There’s a statement in Genesis chapter one, verses twenty-six to thirty-one that tells us how and where man came to be and why. There is no need to go any further, not to scientists or explorers, philanthropists or other wise men of the world. God has told us all we need to know, and as one old friend of ours once said, “God says it, I believe it, and that settles it!” Here is the Biblical account…..
Genesis 1:26 ….Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, 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 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food .30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so. 31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
I pondered this passage and thought about it a lot….in what way was I created to be like God? In the first place we are all three part beings with a body, soul and spirit. God Himself is a three part Being, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Then God desires fellowship with man….a freely given, reciprocal friendship. We too, want fellowship with other people in general, and another person in particular. We have the capacity to fellowship with God, our Creator, and always feel that something is missing until we have it. Without this connection we only have a two dimensional outlook on life, like a flat picture….with it, we see things in a 3D effect, being a part of what is around. We can appreciate the creation of God and look at things with different eyes, marvelling at His creativity and giving Him thanks for what He has made.
There is another way we are made in His image….we can think and reason, we can create things. Think of the craftsman who makes a beautiful piece of furniture, the artist who can paint a lovely picture, the inventor who thinks up these amazing things that we take for granted every day!
We are told that at the end of the creation period, God looked at all He had made and saw that it was “very good”. As each thing was created, He could see that it was good, but when He created man to top it all off, He felt that it was VERY good! Think of the satisfaction we have of doing a good job well! The satisfaction of seeing a perfect cake come out of the oven, a garment that has been lovingly made fitting to perfection, the shining car performing as it should….another proof that we are made in God’s image!
We can see too, that man has the capacity to utilise all that God has created….all these things were created for man’s use and enjoyment. Let us acknowledge this and give Him the thanks and praise for it all, and be careful to not abuse the trust that He has given us!
