God. Colossians 1 says, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation." (Colossians 1:15, ESV) . Jesus Christ, the perfect man, perfectly bore the image of God and as such fulfilled all that mankind was made to be. But that is not all, He was pleased to call many of us corrupted by sin his brothers and sisters. And in that call, to rescue us from the borg. But, our sin could not be swept under the rug. God’s justice demanded death as the penalty for sin. And so Jesus took our sin and died our death to satisfy God’s justice- that we might inherit the blessing of God on the merits of Christ.
But even that isn’t all. He has determined to restore us to the image of God, to make us like His Son. That is the promise of scripture. Romans 8 says, "For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers." (Romans 8:29, ESV) and goes on to say, "And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?" (Romans 8:30-32, ESV) This process begins the day we become new creations and repent and put our faith in Christ. We are then united with him and he begins to transform us. But it is a process. 2 Corinthians 3 points to this, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18, ESV). It is a process that is the fruit of beholding Jesus. It is a process that involves the faithful and effective sovereign power of God but also involves our choices and our response and our activity. Colossians 3 says, "Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator." (Colossians 3:9-10, ESV) and Ephesians 4 says "But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:20-24, ESV) It is a process that engages all that we are. It is from God, powered by Him, ensured by him yet operating in and through us. We are responsible yet God will sovereignly accomplish all he has purposed in us.
He made man in His image, He saw it as very good, man was marred, His son was not. Jesus came to restore and perfect the image of God for all his people. If you have repented and believed you are indeed his people. If you have not, He calls you now to turn from sin and all its horror and turn to God as Savior and Lord. He will fully restore the beautiful image he wants. He will use us in the process, for each other, for the lost and ultimately for His glory. He wants to show throughout every aspect of Creation under the creative care and leadership of his image bearers His infinite goodness and greatness. Come join with Him in this. Let’s pray.