Walk Through Christian Theology: A Six-Day Devotional Exploring God’s Grand StorySample

HUMANITY: MADE IN THE IMAGE OF GOD

Genesis 1:26: Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

My dad loves having a daughter and a son. In the first few years of our lives, he introduced us to every single thing that he considered important in the hope that we would turn out just like him. Parents often try to make their children in their own image.

God did make humankind in his own image and likeness. As the only part of creation made in his image, God bestowed dignity, beauty, and equality to every person. God made us in his image so that we would do exactly what he does—rule over creation, subdue it, and fill it (Gen 1:28). The pinnacle of his creation, God revealed himself only to our species.

The first man and woman, however, rebelled and sinned, forever falling from God’s favor and passing down their sin nature to every human since, except for Jesus. We have fallen, and we live in a fallen world. Still, God continues to make us in his image, and we have not lost our responsibility to rule his beloved creation and carry his glory to the ends of the earth. God’s design demonstrates that he truly wants us to reign with him now, even in our imperfection.

APPLICATION: As caretakers, we rule creation and assess the use of its resources. Consider your lifestyle and identify one way in which you can better care for our world, such as cleaning up or beautifying public spaces, or using solar panels as a power source.

PRAYER: Almighty God, we worship you for exalting humans by making us in your own image. Teach us faithfulness and responsibility in our role as image bearers.

Photo by Joeyy Lee on Unsplash

This six-day plan was written by Dallas Theological Seminary student Karen Cook and is brought to you by Aspire Productions (www.aspire2.com).