III. Man
Psalm chapter 8 beginning and only verse 4 What is mankind your mindful of them human beings that you care for them? The word of God for the people of God. Thanks be unto God. You may be seated.
Let me ask you this is one of those dialectical Parts in dialogue. What makes you think I want to hear your thoughts? What makes human beings special or different from the Animal Kingdom?
And that's the Bible answer. That's the big main point of the sermon don't get to that one yet. Turn off her. No, right besides the the good real true answer of being in the image of God. What's some other things?
we can reason okay, so we have a brain that can reason think would logically what else We have creativity. Yep to make art and different things. What else? What's that this apart from animals?
We belt Society. So by that do you mean buildings or the social structures and Chi Society? What else? We Care Okay, we care. We cook our food. the all the time
Yep, very good. That's it. That's a great Point, especially in contrast to animals. That's the animal Instinct a very good anything else.
What sets us apart from animals a couple of them, but I looked up sometimes for a Google what makes you and being special and unique. So I came across an article on livescience, which is a secular evolutionary website. And so again, not at all related to God about God at all, but they posted an article just entitled top 10 things that make humans special. Here's a few of them. Complex speech nobody mentioned that one yet number to bipedal locomotion. Now, that means we walk on two legs all the time. I guess Apes can walk on two legs Bears can do that as well and birds do that pretty routinely as well and kangaroos hop on two legs, but human beings are the only mammals that walk on two legs consistently. Autumn at 3 there were the only creatures nobody hunting this one of the only creatures that wear clothes that's a big one complexity of the human brain another animal ones in terms of nature. We're the only ones with the ability to wield fire with the only species. It's known to blush and the other one they mentioned another one dimension is Long childhoods human beings have extremely long childhoods. Those of you who parents, you know this or you've been around young children for example, and alpaca can stand and walk 15 minutes after being born and by day two and three they're running right versus a child where it takes months for them to just crawl and then many years for them to actually live on their own right outside of the nest. Do all these things are true. I thought that those things do differentiate us between the secular society in terms of the animal kingdom, but all of them fall radically short of explaining what makes human beings unique what makes us special and that verse re-read this morning. I think it's right there. It's perfectly the question before us what is manned you that God is mindful of us the son of man that you care for him. What makes human beings so special in the first place. It's not a hard question. Right right at the outset business thing that distinguishes us from the rest of the animal kingdom. If you could boil it down to one word, I would arguably say is the image of God. That's what sets us apart from every other creature on the planet the fact that we as human beings are made in the image of God. Where do we find that? Genesis 1:27, we got a specific reference there. I was going to say more broadly Genesis 1 and 2 in the very beginning. So turn there if you will Genesis 1 and 2. We're going to pick this one apart a little bit.
Enlighten that phrase image of God is Imago Dei
When you walk away today, your main takeaway is quite simple. You heard it before you know it but I hope to get some more reminders maybe some other perspective and specifics of what it means. The simple pointed a human beings are made in the image of God. Human beings are made in the image of God. What does that mean? We're going to get a sitter for aspects of that question for answers. Number one the very good image number to the marred image number 3 The Perfect Image, then finally the restored image. Yes, very good image that begins and we find that in Genesis 1 and 2. And one of the Ministries I love is Answers in Genesis. And there they have a nice picture diagram where it says. So there's a foundational Stone right here right there. It says Genesis 12 11 and that encapsulate the creation account of the flood and also the Tower of Babel with the the nation's being spread around the world Genesis 12 11 is the foundation for the rest of the Bible. If you take out the first chapters of the Bible the rest of the Bible it's hard to piece together because we find the doctrine of sin the doctrine of salvation the doctrine of humanity all the doctrine of marriage family all in the very first chapters of this book. So it's vitally important that we pay attention to what God says here. Injustice one we find the creation account god making the universe and we see I'm not going to read the whole text just to summary God made space. Fitbit the space out there he made he made lights. He made Darkness. He made the sky or the atmosphere. Give me the dry land and plant life. He made the Sun the moon and the stars the sea creatures and the birds the land animals, and he did all of that by speaking. Let there be light and there was light. But then in Genesis 1 26 and 27. We see the Lord taking a little bit of a different approach into finishing his creation and putting the cherry on top of the ice cream. Look up Genesis 1:26. Then God said phrase right before verse 25 the last praise God saw that it was good. God looked around Days 1 to 6. So all of these different things it was good. I like this verse 26 and 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. So God created Mankind in his own image in the image of God. He created them male and female he created them. Man, man and woman that humankind man is a pinnacle of God's creation. Ephesians chapter 2 refers to God's people as the handiwork of his creation and here in verse 26 27 and God doesn't have a physical body going to have physical hand with the precise care and attention to detail that is described here. Strongly implies handiwork craftsmanship Personal Touch from the Lord. Let us make man. Let us for him. Let us fashion him. Let us create him. Let us some old him. It's a lot of care and precision. after the creation of man There's a nice phrase there. That describes what God just did God looked around and verse 31 and saw that it was very good. First days 126 everything God made was good. Then after he created man and woman. It was very good. This is the Pinnacle of God's creation is also looking for some 26 and 27. The repeated phrase the repeated word. There is the word image. It appears. There's three times when you couple that with the word likeness, it appears four times. Now, the big question man is made in the image of God. What does that mean? What does that mean? Think about the most plain basic meaning of that word? Hey, what it what is being in the image of something mean? What imply similarity? The similarity here. There's some overlap. It's not a precise duplication or replication, but there is a lot of similarity going on. Common way to think about it is the context of human beings, right? He's in the spitting image of his father. He he's like his father. He's similar to his father or vice versa with the the daughter in the mother in Genesis 5:3. We find his language when Adam had lived 130 years. He had a son in his own likeness in his own image if you named him Seth. The very same language use their to refer to human beings. So we are like God, what does it mean that we're in the image of God? We are like God we are similar to God to bring it in already think of another dimension being an image of God. We represent God. We represent. Think of another way to think of it like a mirrors. We are called to reflect God in the world to represent God in the world that God is the source of love beauty and goodness, and he created us to spread it to share it that's in Port what be fruitful and multiply means it's not just have a bunch of kids there could be you could read that into this about spread my image my glory my beauty around the world be fruitful and multiply in increasing number. Everything about image an image stand in the place of something. For example, if you have a picture or painting of a sunset over the Blue Ridge Mountains and it's hanging up in your home beautiful. Very nice to look at that image. That picture is a stand-in for something far more Grand than that tiny little picture. That's the reality of the mountains and same thing with human beings. We're a tiny little stand in a tiny little image of a greater reality behind us in above us. Who is God himself. You must be saying okay. I got all that. I got the idea that we are like God with our we like God. No Theologian. No Pastor. No scholar has ever been able to pinpoint it down to one thing like over an image of God. That means exactly and precisely this there's no consensus specifically. There are a lot of different components to what this means the like to share with a few a few of them with you. We image God we represent. He was 11 for you again successive. We represent God. We are like God and that we have an inner sense of right and wrong. We know right from wrong. This differentiates us between the animal kingdom as well. What do we have in material spirits? We all have physical bodies, but we also have an immaterial Spirit a soul inside of us. In the number 3 because of our inner Spirit. We have the capacity to relate to God have a relationship with him a personal connection with him. We can praise him we can pray to him and we can also hear him through his word. Number for our souls inside of us are Immortal. They will never Vanquish but never going away. Our bodies may be destroyed. Our bodies may be crushed but our souls or spirits will live on forever either in eternity or the Lake of Fire. I'm fine. We image God through the good gift of gender. I'm not implying that there's genders in the godhead. But what I mean is we image God we represent God through the difference of gender. Think of it, right man and woman, they're both human beings but there are some distinct differences between them. Now the father-son in spirit. They are all God. There are some distinctions between them. So we represent God in part to the uniqueness of being male and woman female female man and woman. I'm going to preach a full sermon on on that later on. So I'm not going to your teeth that out cuz there's a whole sermon on now, you know male and female how God created and all that Genesis chapter 2 scene that account. So that'll be another Sunday number 6 we can reason and think logically No, Monkeys will ever be thinking about the Trinity trying to pick it apart pick him apart. number seven the use of complex abstract language Number 8. We as human beings. We have an awareness of the future of the of Eternity in general. But also the distant future we we know next year is around the corner and we are in Ecclesiastes has a verse where it says God has put eternity into the heart of man. So we all know that there's something coming after us. Number nine. I think you might have mentioned it that Artful creativity. Our God is a very beautiful God the greatest painter ever painting the sun sets that we see and he's just such a unique creative God but that's reflected in human beings Beethoven's Fifth Symphony Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel the pyramids Mount Rushmore creative. number 10 complex emotions I want to see a large and he wrote this. He said we shouldn't beings can experience a lot of different emotions at the same time. For example after watching. My son's baseball game. I can feel sad that the team lost happy. He played well proud. He was a good sport thankful. God gave me a son joy of seeing him grow up and anxious because we're going to be late for supper. We can experience all of that in a split-second the complexity of human emotions. The last one we've been given Authority. Nobody mention this also what what makes sets us apart from other animals. We've been given authority over the Earth. Human beings are the top dog. We are in the top of the food chain. That's not to say it's some kind of crass way or but we are at the top and God created us to be that he give us the command cultivate the earth into it cultivated care for the earth to do. There's a few components of what it means to be made in the image of God. to be clear The image of God in a person is not determined by performance or function, but this is very important to stay in today's day and age for those who are unborn for the sick for the, Toews for the elderly. It's etcetera. They all bear the image of God fully. Every human being dies. If you made not be able to speak you may not be able to move if you may not be able to cognitively think it doesn't matter. Every human being has the image of God printed upon their soul. So therefore every human being is worth it is worth something. They have dignity. They have worth. We are called to treat one another with respect and this right here is the foundation of the Christian social ethic at the world cries out. We need to be kind and tolerant another be peaceful with one another and love one another on. What basis The Christian answer the Bible's answer is the only one that is that is foundational that that makes sense that gives us a strong bases to loving our neighbors as ourself because my neighbor is made in the image of God. Brothers and sisters God image in US was very good in the beginning. But leave this number to the mart image. We do not live in a Genesis 122 world as it's been said we live in the Genesis 3 world same humans you can design and paint the Sistine Chapel. Are the same humans were capable of horrific school shootings and the genocidal Mayhem of the Holocaust. How do we make sense of that? The same humans who can pour out so much of their lives in serving in hospitals caring for the wounded and also wreck havoc upon entire cultures. The answer is found in Genesis chapter 3. Play it's all in the beginning. And a whole Sherman could be preached on the fall how the fall came about the effects of the fall, but here's a summary in a reminder for you. Adam and Eve. They were created to image car to reflect God to represent God in the world way to think about it. They were created to receive the beauty of God to share the beauty of God with one another. But instead of doing that. Instead of receiving his love with gratitude.
Instead of that. What did they do? They were ungrateful for his provision. Instead of trusting in his love being satisfied with his love. They were greedy and filled with lust instead of rejoicing in the truth of who God is and what he commanded the several Joy singing that What do they do? They swim in the pool of Lies the lies of Satan and lying to one another and lying to God. Stella selflessly cultivating the Earth and tending to it. They selfishly indulged in their flesh. This is what happened in Genesis 3 the fall of Man. It's when the image of God was broken. It was a Mard it was tainted it was shattered. This manifested itself in three big ways human beings had alienation from God. Why the mirror is that an algae the relationship with God was broken the relationship as a married couple of man and woman was broken in the relationship with the Earth was broken. You have to boil now when we work, All of the chaos in the world all of it can be found in the tide backed. What happened here in Genesis 3 But if Genesis 3 explained in the past Romans 3:10 in the present, so turn there with me if you will. Romans chapter 3
right because the Bible is not just a history book. It's not just about him being back then Jesus did this therefore? No, it's the Bible happened back there what what it says happened back then the Bible also speaks about today about 2023. Not in the sense of who's going to be president that kind of thing. What about the really foundational things of life? Romans 3:10 describes, our state is humanity. There is no one righteous not even one. There is no one who understands no one seeks God. All have turned away the have the other become worthless. There is no one who does good. Not even one. Their throats are open Graves their tongues practice deceit the poisonous vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness their feet are Swift to shed blood ruin and misery mark their ways in the way of peace. They do not know there is no fear of God before their eyes.
Look also at Romans 5:12.
Romans 3 describe the present condition of humanity Genesis 3 describe the past the Garden of Eden Romans 5:12 makes the connection the bridge what ties these two together. Therefore just as Sin entered the world through one man being Adam and death through sin. And in this way death came to all people because all sinned human beings inherit the sin nature from Adam Biblical Doctrine expanded upon it a lot today but a Biblical Doctrine is that a total depravity? Every human being is inherently corrupt and morally bankrupt. No human being is going to heaven in and of themselves because every human being falls radically short of the Perfection that God requires every human being is radically painted with sin. That doesn't mean total depravity doesn't mean every human being is as bad as they could be but it means every fiber of our being is Tainted by said, that's what that Doctrine means. So have you settled that? Okay, I got that but does that mean human beings should be destroyed and of course not because even though the image of God has been broken. Every human being still has that image. This is key to remember every human being still has the image of God in them image of God was not lost at the fall. It was merely broken and painted every human being is still created in His image today. Instead reflecting Beauty. What's the Fruit of the Spirit?
Love joy peace, patience kindness goodness gentleness and self-control. Could we use that in the world? Wouldn't you like to see that in the world as a whole? Of course we would but instead of reflecting that what we reflect its the prior versus the fruit of the flesh Galatians 5 19 to 20 the things that we reflect that come out of our hearts or sexual immorality impurity debauchery idolatry witchcraft hatred Discord jealousy fits of Rage selfish ambition distention inspections Envy drunkenness orgies and the like does that not describe our world as a whole today?
the important thing is every human being still has the image of God James. 3:9 James is riding thousands of years after the creation account James 39 gives the foundation for our Christian ethics Bowl record to do with the tongue. We praise our Lord and father and with it we cursed human beings is Richard horrible nasty human beings. Somebody says with the tongue, we praise our Lord and father with it because human beings who have been made in God's likeness human beings are in the image of God, the James continues out of the same mouth come praise and cursing my brothers and sisters. This should not be Yes, your neighbor may have left his lawnmower out in the front yard and all of his trash everywhere. It might be annoying. Hi, this is Superfluous example that does not mean you curse him. Keys made in the image of God. What does it mean? You speak ill of him? He's made in the image of God. His Image was very good It's still inside of us, but his image has been marred that we just a number three the perfect image. God created us to reflect him. That's a simple question. What is God like?
What's up, like if I were to tell you? Take out a pin right now. Let's do it. I got a pain if you got one if you don't have one, it's okay. For those of you who like to learn well in life you carry around a pain all the time. Get out of paying to get a piece of paper.
Now draw an Echidna for me, please. No, Googling Echidna somebody drawing. Echidna somebody draught
I want to see an echidna.
Somebody is bold enough to let me see their submission raise your hand and I want to take a look see who comes close.
I don't need no three-hour-long drawing. I'm just see sketch. Okay, let me see.
Okay. Alright is a circular shape. We're getting. Alright, not bad. It's circular Chase. All right. Yeah, so what is an Echidna you might be wondering in Echidna is thing I can think of the looks closest to is like a hedgehog. It's like a little tiny porcupine. It's an animal and it's one of the few the only the only other mammal is a platypus the Platypus and Echidna are the two mammals that have eggs, but you have a picture. Yeah, yeah, did you say that after I said, okay. Yep. That's what I can get. It looks like a hedgehog or a tiny little porcupine. What's my point what I mention that? If you're going to draw a picture of it, you need to know what it looks like in the first place by pretty simple basic concept the same goes with God and being in His image. If you and I are called to be images Bears record to represent to image God. What is the ultimate source? Like what does he look like?
What does he look like?
What does God look like?
Who does that look like? Try to get more specific. Who is the Sunday School enter? Jesus Jesus is the perfect image of God if you're wondering what is God like who is this ultimate kind of generic concept up there? Look at Jesus. Jesus is the image of God that's in Colossians. 1:15. The sun is the image of the invisible God the firstborn over all creation John 1:14, a very great verse specially in the context of Christmas the word became flesh made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory to glory of the one and only son who came from the father full of grace and truth. Jesus is the living embodiment of Glory of Grace in a truth Hebrews 1:3 the son Jesus Christ. The son is the radiance of God's glory the exact representation of his being sustaining All Things by his powerful word. To understand who we are to understand how our call to live. We must see Jesus as the perfect image. Maybe anything revolutionary for you. It's reminders. That's a large part of what we do in the Christian Life. I remind you the simple basic truth in the Bible. Jesus is the perfect image that leads to the last name number for the restored image. Okay. What does all of this mean for me? I get in the past God created Adam and Eve very good in His image. I get that I get that is images still in human beings by that so far. I also get and very well see that. His image has been painted and tarnished you look around at the chaos in the world. And I also get that Jesus is the perfect image. Where does that leave me? What does that mean for me today? The good news of the Bible the good news of the Christmas season. Isn't just Jesus came. It's not just things in the past. It's the good news that Jesus offers two piece you back together today. Jesus didn't just come in the past. He also offers to be with you today and peace your life back together. Common analogy when you think about the gospel, you may have heard it explained like this before and I think I'm up here is human beings are like empty cups or empty vase whatever or you have the empty Heart by the classic image. We have empty hearts in two cups into vases. What we need is for her to be filled. So what we human beings do we look around in the world at Saks drug that money at Power at so on and so forth the things of the world to fill that void in our heart with only God Alone who can fill that void I think there's Merit to that that's true. But another thing about it is that the gospel is extremely rich and deep. No one and Allergy can fully represent. What it is to another helpful way to think of it is through the image of God. That is the image of a mirror. We're like mirrors, but we're broken. Now the gospel message is that God offers two piece us back together to bring us and make us whole and not just the beautiful thing about the gospel. It doesn't just piece it back together and there's cracks everywhere but through Christ in through the spirit is going to make it's completely whole again. You completely renewed and completely United together with him. That is the goal of the Christian Life. I like what one person said. He said the image of God was our Creative Design in the past. The image of God is also our eschatological destiny in the future. That's where we came from. But it's also where we're headed to be like got to be whole to be complete Romans 8 verse 29 tells us those God for knew. He also predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus.
That's why he created us to be conformed into the image of Christ.
Brothers and sisters are hope as summarized in 1st Corinthians 15 49.
1st Corinthians 15 4090 as we have borne the image of the Earthly man from to Adam. As we as human people as human beings as people as we have borne the image of Adam. So shall we bear the image of The Heavenly Man? That is referring to Christians one day. We're going to be like Jesus. You're going to be whole we are going to be complete.
Is it the Christians greatest hope so far? It's all about me. But listen to 1st John 3 21. It's not just about Jesus for storing us per say it's not just being like Jesus our greatest. Hope is to see Jesus to see the Perfect Image. Listen to 1st John 3:20 when and how closely knit these two thoughts are together when he appears. We shall be like him for we shall see him as he is. The greatest hope for Christians is to see the Perfection of beauty the street to see and Savor the protection of Glory, which is Christ himself. And when we see him the Bible says we will be like him. That's what our souls need and that's what this world needs to be like Christ in the way that you and I are going to be that today right before we get to heaven the way that we do that is how I doing the same thing as 1st, John 3 21 talks about by seeing Christ keeping our eyes fixed upon Him keeping our heart fixed Upon Jesus keeping our minds fixed upon him for when we see him. We shall be like him. brothers and sisters in conclusion How would you answer Psalm 84? What is mankind that you are mindful of them human beings that you care for them?
How do you answer that?
Easy straight up answer human beings are made in the image of God. Very good. What does that mean? How do you explain that to someone?
Let's pray and then we'll close with the doxology.
father
doctrine of the Imago Dei being made in your image has white something to to look at.
And part of the thought that keeps coming to my own mind. Is that Express in Psalm? 84? and all of our talk about what is the image of God and have the image has been marred and
What time is it all together with so mind-blowing is the fact that you care for us so much.
the midst of all of our feuding in the midst of our frankly are ugliness.
The fact that you still care for us.
What really blow our minds if we can never grasp that? But we thank you for that beautiful reality and truth that you do indeed care for us. Even though we are marred even though we are broken. We thank you for christ and for sending your son. to redeem us to Pieces back together little by little
Will you please take this Doctrine which? We can have the temptation to just keep it in our heads. Please plant it deep into our hearts so that we might treat other people. With the same dignity the same word the same value of how you treat us and how you look at us. For those who are hard to love for those who have wronged us for those who disappoint us. Please help us to love to forgive to show care to show compassion.
We know that can only happen as we see saver you Jesus as we behold Your Glory. Please help us in that process. Help us this week. Help us. Especially this week to be grateful for all that you've done for us. Thank you that you are mindful of us and that you care for us help us to do the same with our fellow brothers and sisters both in Christ Russell a fellow human beings our neighbors from you've created in your image.
Could these things to you not asking for our will but yours be done in Jesus name? Amen?