Sesi 3 - Week of 13 Aug 2023

The Image of God: Three Important Questions

Posted on by Timothy Santika

Intro

Genesis is a word that simply means beginning, in chapter one, we find both the beginning of the Bible and the beginning of creation. We learn that we have a God who can create energy, matter, waves, time, life, and us by His very words. This is an awesome truth about God! Our God is the glorious Creator. And out of everything God could have created, it is incredibly humbling to think that He created us.

In verse 27, God reveals to us a truth that should shape our entire view of humanity and His creation: “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” The God who created the heavens and the earth tells us this: We are made in His image. This is a very beautiful, complex reality, so let’s unpack three important questions that arise from this truth in Genesis chapter one.

Q1: What does it mean to be made in the image of God?

There are several ways that Christians can faithfully answer this question, but before we do, follow along Genesis 1:26-27:

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.

First, to be created in God’s image means that we have been given a unique status, a divine dignity as human beings. It means that God has set us apart and made us a very special creation in this world. As Christians, we cannot forget the significance of this special honor that God has bestowed upon all humanity.

Second, to be created in God’s image means that God himself has determined how we ought to live. It means that God has made us live His way rather than our own way. This word “image” in Genesis is described as “representative likeness.” In other words, God created human beings to represent Himself through us on earth.

What do these truths mean for us as Christians? We must remember that all people, since the fall of Adam and Eve, have abused the privileged status of being called God’s image bearers. Our fallen sin nature can thus make it difficult for us to walk in holiness and love other people. But as Christians, God is using us to restore His image among His fallen image bearers, whom He loves! These verses from Genesis should compel us to love all people as God’s creation, as we share the good news of powerful healing that is found only in the gospel of Jesus Christ. This should also compel us to live as Christ, in true righteousness and holiness.

Q2: How can God’s broken image bearers be restored?

Before we answer this question, it is important that we emphasize something about our created nature as human beings. When man became sinful, human beings did not stop being God’s image bearer. Though our ability to reflect God’s image is tainted by sin, we can still reflect God’s glory through our lives.

This is why by God’s common grace, evil people can still do good things. Reflecting God’s image is hardwired into how we were created, and it is fundamentally what makes us human. To be human is to reflect God’s glory, to be inhuman is to sin against God. Like a mirror that cracks, a cracked mirror doesn’t stop being a mirror. It just becomes a distorted reflection of what it’s supposed to be.

Most of us deep down know that we are spiritually broken. The danger we face is that we look in all the wrong places for restoration. Some of us are deceived into thinking that we can fix ourselves if we just live a good enough life or right enough wrongs. Others of us know we can’t fix ourselves so we try to live life to the fullest, indulging in all this world has to offer us.

How can God’s image bearers be restored? Not by themselves, or by the world, but by Christ alone. Through God’s grace we no longer belong to this fallen world, because in Christ we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. The reason why Jesus can restore us is not only that He was in the beginning of creation, but that He lived the perfect life as the incarnate Son of Man, fully human and fully God. In doing so Jesus became the purest reflection and example of God’s glorious image on earth. In other words, He was the perfect mirror without any scratch, crack, chip, or smudge.

Q3: If I’ve been restored, then what’s next?

Our last question has to do with the process of sanctification. This is the way we honor God by pursuing holiness with the help of the Holy Spirit. The Bible is full of ways that we should respond to the gospel and reflect God’s glory.

One way is to pursue obedience to God. God wants us to conform our will to His will, so we turn from former sins and put God’s interests ahead of our own. We also spread the good news of salvation, whether that takes us to our neighbor across the street or to the unreached across the globe.

Another way we honor God is by relying on Him for spiritual nourishment and fellowship. For this, God has given us his Word and Holy Spirit to help us grow in our relationship with Him. He also gives us the Church, the Body of Christ, to grow relationally with other believers who have been transformed by the gospel. Image bearers must also rely upon God’s grace and forgiveness through Jesus Christ during times when we go astray.

We should also respond to God in praise. Praise Him for the grandeur and goodness of His creation that reflects His handiwork. Praise God for making light to see, and night to rest. Praise God for making water, land and sky. Praise God for every sunny day and starry moonlit night. Praise God for filling this world with birds and fish and animals of every kind. Praise God for making you after his likeness. And best of all, praise and thank God for restoring you in Jesus Christ.

Man’s Uniqueness Among Creation

We can say, in one sense, that all of God’s creatures are made in God’s image because they are all the fruits of His creative mind. He thought them or worded them into being. He is, therefore, the All-Father, and all of His creatures are His children. We share a kinship with all of creation because all of creation has the same Father. There is, however, as the Book of Genesis makes clear, a way that Man is created in God’s image and likeness which differentiates him from the rest of God’s creatures.

Whereas all things are good insofar as they are made by God, there is a deeper goodness, known as virtue, which requires a freedom from instinct, a freedom of the will to choose freely to do the good. An oak tree is good, as a work of divine art, but it is what it is. It can only be what an oak tree is and it has no free will to do anything else.

Man, on the other hand, has a freedom to choose to be more fully who he is meant to be, which is Godlike, or he can choose to refuse. To be more fully like God is to be good, to be true, and to be beautiful as He is.

  • To become good as God is good is to love more fully, choosing freely to set aside ourselves in sacrificial service of the other
  • To become true as God is true is to reason more clearly, seeking to know reality in conformity to the way that God knows it
  • To be beautiful as God is beautiful is to see the beauty of God’s image and presence in His creation and to seek to become creators ourselves, making beautiful things as God makes beautiful things.

Summary

The material today emphasizes that we, as humans, are uniquely made in God’s image and have the freedom to choose goodness, truth, and beauty. This incredible privilege comes with a responsibility to reflect God’s glory through our lives. Let us embrace this divine dignity and strive to live in accordance with God’s will, spreading the good news of salvation to others. We must seek restoration through Christ and pursue sanctification, honoring God through obedience, relying on His Word and Spirit, and participating in fellowship with other believers. Let us praise and thank God for His creation and the gift of restoration. It’s time to take action, living as true image-bearers of God, making a positive impact in the world and bringing glory to our Creator.

Pertanyaan Sharing

  1. What does it mean to you personally to be created in God’s image, and how does this truth impact your view of yourself and others?
  2. Share a specific moment or experience where you recognized the divine dignity in someone else (ref: Q1), even amidst their flaws, and how it impacted your perspective on them.
  3. How has being part of a community (Cell Group) been essential in your journey of finding the goodness, truth, and beauty given by God? Share a specific instance when the support and fellowship of other believers helped you stay on track or find encouragement.

Reference