Image Bearers
“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 them.” Genesis 1:26-27
My greatest desire for my two daughters is that they know the One who created them, loves them, and died to redeem them. To this end, my wife and I try to incorporate daily routines into our lives that will remind them (and us!) of this reality.
One such routine is to ask them questions from a children’s catechism. The first question asks, “Who made you?” To which the answer is, “God made me.”
As my daughters learned this response, they grew more and more confident in answering the question, even to the point of yelling it back at us, “GOD MADE ME!” This really is the perfect way to answer the question, as this is one of the most foundational and impactful doctrines to believe at a heart level.
Genesis 1 is all about God creating. In verses 26-27, we read of God creating humanity - the center of His creation. We read that God created us in His image and after His likeness. This is groundbreaking and unique to humanity, as no other creature or part of His creation is given this distinct honor. You reflect the image and likeness of God himself.
You may “know” this. Maybe you’ve heard it before. But do you believe this? This means that you, just as you are, are an image-bearer of God with great dignity, value, and worth. Yes, even at your current height, your current weight, with your current intelect, and your current situation. Your bearing God’s image and likeness is not dependent upon you getting yourself together, presentable, and perfect.
You bear God’s image today and you don’t merely bear His image in spite of who you are, but because of who you are. He didn’t make any mistakes with you! And the good news gets even better, because we know the One who bore God’s image perfectly, Jesus Christ. And when we put our faith in Him, when we make Him the most central part of our lives, then our destiny is to be conformed to His image completely!
You bear God’s image today, and it will only increase as you are transformed more and more into the image of Christ.