The Divine Exchange

The God of the universe, of all creations is Omniscient, Omnipotent, omnipresent, ALL KNOWING, ALL POWERFUL AND EVERYWHERE AT THE SAME TIME. There is nothing hid from Him and nothing He does not know in the past present or future. HE IS SOVEREIGN!!! When He created the worlds, His purpose was to create an intelligent being in His image, according to His likeness, with similar creative SPIRITUAL POWER AND ABILITIES. A FREE MORAL AGENT that would chose to serve Him, CARRY OUT His Kingdom agenda to manage and be stewards over the earth and have dominion over all creations.

Genesis 1:26 ESV

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.”

it implies the dominion God gave us is relative to the image and likeness He created us in. HE BREATHES HIS BREATH INTO US AND MAN BECAME A LIVING SOUL - We operate in dominion because we have His image, His spirit-

JOHN 6:63 “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

When God created us AS A FREE MORAL AGENT, He gave he power of choice which is a reflection of HIS LOVE towards us. God is love and all that He creates, stems out of His love. Love is to be demonstrated out of the pureness of one’s heart without coercion or obligation. God would have it any other way and so man is created with a free will.

It is because of God’s Omniscience and His love for man that He activated His plan of redemption to fulfill His Kingdom mandate and carry out His purpose for man. God knew Satan, a fallen creature, would tempt man (God’s greatest creation) to disobey God just as satan had disobeyed God and coerced 1/3 of the angels in heaven to disobey God. Satan understood that if he could usurp his authority over man and snatch the dominion God gave to man, if man disobeyed God’s command.

Yet, because of God’s love for man, He did not allow this to stop His plan of redemption to bring man back into right relationships with Him.

John 3:16 (NASB95)

16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

Perish: brought to nought, excluded from His kingdom, miss out on God’s blessings,rendered useless.

What is incredibly amazing is that God’s love for man is not contingent upon man’s response to God! This act of love was expressed to all creations, and created beings. All through out the bible, it reveals an aspect of God’s character as Love. On this word “LOVE” hinges the entire salvation plan for man. It is an action of “GIVING & RECEIVING” - THE DIVINE EXCHANGE

However, the Love God has for us can only be reciprocated, can only be expressed, can only be truly demonstrated by the response of love we show to Him for who He is and what He does. The love of man towards God is reflected in the actions of our response to God. We choose to serve God, we Choose to love God, we choose to give and yield to God , we choose to obey His will and follow His commands. It is all rooted in the power of choice within Man’s free will.

ROMANS 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Lexham Survey of Theology Humanity’s Dominion over the Earth

Consequently, as image bearers, we are to represent God and reflect his glory, power and authority over creation. In so doing, we reflect the image of God.

On Earth as It Is in Heaven: Answer God’s Call to Transform the World 3. The Desire to Take Dominion Is Biblical

The first Adam lost the dominion over creation that God had given him, and the second Adam came to restore it.

Jesus came “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). What is it that was lost? Adam’s dominion over creation.