01-09 God Makes Man, Part 2

Genesis 1:26-27

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 7414 Seducing by Scents …

7414 Seducing By Scents …

Legislation proposed in England in the 1700’s: “All women of whatever age, rank, profession, or degree, whether virgin, maid or widow, that shall impose upon, seduce and betray into matrimony any of His Majesty’s subjects, by scents, paints, cosmetic washes, artificial teeth, false hair, Spanish wool, iron stays, hoops, high-heeled shoes or bolstered hips shall incur the penalty of the law now in force against witchcraft and the like misdemeanors and that marriage, upon conviction, shall stand null and void.”

—House & Garden

For you ladies who are looking to attract yourself to a man…don’t wear perfume, don’t put on makeup, don’t wear good looking clothes or nice shoes, don’t try to correct any abnormalities—if you appear to be something more than you are…that is seduction and if convicted—worthy of death.

I’d bet Adam didn’t mind how Eve looked when God brought her to him after she was fashioned from his rib. In cartoons, whenever a character saw a pretty girl their jaw dropped, eyes bugged out of their heads…maybe Adam’s response?

Today, what you increasingly see is a woman trying to attract another woman or man to a man. Paul explains the abandonment of God (who gives men over) b/c they have preferred the worship of everything above God—including self. And when men and women exchange the natural function for one that is a perversion of the created order—they encounter the wrath of God which has been revealed form heaven against all ungodliness.

God created man (by that term I’m referring to humanity in general). He made man in His own image…this is where a biblical anthropology must begin (our understanding about man/mankind).

Anthropology is defining the world as we know it in the 21st century. That would be great if that understand of man came from the Bible but it does not. And b/c of this we are finding ourselves in the midst of a very real culture war which is being waged on multiple fronts today (social justice, CRT, Intersectionality, Gender identity (LGBTQ+, sexual orientation, education— “gender dysphoria”—distress related to a strong desire to be of another gender). These are all pressing issues that Xns are faced with b/c our anthropology is biblical.

As Xns we are trying to navigate our own moral responsibility in the midst of this present culture—and practically asking that question “how do we live in the world without being of the world?”

That question (in view of our Xn responsibility—responsibility toward God, toward our families, toward the church, toward our community) brings this culture war to the center of focus particularly in corporate America. There was a time (not too long ago) when companies were very cautious about taking political, cultural, moral stances (which would isolate the consumer base to some degree). But now, they are taking positions on cultural issues that are dividing the nation; and many of them are directly opposed to the Bible’s teaching on these issues—Disney, Apple, Coca-Cola, Citigroup).

It can be very confusing for believers to navigate this cultural war, especially as it relates to functioning in the world in which we do live. Do you conduct business with those companies that stand against your beliefs? Can you be consistent in that? Are there alternative companies? And if you do business with these companies are you violating God’s word? You begin to see what we’re faced with.

Gen 1:26-27 addresses the very cultural war that is prevalent today and when it’s truth is rejected, you will see a host of perversions (ideas) that come to the surface in that war. For example…when you reject Genesis 1:27 “male and female He created them” (this rejection is accelerating) —you come up with the idea of “Non-Binary”.

Non-binary (defined by “Out and Equal Workplace Advocates”): “a gender identity which falls outside of the gender binary, meaning an individual does not identify as strictly female or male. A non-binary person can identify as both or neither male and female, or sometimes one or the other. There are several other terms used to describe gender identities outside of the male and female binary such as genderqueer, gender non- conforming, agender, and bigender. Though these terms have slightly different meanings, they refer to an experience of gender outside of the binary.”

Then you have to fabricate new pronouns that cover non-binary individuals (he/she; ze/hir/zir). Now, I now you’re confused…but try teaching this to a 5-6 year old and all the sudden gender confusion develops and why wouldn’t there be distress (gender-dysphoria)?

The world is confused b/c it has rejected the simplicity of God’s explanation of human sexuality (binary—male and female). To borrow from the movie, this is a “Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.”

Last time, I introduced what is the first (of 3) characteristics of man...

1) The Uniqueness of Man

What sets man apart from every other aspect of God’s created universe is that God makes man in His own image. Now we spent some time exploring what God means when He says “Let us…our…” He is revealing a plurality within the Godhead (more fully developed as “Trinity” in later revelation).

“Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.”

Made in the image of God is repeated in Scripture:

Genesis 5:1 NASB95

1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day when God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.

Genesis 9:6 NASB95

6 “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He made man.

1 Corinthians 11:7 NASB95

7 For a man ought not to have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.

James 3:9 NASB95

9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God;

Now, before us is the question “What is the image of God that in to it God makes man?” I agree with commentator Keneth Mathews when he says Genesis tells us “who” is created in God’s image (male and female) but not the contents of that image.

Psalm 8:5 NASB95

5 Yet You have made him a little lower than God, And You crown him with glory and majesty!

So, whatever the Imago Dei is…it corresponds to God creating man unique and crowing him with glory and honor.

Just as an introductory comment: many commentaries are divided over this (in much of church history as well) the relationship b/t “image” and “likeness.” Since they are 2 different words, many suggest that Moses is indicating 2 different aspects of God’s creation of man (though not necessarily agreement on what those 2 aspects are). Some say it represents spiritual similarities and physical likeness. Others have thought thought that “image” refers to the ability to reason while “likeness” refers to a person’s correspondence to God in spiritual attributes.

There is no “and” between these 2 phrases which makes them parallel in Hebrew. 2 different words but they are both used for the sake of emphasis and saying essentially the same thing. An amazing truth: we are created in God’s likeness.

Does that make us like God? Well, yes and no.

There are many ways in which we are not like God.

Isaiah 46:5 NASB95

5 “To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal and compare Me, That we would be alike?

We may be asking the better question when trying to figure out Imago Dei if we were to say “What is God like?”

Studying God (Theology Proper) can begin to answer that question as it pertains to His attributes. There is a way of differentiating b/t attributes in the manner of how humans relate to God (incommunicable and communicable attributes).

Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth Incommunicable and Communicable

The incommunicable perfections are those characteristics unique to God (e.g., self-existence, simplicity, immensity), whereas the communicable perfections are those characteristics transferable in part to humans (e.g., goodness, righteousness, love)

What God does not impart to His creatures (namely man) aseity, immutability, infinity, eternality, omnis…, perfection.

What “Image” does not mean:

Since God is spirit (Jn 4:24) He is not limited to a physical body like we are. So the image is not biological, physiological or related to appearance. In fact, human DNA is shared with plants and animals.

98% is shared with pigs, gorillas, chimpanzees,

90% with cats

85% mice

80% cows

70% slug

60% bananas

Many biological functions b/t humans and animals are similar: organs (heart; lungs; intestines). So we’re talking something other than physiological:

Luke 24:39 NASB95

39 “See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

However, God does reveal Himself using terms that we can understand (anthropomorphisms, anthropopathisms):

God expresses emotions (laughs—Ps 2:4; grieves (Gen 6:6; Eph 4:30). We also have descriptions that we can relate to:

Proverbs 15:3 NASB95

3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, Watching the evil and the good.

Genesis 8:21 NASB95

21 The Lord smelled the soothing aroma; and the Lord said to Himself, “I will never again curse the ground on account of man, for the intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; and I will never again destroy every living thing, as I have done.

1 John 5:14 NASB95

14 This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.

2 Peter 1:18 NASB95

18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.

Genesis 32:32 NASB95

32 Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.

Sometimes God appeared in a physical form (Gen 18:1-2) Especially Incarnation.

What “Image” means:

When God created man (what distinguishes him from all other creation) He did so, forming in man certain characteristics. This answers the question “How are we like God?”

The Heb term is selem: refers to something that has been carved. It mostly is used in reference to idols/idol worship—where an image has been carved into wood, stone or gold. God reveals that man is essentially carved in God’s image—that He has become the pattern for the creation of man.

There are at least 3 ways man demonstrates the image of God as a creature:

Personality

Both male and female possess traits of personality (like God does). What are those traits?

Intellect: It has been observed that plants/animals do not share the complexity of our cognitive processes and representations of experience. They cannot produce fiction, philosophy, representational art, or mathematics. And it goes far beyond this to not only accumulation of knowledge but attaining wisdom—practically and skilfully applying that knowledge in life. We can communicate using oral and written symbols.

Emotion: Man has the capacity to express sadness and joy

Volition: Man also is self-conscious as a person with the ability to exercise choice (to express his will), to make goals and purposes in life.

God has all of these and part of being made in His image involves that we share this likeness to God.

Morality

God has created man to be a moral being in that he can discern right from wrong and suffer from a conscience that has been offended. Within this characteristic there is also the added elements of freedom and responsibility. Now, man’s freedom is not absolute. Even in the Garden Adam was not autonomous in that God restricted his choices (very limited restriction). Adam and Eve were then responsible to obey.

We know there was a great change affected in the transgression of Gen 3. Theologians debate whether man lost the image of God or whether it was marred. I believe man still carries the image of God after the fall (since it is reiterated Gen 5:1-2; 9:6).

For the believer, our sanctification is expressed as:

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—

Romans 8:29 NASB95

29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;

The moral righteousness that was lost in the fall is that unto which the believer is progressing toward—revealed in LJC.

Spirituality

Since God is spirit and since He also created man to have an intimate fellowship with Himself, God created man to be a spiritual being who is capable of a relationship with his Creator.

James Boice:

“Here lies our true worth. We are made in God’s image and are therefore valuable to God and others. God loves men and women, as he does not and cannot love the animals, plants, or inanimate matter. Moreover, he feels for them, identifies with them in Christ, grieves for them, and even intervenes in history to make individual men and women into all that he has determined they should be. We get some idea of the special nature of this relationship when we remember that in a similar way the woman, Eve, was made in the image of man. Therefore, though different, Adam saw himself in her and loved her as his companion and corresponding member in the universe. It is not wrong to say that men and women are to God somewhat as the woman is to the man. They are God’s unique and valued companions. In support of this we need only think of the Bible’s teaching concerning Christ as the bridegroom and the church as his bride.”

Here is the uniqueness of man. No other aspect of creation shares this unique image. You look at the creation of ocean, sky, and land animals and when God created them he filled the earth with them and gave to them the charge to be fruitful and multiply. When God created man—how many did He create? One (initially—then created another to correspond to him). God didn’t fill the earth with humans as He did the rest of animals and plants. Man is unique—created by God to commune with Himself and then God gave man responsibility:

2) The Responsibility of Man

The responsibility God gave Adam was 2-fold: To be fruitful and multiply and to rule God’s creation. We will take a look more at what this means in vs 28 but notice vs 26… “let them to rule...” God created man and gave him charge to represent God on the earth.

Images often represent those whose image they bore.

Daniel 3:1–6 NASB95

1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, the height of which was sixty cubits and its width six cubits; he set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent word to assemble the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 3 Then the satraps, the prefects and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates and all the rulers of the provinces were assembled for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 4 Then the herald loudly proclaimed: “To you the command is given, O peoples, nations and men of every language, 5 that at the moment you hear the sound of the horn, flute, lyre, trigon, psaltery, bagpipe and all kinds of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. 6 “But whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into the midst of a furnace of blazing fire.”

John Frame writes that loyalty to the image was a form of loyalty to the one whose image it bore. Similarly, Adam represents God in the world. He does God’s work, but under God: the task of ruling and filling the earth.

This makes man God’s vice-regent on earth—whose creation was to represent God by applying the control, authority and presence of God on the earth (to all creatures).

We’ll look at this more next time—and the application of that truth: The Xn as Environmentalist (not worshiper of nature but caretaker of creation).

3) The Distinctiveness of Man and Woman

This is what our society/culture is rejecting wholesale today: that God created male and female with gender distinctiveness. It was a “binary” creation. There were only 2.

Ken Ham notes:

God only made two genders. A human being is either male or female. A female can1t change into a male and a male can't change into a female. God put the information into the DNA of the first two people so that one was male and the other female. In our cells we have chromosomes that contain DNA which contains all the information to build a human. In males, two of the 46 chromosomes (the 23rd pair) are labeled XY. In the females, the 23rd pair are labeled XX. So males have an XY and females have an XX.

He goes on to discuss the degeneration of the human genome which results in deformations in a very small portion of humanity…but states “That doesn’t change the fact that there are only two genders...”

Rejecting God’s truth…His explanation of His crowning achievement of creation can only result in the perversion of man and the perversion of human sexuality (evolution & gender identity confusion). You can see the hand of the enemy in these perversions.

With God’s creation of man—we can see His desire for communion/fellowship. That is distinct with humanity alone. And yet, b/c of sin the ability to commune with God has been broken.

Blaise Pascal (French mathematician, physicist, inventor) :

Genesis—Beginning and Blessing

Blaise Pascal, Pensées, #425, trans. W. F. Trotter (New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., 1958), pp. 113, 114.

What is it, then, that this desire and this inability proclaim to us, but that there was once in man a true happiness of which there now remain to him only the mark and empty trace, which he in vain tries to fill from all his surroundings, seeking from things absent the help he does not obtain in things present? But these are all inadequate, because the infinite abyss can only be filled by an infinite and immutable object, that is to say, only by God Himself. He only is our true good, and since we have forsaken Him, it is a strange thing that there is nothing in nature which has not been serviceable in taking His place; the stars, the heavens, earth, the elements, plants, cabbages, leeks, animals, insects, calves, serpents, fever, pestilence, war, famine, vices, adultery, incest. And since man has lost the true good, everything can appear equally good to him, even his own destruction, though so opposed to God, to reason, and to the whole course of nature.

Genesis—Beginning and Blessing Filling the Earth with Man

Do you know this vacuum? Is there emptiness within you—some uncomfortable space—due to your sin? If so, all you have to do is come to him believing and say, “Here’s my cup, Lord/fill it up, Lord”—and he will.

Will you bring your emptiness to Christ? In that marvelous section in Colossians 1, verse 15 states that Christ is “the image of … God”; then verses 16–18 affirm that he is the Creator, Sustainer, and Goal of the universe; and finally, verse 19 includes that he is the Savior: “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (vv. 19, 20). So Paul could say to believers, “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority” (Colossians 2:9, 10).

Are you empty, in need of God’s forgiveness and righteousness? Then come to him. His fullness will become yours with a “mere” word!