Created in God's Image

by Carrie Puckett

Okay, so when Julia, our host blogger, asked me to post a guest blog...I responded with a quick no. But she talked me into it. I’m not happy to say that I caved and agreed to do this. I find this very intimidating. Sure, I can come up with sarcastic, maybe even witty words. But to write something that is prepared as a devotion is a whole different thing. I’m not like Julia, in that I don’t read a passage and a three point, alliterated lesson out on paper. Nope, never happened to me. Therefore, I give you this preface so that your expectations are low. If they’re low….go ahead and lower a little further. Here we go…

I am reading a book right now that is entitled, Created in God’s Image and it has caused me to think about the creation of man in a whole new way. It’s exciting and convicting all at the same time. Sure, it is astounding enough that God chose to create us and pursue a relationship with us. But once you attempt to grasp that, another great mystery is that He created us in His likeness or His image.

Genesis 1:26a Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…”
Genesis 1:27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Being created in His image brings up a whole host of questions and thoughts. One issue that comes out is God’s choosing to create humans, not animals in His likeness. Animals are an important part of God’s creation, but they do not bear His likeness. Also, Christ came as a human--a man--because man was created in the image of God. We reflect the image of God (although it is a marred image due to our sin) and Christ’s bears the perfect image of God. Christ gives validity to the teaching of the image of God. This is something that we share with Christ, being created in the image of the Father.

So, I guess you may be saying, “This is great, but how does this affect me in my everyday, rush-rush, have to deal with people (sometimes annoying) kind of life?” I’m glad you asked. The relevance for us is that Christ is the perfect image of God. Colossians 1:15 says, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature.” (Also see 1 Corinthians 4:4, 6 and Hebrews 1:3). Therefore, His example of how to lead and minister is perfect. We are to love God and love man. The way that we show our love to man is to recognize his importance. The people that we are forced to deal with in our rush-rush lives are created in God’s image. This supersedes any importance the world could place on someone. So when the annoying person comes into the office for the 15th time in one day or someone who is obviously lonely tries to start up a conversation that you don’t have time for, or when in a moment of arrogance you feel that no one in your vicinity can converse on you level, remember that God chose to create them and not only that but He made them in His image, His likeness.