Gen 1:26-31, Created in the Image of God

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So tonight, we discuss the crowning achievement of God’s creation, Man, and complete our look at Chapter and the Creation week.

We will be exploring the question, what is life? How is Man different than the rest of creation or perhaps is Man different than the animals and other life forms?

Finally, we will explore what it means to be created in the image of God.

Our focus will be verses 26-31, but for context I would like to begin our reading at Creation Day 4, Gen 1:20;

Genesis 1:20–31 NASB95

20 Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” 21 God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind; and God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 23 There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day. 24 Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind: cattle and creeping things and beasts of the earth after their kind”; and it was so. 25 God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good. 26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; 30 and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. 31 God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

I wanted to begin at Day 4, to open up with the question of what is Life? That is, what is the part that’s missing when something or someone dies?

In one sense it is the same for all living things on Earth, including Man, physical life ends at some point. Solomon says about this;

Ecclesiastes 3:19 NASB95

19 For the fate of the sons of men and the fate of beasts is the same. As one dies so dies the other; indeed, they all have the same breath and there is no advantage for man over beast, for all is vanity.

So what is life? Beginning in verse 20 we see the words in Hebrew “neh'-fesh haya,”

Genesis 1:20 (NASB95)

20 Then God said, “Let the waters teem with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.”

The words mean “souls living” or “living souls.” Nephesh is used in the Bible as

1. soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion;

that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, soul, the inner being of man

living being

living being (with life in the blood)

the man himself, self, person or individual

seat of the appetites

seat of emotions and passions

activity of mind

This term encompasses all things that have breath, fish, birds, animals, reptiles, and insects. So does your Dog or Cat have a soul? The answer is yes. Any animal lover recognizes this.

So what makes man different than the animals?

Lets carefully look at our text;

Genesis 1:26–27 NASB95

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Here in verse 26, we have a hint of the Trinity by use of the plural form for the one God in the the name Elohim and the use of the pronouns Us and Our. We have already looked at this. But I want to draw your attention to the word “image.

What does it mean to be created in Gods image? The Hebrew word for image is tselem means “likeness or resemblance.” First we know that God is spirit.

John 4:24 NASB95

24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

So do we look like God? In at least one sense we do. When God became man in the person of Jesus Christ this form of a human being is how He presented Himself. And According to Col 1, John 1, Hebrews 1 Jesus is the creator.

Colossians 1:16 NASB95

16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.

John 1:3 NASB95

3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

Hebrews 1:1–2 NASB95

1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.

Now as we look at the Hebrew words in verse 26 & 27 used for “create” we see something interesting. Remember there two main words words used, Bara and Asah. Bara meant to create from nothing, as in ex-nihilo. To speak into existence.

Asah on the other hand, means to form from existing materials. For example God formed man out of the dust of the ground. We pointed this out in our second session.

However, I did not tell you that God also created, or Bara’ed, man. In verse 27;

Genesis 1:27 NASB95

27 God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

The word created is Bara. So in this sense we are different in than all the rest of the creation. We are like God in the sense that we are a trinity just like God. We are 3 in 1. What do you mean?

We are more than just a living soul; we are body, soul, and spirit. Paul writes;

1 Thessalonians 5:23 NASB95

23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Here Paul describes as having 3 distinct parts, spirit, soul, and body. But its the spirit that is “ex-nihilo” created after the image of God.

Colossians 3:10 NASB95

10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him—

What does that mean? Well until one is born-again his spirit is dormant or even dead. He is just an animal, body and soul. But when the HS takes residence in us our spirit comes to life and we can commune with God.

Additionally, designed within the soul of man are also some other interesting things that also make us different than the rest of living souls.

From Don Stewart

1. Analytical Thought Man can think analytically. He can analyze problems and come up with creative solutions. He is able to reason and philosophize about life. The reasoning powers in animals are limited. 2. True Language Only man possesses true language and conceptual thought. He can communicate by using abstract symbols. The Bible says one of the first responsibilities given Adam by God was to name the animals (Genesis 2:19-23). Animals have no such capacities. 3. Record History Another difference is that man can record and determine history. From the beginning of time, man has recorded his deeds for the benefit of future generations. There is no example of any animal recording their deeds for posterity. 4. Economics Man is an economic being, able to transact complicated business and to administer goods and services under his control. God instructed Adam and Eve to take control of the earth and "subdue" it (Genesis 1:28). Animals do not transact business between each other. 5. Art Man is an aesthetic being, capable of perceiving and appreciating beauty and intangible values. When animals build things, the process and resulting object serve a functional purpose. Animals do not create objects for the purpose of appreciation. 6. Morality Man is an ethical being. He can distinguish between right and wrong. He can and does make moral judgments. He has a conscience. Only to man could God speak of "good" and "evil." Because of mans sense of justice and his ethical orientation, God could fairly punish him for his willful disobedience in the Garden of Eden. 7. Worship Only man can experience faith. Man alone of all earthly creation can worship his Creator. He alone can put his trust in the guidance and leadership of God. 8. Bury Its Dead Man is the only living creature that buries its dead. There is no example of animals doing any type of ceremonial burial as does man. The above list, though not exhaustive, points out that there are many things that separate man from animals. We could also add such things as: creativity, invention, imagination, abstract reasoning, love (at various levels), a will, and a conscience.

So the words soul and spirit are sometimes used interchangeably. But is there really a distinction?

Video- Spirit Soul & Body - Animation Part 1, 5’03”

Article - What Is the Difference Between a Soul and a Spirit?

We will have more about this in Genesis 2 where we are given some additional details.

Notice in verse 27, God created them as male and female. Two genders that’s it. No matter how current culture wants to say it, there are not more than two.

Also notice, it appears God made many pairs of other fish and animals, as the terms like “teem with swarms” are used; but with man, only one man and one woman.

Let’s look at the rest of the text, 28-31;

Genesis 1:28–31 NASB95

28 God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; 30 and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so. 31 God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.

Now verse 28 gives us what is called “the creation mandate.” This is from “gotquestions.org.”

The term creation mandate refers to the idea that God’s original intent for creation infused mankind with supreme earthly authority, along with specific responsibilities. Among these privileges are the rights to freely use all of earth’s animals, plants, and resources for the benefit of humankind. The creation mandate is expressed most directly in Genesis 1:28, “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’” The Hebrew term for “rule over” (radah) implies an absolute sovereignty of man over the rest of the earth. This creation mandate also implies responsibilities to which mankind is bound. As the God-appointed ruler, mankind is prohibited from abusing or wasting those aspects of Earth he controls; since creation ultimately belongs to God, misusing it would be an act of disrespect and irresponsibility. Likewise, God’s command includes an expectation that man will “multiply,” obligating man to adhere to God’s intended plan for human sexuality: heterosexual monogamy (Genesis 1:27; 2:24; Mark 10:5–9). In short, the creation mandate says that man is sovereign over the rest of the earth, man is obligated to responsibly use what God has placed under his control, and man is expected to reproduce according to God’s intended design.

Verses 29-31, reveal God’s original plan for food. Plants that yield seed and the fruit of trees that have seeds in them for both man and animal. Does that mean we should be vegetarian? We will get to that question in a later session.

Notice, it is only at the completion of day 6 that God said it was “very good.”

In closing I believe that every time a heart receives Jesus Christ, an ex-nihilo creation occurs, and God says its is very good. If you haven't yet received Jesus as your Lord and Saviour and want to pray with me right now.

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