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In God's Image

February 20, 2022 Speaker: Brian Wilbur Series: The Book of Genesis

Topic: Biblical Theology Passage: Genesis 1:26–31

IN GOD’S IMAGE

An Exposition of Genesis 1:26-31

By Pastor Brian Wilbur

Date: February 20, 2022

Series: The Book of Genesis

Note: Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard   Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

THE SCRIPTURAL TEXT

Holy Scripture, says,

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.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so. 31 And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. (Genesis 1:26-31)

This is the Word of God and it is for our good.

Let's pray.

Father, we pray that these words that you have breathed out would not be dismissed by our hearts. But rather I pray that they would dwell richly in our hearts. I pray for understanding, conviction, repentance, determination to honor you, our Lord and God. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

INTRODUCTION

One of the great tragedies in the universe is when God's image-bearers use their reasoning power to think wrongly about the way the world is. It is especially sad when God's image-bearers use their intellect to deny their own significance.

One well-known intellectual, Stephen Hawking, lived from 1942 to 2018. He was a “theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and… director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge.”[1] He was a high level academic. And he once said,

“We are such insignificant creatures on a minor planet of a very average star in the outer suburb of one of a hundred billion galaxies. So it is difficult to believe in a God that would care about us, or even notice our existence.”[2]

That is an example of looking up at the vastness of the heavens and drawing the wrong conclusion. It is quite right to look up at the heavens which are declaring the glory of God and to feel your smallness and your finiteness in comparison with the immensity and infinite scope of God's glory. That is quite right. But you are not supposed to feel insignificant, unnoticed or uncared for.

The truth is that God's attention is riveted on planet earth, because it is on this earth that he placed his most glorious creation. It is true that the earth revolves around the sun, but the sun is not central in God's concerns. The sun was made for the earth, to give light on earth and to mark the passage of time for the benefit of mankind. This vast universe is the theater of God's glory, but earth is center stage. And as impressive as are the galaxies near and far, and as impressive as are the mountains and valleys and rivers, and as impressive as are the lions and the hippopotamuses and the polar bears, you are the crown of God's creation. After he had created everything else (Genesis 1:1-25), in Genesis 1:26 God expresses his intention to make mankind as a unique creature that is distinct from all other creatures. This distinction and uniqueness are evident in two ways: 

First, mankind and only mankind is created in the image of God.

Secondly, man is given dominion over the earth and over all of the land creatures and the sky creatures and the sea creatures.

To put it simply: man is like God, and man is king on earth.

Now what does it mean that man is created in God's image? What is God's design and plan for mankind? Few things could be as important for our thoughtful consideration and understanding. So let's walk through this passage and learn some important lessons.

MANKIND RESEMBLES GOD

First, since mankind is created in God's image, mankind resembles God.

That's at the heart of the words image and likeness. The English word resemble means to be like or similar to. And that is the idea: man is like God, man is similar to God.

Now to be clear, lest anyone get the wrong impression, mankind is not God. God alone is the sovereign Creator. Mankind is the dependent and subservient creature. But, nevertheless, mankind in creaturely form resembles the Creator.

How are we like God? We are not inanimate objects. We are not creatures of instinct, but we have a depth of personhood with profound capacities for understanding and for relationships and for moral beauty and for complex activity.

Here are some thoughts to help us understand what it means to be made in God's image. Although you really have to unpack all the Scriptures and let the significance of this unfold, here's a few things to think about.

First of all, one way to help us understand what it means to be made in God's image is to notice what God does in Genesis 1 and to then draw some application from that – because if we resemble God, then it stands to reason that we're going to be doing similar activities. So what are some of the things that God does in Genesis 1? He thinks and reflects, he plans and decides, he speaks and blesses, he works and makes, he organizes and sets things into motion, he names things, and he assesses things. And we resemble God as we undertake similar activities.

When a man imagines a house on a plot of land, purchases the land, clears the land, lays the foundation, builds the house, organizes it into various levels and rooms, names the rooms (including the man-cave, and beholds that it is good), and then upon finishing the house he goes into that man cave and rests – that man is showing his likeness to God. Man resembles God.

There's another hint – it's only a hint – but you can't miss it. Verse 26 indicates that God has a relational nature. Look at what it says: “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image”” (v. 26, italics added). God is speaking to himself – the one God is speaking to himself – and yet he says, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (v. 26, italics added) It's going to take the whole Bible to help us understand all the implications of that statement. But just at a very basic level, there is a singularity to God, but there is also a relational nature within God ­– which of course we understand, with the fuller revelation of subsequent Scripture, to be the truth about the Trinity. The Triune God is one God in three persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. But even here in Genesis 1:26 there is a hint at the relational nature of God. And so, it therefore makes sense that this relational nature is going to be reflected in mankind. And indeed it is, right off the bat:

“So God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them.” (v. 27, italics added)

We reflect God's relational nature. We are created for relationships, and relationships are actually a big part of how we image God to the world – by the way that we relate to one another.

The final thing I want to say about resembling God is that it ultimately has to go to the level of our character. We are not robots. God didn't just program us to have the right outputs. We are interactive, thoughtful creatures who are supposed to share in the wisdom and goodness of God.

Psalms 111 and 112 are a fascinating pair of Psalms. Psalm 111 tells us that the Lord is righteous and the Lord is gracious and the Lord is generous. And then Psalm 112 tells us that the man who fears the Lord, the man who is walking in relationship with the Lord, is righteous and gracious and generous. Now because of man's fall into sin (see Genesis 3), the character of our hearts is corrupt. But through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, a great renewal takes place: the old sinful nature passes away, and God gives us a fresh start, a new life. And Paul says in Ephesians 4:24 that this “new self” is “created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness”. It's not enough to resemble God at the level of activity. God's calling on us as his image bearers is to resemble him in our character, in our heart and mind, in our outlook and ambition – that we would love what God loves, that we would celebrate what God calls good, and that we would hate what God calls evil.

God's design is for man to resemble God. 

MANKIND REPRESENTS GOD AND RULES ON GOD’S BEHALF

Second, since mankind bears God's image, mankind is called to represent God and rule the earth on his behalf.

Resembling entails representing, and the assignment given to God's representatives is right there in verse 26. The assignment is to rule, to have dominion over the earth. And I want to think through this.

The fact that we are created in God's image is a pointer to the nature of our assignment as human beings. We don't go forth to manufacture an image of our own or create an identity of our own, but to faithfully reflect the God in whose image we are made. We don't go forth to build our own brand, because we've already been branded. Sinful human beings are image freaks. Have you noticed? We want to craft our own image. We will curate a fashionable and presentable image for all to see on social media. We are so easily pulled toward the name brands because they make us feel good about ourselves, enhance our sense of self-worth, and advance our social standing, To which I say: shame on us! We will actually walk around and have no regard for the fact that the people around us are stamped with God's image. But if they've got a smartphone with an Apple logo, or if they’re sporting a pair of Air Jordans (that illustration dates me a little bit!), then they're cool. I dare say that the average American sinner thinks more frequently about and more highly of his favorite man-made brands then the stunning truth that he himself is God-made brand.

If you're on a sports team, you wear the team jersey because you're part of the team and you represent the team. To be a human being means that you bear God's image. And wherever you go, you're supposed to spread the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of God and the pleasant aroma of the grace of God. We don't go forth to make a name for ourselves. We go forth in his name. We don't go forth to do our own will, but to do his will. And what is his will? Verse 26 tells us that the point is for human beings to have dominion. And the middle of verse 28 picks up on that. We could call Genesis 1:28 the great dominion mandate. Verse 28 shows us the big picture. As God's representatives, here we find our marching orders, our basic mission. Don't go hunting for some specialized mission if you don't have the basic mission clear. This great dominion mandate has not expired. It is still in effect and you must understand it.

God's blessing is upon the first man and the first woman and as they stand together before their Creator. God then says in verse 28, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth”. The Garden of Eden (which we're going to learn about in Genesis 2) is a small plot of land in a great big world. There are something like 36 billion acres of land on this planet. And it is too small a thing to have only Adam and Eve presiding over Eden. The entire earth ought to be filled with images of God. The entire earth must be filled with God's image bearers reflecting God's glory and God's righteousness and God's wisdom and God's goodness and God's steadfast love in every direction, north and south, east and west, the plains and the coastlands. It's not enough that Eden should be the only place characterized by worship and the knowledge of God. There ought to be innumerable communities, neighborhoods and hamlets, towns and villages, cities and counties all over the globe that are characterized by true worship and the knowledge of God. Therefore, have children and disciple them!

Indeed, the logic of discipleship is right here in Genesis 1:28. God has called us to a particular mission, and we need to bring our children up in that mission, teaching them the ways of the Lord, and teaching them what it means to be a faithful image-bearer who rules in wisdom and justice. And then we release those children to go forth and do their little part of fulfilling the great dominion mandate. It's a multi-generational global vision. And the text goes on to say, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it” (v. 28, italics added). Subdue it! The text continues: “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.” God is saying to the first pair of human beings: Colonize the earth one area at a time. Plant the flag of humanity – humanity made in the image of God, humanity as stewards of the living God – plant the flag of humanity wherever you go, and bring that new area under your control. And then, once you have assumed control of the next area or the next region, rule it.

Listen: God's design is for the earth and for the creatures of land and sea and sky to flourish under the rule of men. Listen very carefully: there is no Plan B! I hope you understand that there is no Plan B. God calls us to colonize and rule so that the whole creation flourishes in the goodness of God, and so that the whole creation resounds to the glory of God.

Now someone will say: we're not doing a very good job. Well, that's an understatement! When we rebelled against our Creator in Genesis 3, we opened the door to all kinds of disruption and disorder in the creation. Hosea 4:1-3 show us that when human beings are unfaithful to God, one of the consequences is that the land suffers and animals, birds, and sea creatures are taken away. God wills that the creation flourishes under the benevolent rule of righteous human beings. And God wills that the creation languishes when wicked human fools are at the helm.

Now I'm going to jump way ahead here, but I've got to do it because I want to proclaim the glorious truth from Romans 8. And here it is: the present creation – this post-sin, post-fall, post-Genesis 3 creation – this present creation is subject to futility and is in bondage to corruption and decay on account of man's sin and God's corresponding judgment upon us (see Romans 8:18-21). But this broken aching creation is eagerly looking forward to the day – do you know what day they're looking forward to? – this broken creation is looking forward to the day when God's redeemed children are given resurrected bodies and are glorified and are conformed to the image of God's Son. Because on that day, when God's redeemed children are glorified with Christ – at which time they are called co-rulers with Christ (see Revelation 22:5) – on that day, this broken creation will finally be set free and will flourish forever under the rule of Messiah and his brothers and sisters (see Romans 8:16-30). There is no Plan B.

By the way, there is one other application here. The Great Commission is a corrective on our distortion of the great dominion mandate. We have colonized the world, and if you go all over the earth, what do you find? Idolatry and madness. And so, Jesus says, “Go” (Matthew 28:19)! They have carried out the great dominion mandate, but it's all broken and corrupt because of sin. The Great Commission bids us to go – go to the towns, go to the villages, go to the coastlands, go to the inlands, go north and south, east and west, go in order to preach the gospel, make disciples, and bring people back into fellowship with God.

The first lesson we considered is that mankind resembles God.

The second lesson we considered is that mankind represents God and rules the earth on his behalf.

MANKIND EXISTS AS ONE KIND IN TWO SEXES

Now to the third lesson: mankind exists as one kind in two sexes. Genesis 1:12 tells us that there are many kinds of plants and many kinds of trees. Genesis 1:21 tells us that there are many kinds of sea creatures and many kinds of birds. Genesis 1:24 tells us that there are many kinds of land animals. But listen: there are not many kinds of human creatures. There is one kind: mankind. There is one race. There is one fundamental and objective unity to humanity, with every human being descended from Adam. Even Eve came from Adam’s side and was not an independent creation. The divisions, conflicts, ethnic hostilities, prejudices, segregation, bitterness, envy, hatred and war that exist in this dog-eat-dog world are the things that happen when people revolt against God's design for the world. Human sinfulness is exceedingly wicked and exceedingly destructive. Instead of seeing people as sons and daughters of Adam and thus fundamentally related and united to one another, we define people by ethnicity, by social status, by economic standing, by whether or not they are members of an oppressed class. In truth, by virtue of God's design and creation, mankind is one family. And in this post-Genesis 3 world, there is actually only one distinction that matters – the spiritual one. Are you or are you not rightly related to the Lord? That's the only distinction that matters. Mankind exists as one kind.

Mankind exists as one kind in two sexes. The last part of verse 27 says: “male and female he created them.” It means something to be a male and not a female. It means something to be a female and not a male. Now, we're going to unpack this more as we go through Genesis 2 and Genesis 3. But right now, I just want to lay a little foundation. 

We live in strange times, but it's important to say that the gender binary of male and female is not a social construct, is not a cultural invention, is not a power play on the part of patriarchs to reinforce a system of inequities that are favorable to the patriarchs. Of course, the good gift of maleness and the good gift of femaleness have been abused and misused by sinners, just as sinners abuse and misuse every good gift of God. And it is surely true that different societies have in different ways developed images of ideal maleness or images of ideal femaleness that don't measure up to the standard of God's Word. We need to know what God's Word says. And right now we need to understand from Genesis 1:27 that the two biological sexes – male and female – is God's design, and this design is part of the very good world that God made.

God's male image-bearers should receive their maleness as a design feature, as a good and wise gift from God. They should live in a way that is consistent with their maleness – not denying it, not destroying it, but understanding it, owning it and stewarding it. A male image-bearer should not seek to become a female, but should rather seek to be united to a female in marriage, to the end that they be fruitful and multiply.

God’s female image-bearers should receive their femaleness as a design feature, as a good and wise gift from God. They should live in a way that is consistent with their femaleness – not denying it, not destroying it, but understanding it, owning it and stewarding it. A female image-bearer should not seek to become a male, but should rather seek to be united to a male in marriage to the end that they be fruitful and multiply.

What I just told you is basic biblical instruction that the church has been teaching for two-thousand years. Of course, we are not surprised when human beings experience sexual confusion and identity confusion. We are not surprised because human sinfulness touches every area of life. Our hearts are exceedingly wicked and can go wrong in hundreds of ways. But the biblical standard stands. As the hymn says:

The Bible stands though the hills may tumble,

It will firmly stand when the Earth shall crumble;

I will plant my feet on its firm foundation,

For the Bible stands.[3]

THREE IMPORTANT LIFE APPLICATIONS

Now before we move into verses 29 and 30, I want to highlight some life applications for us. We live in a sinful world in which human beings assault one another, and assault maleness and femaleness, and assault marriage, and assault children. We live in a world in which human beings routinely assault and belittle and ignore the image of God in mankind. And I'm here to say that we must be different. We must live in the good of God's design for us. So, here are three simple life applications. Are you ready?

First, you matter a lot. It's the singular and individual you: you matter a lot. You have dignity and worth, because you are made in God's image. Your highest calling in life is to be in relationship with the Lord, and to let his holiness and his love shape your life.

Second, other people matter a lot. As a community of believers, we must reflect this truth in the way that we treat other people. How many people out there are downcast, discouraged, depressed, anxious, aimless? When we see people, we ought to see them as special and valuable – not as cogs in a machine, not as nuisances, not as economic output units, not as potential likes on social media, not as numbers and statistics. We should see people as precious image-bearers of God. The New Testament tells us that we should “always seek to do good to one another and to everyone” (1 Thessalonians 5:15). Titus 3:2 tells us “to show perfect courtesy toward all people.” And it says in James 3:9-10 how messed up it is to use our mouth to bless God but to curse God’s representatives, God’s image-bearers, those “who are made in the likeness of God” (James 3:9). James says, “From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.” (James 3:10) People matter a lot to God. Let's reflect this truth in the way that we treat one another.

Third, kids matter a lot. We must cherish children as a blessing. Children are not to be avoided, aborted or otherwise sidelined. Children are not a problem to be solved. Children are not a hindrance to God's plan for your life. Children are not a season to fast-forward through. Children are not an economic burden. Children are the plan! Children are the mission! Children are a sign of God's blessing! Therefore, love your children!

And young people, aspire to be married and have children. It is true that in God's providence, some are called to lifelong, contented, and spiritually fruitful singleness. That is not normative, but it does happen – as 1 Corinthians 7 teaches us – and it is good when it happens. Even so, I say to you young people: aspire to get married, stay married, and have lots of babies – never thinking that you're justified by the number of children that you have, but as you walk in God’s blessing have lots of babies and prepare your children to take their place in God's multi-generational global vision.

GOD PROVIDES NUTRITION

Finally, moving to verses 29 and 30, God has furnished His image-bearers and the creatures under their care with diverse and delicious sources of nutrition. Now I have to tell you: you're going to think this is an anti-climactic way to end the sermon, but believe me, it's not! God created you in his image. God calls you to participate in his mission, and you need a lot of energy to do it. So, God gives you your daily fruits and vegetables. God provides an abundance of vegetation, edible plants, and edible fruit to keep us going (v. 29). And that which God has provided for us, he has also provided for the birds and the land animals (v. 30).

The Goodness of Creation

Now there's something beautiful here that you and I are likely to miss, and I don't want us to miss it. There's something beautiful here that stands against the evolutionary theory of long ages and much carnage. As Genesis 1 concludes with God looking over the whole creation and saying that everything is very good (v. 31), notice that there is no carnage here. The evolutionary theory of long ages operates on the assumption that the continuation and development of life is based on death and suffering. But we need to understand that God's design for creation is that nothing has to die in order for living creatures to flourish and multiply and fill the earth and sky and sea. Part of the exquisite goodness of the original creation is that animals were not food for other animals, and animals were not food for people. No living creature had to die so that another creature could live. No suffering and death, no predation, no hunting, no slaughter, no bloodshed, no savagery, no violent competition for limited resources – none. No perpetuation of life at the expense of another life – never. Instead, in God's creation economy, there is abundance and plenitude and sufficient resources for every living creature and for every human being to flourish.

Now does this mean that you should feel guilty about that bacon cheeseburger you had last week? ‘No’ is the correct answer, but you must understand why.

The only one who has the authority to adjust God's instruction is God. After the flood, God authorized human beings to consume animal meat for their sustenance. And predator-prey relationships among animals must have started sometime after the fall. But I want you to understand the lesson. The fact that animals have to die in order to sustain our life, both in terms of ordinary eating as well as the now obsolete sacrifices of the Old Testament (which were completely legitimate and authorized by God), is a testimony to the sobering reality that we violated the law of life in Genesis 3. When we violated the law of life – the commandment of God, the life-giving commandment of God – when we violated the law of life, we ushered in a world of suffering and death. And once we let life out of our hands, there was nothing we could do to reclaim it. There is nothing that we can do to fix it.

The Glory of Christ

Our Lord Jesus Christ, the God-Man, is not merely in the image of God; he is the image of God. And doubly so: as the Divine Son, he is the perfect image of the Father. And then, as the Divine Son who became man, he is the visible image of the invisible God. Hebrews 1:3 says, Jesus is “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high”. Jesus made purification for sins. Jesus is the one man who never violated the law of life, and thus he was perfectly fit to die in our place in order to set things right. We abandoned life and became subject to death, and deservedly so. Jesus suffered a death he did not deserve in order to undo the power of death and reclaim life ­– eternal life – for all who trust him. That's the gospel.

And one day, the perfect law of life shall be restored across the board in the new heaven and the new earth. The Messiah will have dominion from sea to sea. His redeemed brothers and sisters will reign with him at his side, and the whole creation will reverberate with peace to the glory of God. Do you know what it will be like? Let me tell you – and this is how I'm going to close. Listen to these four verses:

“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9)

In just two words: very good!

Let's pray. 

Father, I pray that you would transform our lives. Enable us, by your gracious work in our lives, enable us to live well, to live honorably, to live fruitfully, to live graciously as your representatives. Father, I pray that we would do all that we do in the name of Jesus our Lord. In his name we pray, amen.

 

ENDNOTES

[1] Quote from the encyclopedic entry “Stephen Hawking” on Wikipedia. Available online: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Hawking.

[2] Quoted in Jonathan D. Sarfati, The Genesis Account: A theological, historical, and scientific commentary on Genesis 1-11. Powder Springs: Creation Book Publishers, 2015: p. 192.

[3] From the hymn “The Bible Stands” by Haldor Lillenas.

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