The Sanctity of Life
Notes
Transcript
January 17, 2016
January 22, 2023
AM Service
FBC Baxley
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Welcome radio and online guests…
*It’s ok if you’re broken, unfaithful, lost, we are too and we are here seeking God’s will and way and plan.
We are all prodigals here…
Some rescued….Some Not..
All Loved…
*Acts 4:12
*John 3:16
*January Memory Verse
Romans 3:23
The Sanctity Of Human Life
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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 him;
male and female he created them.
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.”
PRAYER
Introduction:
Did you know that ONE Human Life is more Valuable to God than the entire Non-Human Creation?
Did you know that ONE Human Life is of More Worth to Him than all the Angels, all the Stars and Galaxies, Planets, Moons, Mountains, Rivers, Fields, and all the Animals combined?
WHY is this the Case? Because Human Beings are Created in the IMAGE of God. [Did you know that Angels are Not Created in God's Image?]
* What IS the "Image of God"?
Is it Rationality? Yes; but the Angels have that attribute as well.
Is it Personality? Yes; but the Angels have that attribute also.
Is it a Spirit that is capable of Communion with God? Yes; but the Angels also possess a spirit.
A Critical Ingredient in the Image of God is DOMINION--"Let Us make man in Our Image . . . and let them RULE." (v.26)
This, the Angels do Not have.
* Why should we study a text like Gen. 1 on Sanctity of Human Life Sunday?
Because We, as Christians, must learn to Value Human Life the way the God of the Universe does.
THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE
I. Human Life is Sacred because It MIRRORS God, v.26
English Standard Version Chapter 1
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.”
Anything that REFLECTS on you or me we take very seriously. How many of you Husbands are able to get out of the house dressed the way YOU would like to? Don't our wives put a quick end to this potential embarrassment by making us get into something nicer, something more acceptable?
What about our Children? We don't send them off to school looking ragged (if we can help it) because it Reflects Badly on us. In the same way God Greatly Values Human Life because it MIRRORS His Essential Qualities and Characteristics.
I. Human Life is Sacred because It MIRRORS God
A. We Reflect His TRIUNE Nature, v.26a
English Standard Version Chapter 1
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.
Have you ever read and wondered about the PLURAL Pronouns used in this first chapter of the Bible?
They are there to give us the initial introduction into the Wonderful Truth about God that finds its full fruition in the NT--namely, that God is One in Being, but Triune in Personality.
This could never be the case with Created Beings, but it IS the case with the Infinite Being--God.
Those Three Persons, of course, we discover in the NT to be the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
[You might remember the account of Jesus' Baptism by John in Mt. 3:16-17 where we hear the Father's Voice from heaven, see the Son being Baptized, and see the Holy Spirit descend on Him in the form of a Dove.]
2. So, How do WE, as Human Beings, Mirror the Triune Nature of God?
If we look at 1 Thess. 5:23, Here is what the verse says, found at the end of the letter to the saints in Thessalonica.
Paul prays: "May your whole SPIRIT, SOUL AND BODY be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."
[The Greek words employed here are "Pneuma" for Spirit, from which we get terms like "Pneumatic Devices";
"Psuche" for Soul from which we get the word "Psyche"; and "Soma" for Body from which we get words such as "Psycho-Somatic".]
b. Is this the Triune Nature of God Reflected in Us? It may be.
It is kind of interesting that the Lord Jesus would, in His Incarnation, take forever a Body; that the Holy Spirit, of course, IS a Spirit; and that we are to Love our Heavenly Father "With all our SOUL" as we read in Dt. 6:5.
English Standard Version Chapter 6
You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
I. Human Life is Sacred because It MIRRORS God
A. We Reflect His TRIUNE Nature
B. We Reflect His KINGLY Nature, v.26b
1. This is that DOMINION Idea I referred to earlier.
God Created Man (and Woman) to RULE. WE are the ones who are to Govern All the Lower Creation--it is very interesting.
2. This concept is seen in any number of places in the Scripture. Consider these few verses with me:
a. Gen. 9:2: "The fear and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hands."
b. Ps. 8:6-8: "You made him [that is, Man] Ruler over the works of Your hands; You put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas." [You Hunters and Fishermen ought to love verses like this!]
3. We Mirror God's Character by RULING over His Creation; by taking DOMINION of it.*
Because Human Life MIRRORS God, we ought to Revere it, even as the Lord does--Protecting and Defending the Innocent and Helpless.
Human Life is Sacred because It MIRRORS God
II. Human Life is Sacred because It MAGNIFIES God, v.27
English Standard Version Chapter 1
So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
God's Glory, though Great in and of itself, would never be appreciated if He did not choose to Create Beings that could comprehend it and love Him for it.
There is very real sense in which the Creation of MAN, the Pinnacle of God's Work, Multiplies and Magnifies His Greatness because it is the means by which He Extends His Realm.
II. Human Life is Sacred because It MAGNIFIES God
We Celebrate the Lord's UNITY, v.27a
English Standard Version Chapter 1
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
This part of the verse relates God's Closeness to His Masterpiece--Man. We are most Vividly Reminded of this in the Incarnation of the Son of God.
Paul says this in Gal. 4:4: "When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman . . ."
John puts it this way in Jn. 1:14: "The Word became Flesh and made His dwelling among us."
2. Notice the Repetition in this verse: "God created man in His own Image, in the Image of God He created him."
3. Man was Created to have Communion with God. This is the Unity we are speaking of here.
4. This Communion, of course, was Lost when Adam Fell into Sin.
It is only Restored by the Last Adam, Jesus Christ.
Paul said this in Rom. 5:19: "For just as through the Disobedience of the one man [Adam] the many were made Sinners, so also through the Obedience of the One Man [Christ] the many will be made Righteous."
5. Have You been made Righteous through Faith in Jesus Christ? [GOSPEL] Born Again??
II. Human Life is Sacred because It MAGNIFIES God
A. We Celebrate the Lord's UNITY
B. We Celebrate the Lord's DIVERSITY, v.27b
English Standard Version Chapter 1
male and female he created them.
Both Man and Woman were Created in the Image of God.
The idea here that I am trying to get across is simply the Wonderful Creative Diversity of the Maker of all things.
3. All of this enhances the Magnification of the Lord because through His Creation of Man He has ordained a means for the Propagation of the Race and the Enrichment of His Purpose through the Differences that exist between Men and Women.
* Because Human Life MAGNIFIES God, we ought to Revere it, even as the Lord does--Protecting and Defending the Innocent and Helpless.
Human Life is Sacred because It MIRRORS God
II. Human Life is Sacred because It MAGNIFIES God
III. Human Life is Sacred because It MANIFESTS God, v.28
English Standard Version Chapter 1
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.”
The Creation of Man, more than any other part of His Work, Shows Forth in Majestic Splendor His Qualities and Characteristics.
David said this in Ps. 8:3-5, "When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, What is Man that You are mindful of him, the son of man that You care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor."
The Ultimate Proof of the Manifestation of God in Man is found in the first chapter of the book of Hebrews, (verses 1-3a)--there, we read these words:
"In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed Heir of all things, and through Whom He made the universe. The Son is the Radiance of God's Glory and the Exact Representation of His Being . . ."
III. Human Life is Sacred because It MANIFESTS God
He is Seen in Our ENJOYMENT of Creation, v.28a
Did you know that we are to Enjoy the Creation? Did you know that IT is to Serve Our Ends and NOT the Other Way around (as radical environmentalists would have us think)?
2. The Blessing of God here is seen in the Fullness, and Government of Human Beings over the rest of the Lower Creation.
3. It is really Exciting to Discover that Christianity is Not a Kill-Joy Religion. Consider, in this vein, these verses:
--1 Tim. 6:17: "[God] richly provides us with Everything for our Enjoyment."
--Acts 14:17: "He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; He provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with Joy." [I especially like the "Food" part of that verse!] and,
--Ps. 4:7: "You have filled my heart with greater joy than when their grain and new wine abound."
We need to remember the first Question & Answer for all: "What is the Chief End of Man?"
"Man's Chief End is to Glorify God and Enjoy Him Forever."
III. Human Life is Sacred because It MANIFESTS God
He is Seen in Our ENJOYMENT of Creation
B. He is Seen in Our DOMINION over Creation, v.28b
English Standard Version Chapter 1
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.”
1. What is said in v.26 is Echoed Here.
2. The Dominion of Man over the Lower Creation Manifests the Dominion of God over ALL--His Creation and His Church.
3. This idea of Dominion is important because it is the Express Will of God that we exercise it.
--We are to have Dominion in our Personal Lives--conquering the Old Man through the power of the Spirit working in us;
--We are to have Dominion in our Family Lives--Ordering our Households after the clearly-stated Ordinances of God:
The Man has his role; the Wife has her role; the Children have their role;
--We are to have Dominion in the Church--exercising Authority and Discipline in the Sweet Savor of the Love of the Savior;
--We are to have Dominion in the business world--Christians should be at the forefront of all Commerce and Business;
--We are to have Dominion in Civil Government--God's people should be Ruling, employing the truths of the Word of God for the Good of all;
--We should have Dominion over the World--exercising "The Victory that has Overcome the World--even our Faith" (1 Jn. 5:4)
English Standard Version Chapter 5
4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
4. Human Life Manifests God in its Enjoyment of and Dominion over His Creation.
* Because Human Life MANIFESTS God, we ought to Revere it, even as the Lord does--Protecting and Defending the Innocent and Helpless.
Conclusion:
THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE is something that we, as Christians, must take very seriously, and Defend very rigorously.
The Pagans in our midst see Human Life as little better than Animal Life, or Plant Life.
To them, People are Disposable, Cheap, Worthless.
* God does not see it that way at all.
In Gen. 9:6 we read these words: "Whoever sheds the blood of Man, by Man shall his blood be shed; for in the Image of God has God made Man."
On this Sanctity of Human Life Sunday I pray we Recommit Ourselves to the Reverence for Human Life that is so intertwined in these verses that first teach us that Man was Created in the Image of God.
Those that take Innocent Human Life are guilty of a Sin that is deserving of Death.
What can We Do to make a Difference?
1) We can Vote Responsibly--exercising Dominion that God has put within our grasp; and
2) We can Pray, Preach, and Teach Others the Good News of the Gospel that drives home to them the utter Value God places on Human Life.
Human Life is Sacred because it MIRRORS God; because it MAGNIFIES God; and because it MANIFESTS God.
THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE . . .
--PRAYER–
Invitation