Image of God

Genesis 1:27

So God created human beings in his own image.

In the image of God he created them;

male and female he created them.

The first chapter of Genesis is a beautiful reminder of who God is,  who we are, in relation to God and the creation He spoke into existence. However there have probably been more arguments over  how it is to be understood than any other chapter, however I think that all Christians would agree with the statement in Hebrews 11:3:   By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen. God made the universe for His own pleasure and enjoyment it reflected his majesty and creativity coming to a climax in the creation of humankind in His image.

So what does the image of God mean?  Looking at the verse, the first thing we see is the joint creation of man and woman as one. Separate persons, but the image in unity, a reflection of God as three persons in one. In the garden of Eden, we see Adam and Eve walking and talking with God; the perfect trio enjoying conversation in the cool of the evening. 

We reflect the image as we abide in loving relationship with other people in a mutuality of love, whether that is as family, church or just a group of friends in some sort of bond of love with each other, a love empowered by the Spirit living within us. 

Every human soul living is made in the image of God, so we have a special duty to love care and respect every human being, regardless of race class or creed. 

It is often helpful to understand a passage to ask, how the writer and the first hearers of the passage would have understood it. The people of the ancient world would have understood an image of God as an idol in a temple. However, the ancient Hebrews understood from very early on that God, a pure spirit, could not be represented by anything made by human hands and the first clauses of the Ten Commandments forbid the worship of any man-made image.Exodus 20 
So, we become the image as the breath of God is breathed into us. Genesis 2:7  As Christians, we are filled with the Spirit who makes us alive in Christ. Our job as image bearers is to reflect the loving character of God to the rest of creation with our own Christ inspired love to a world that has lost sight of God’s presence and character. We are to be the image of Christ to everyone who we meet.

In the next verse in Genesis we are commanded to rule over the rest of creation. This does not mean using creation to our own, ends wrecking it as we do so. It is a command to care for it and look after it just as God himself would, in a sacrificial manner.

However, I think it means much more than this.  At the fall Satan took that authority away from humankind, and Jesus had to come as the second Adam, the perfect image of God, to win back all that was lost. In Christ, we now have the power and authority to change the fallen creation bringing it back into the state God meant it to be through prayer and our own loving and prayerful actions.  

Every soul living is made in the image of God so we have a special duty to love care and respect every human being regardless of race class or creed. 

I close this blog with a fragment from a Celtic liturgy:

Leader: I open my heart to Christ in the stranger,

People: To Christ in the face of colleague and friend,

Leader: I open my heart to the one who is wounded

People: To Christ in the hungry, the lonely, the homeless

Leader: I open my heart to the one who has hurt me

People: To Christ in the faces of sinner and foe

Leader: I open my heart to those who are outcast

People: To Christ in the broken, the prisoner, the poor

Leader: I open my heart to all who are searching

People: To Christ in the world God’s generous gift