Man Is Made In The Image Of God

Using the ancient church father Athanasius of Alexandria, we continue our study of Christ's coming among us in human flesh and blood. We continue to ask, Why did the eternal Word of God, by whom and for whom all things were and are made become a man?

As noted above, we children of Adam and Eve are not merely highly developed animals. We are made in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26; Eph. 4:24). It was His original intention that through this gift of God-likeness in ourselves we might be able to perceive Him who is the very Image of God in all its fullness, namely the Lord Christ. This is what Paul writes as he speaks of Christ.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. - Col 1:15-17 ESV

To know Christ is to know our Maker and Creator. And through knowing and believing in Christ we come to know His Father, for to see Christ is to see, to know and rejoice in the Father. And to be in fellowship with the Father is what a happy and blessed life is all about. So Jesus taught His disciples that He came to reveal the Father.

. . . not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. - John 6:46 ESV 

Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. - Jhn 14:8-11 ESV

But what do we foolish men do? We invent other gods to worship. We worship the creature rather than the Creator (Rom. 1:25). Primitive men worship objects of wood and stone to this very day. Sophisticated, scientifically oriented men worship objects they themselves have made, like powerful cars, airplanes, computers and ultimately themselves. They kneel before great athletes, pop stars, physicians, wise men, scientists and—yes—even politicians to offer their children and their wealth. These idols are the guides and source of wisdom. And when they fail men turn to astrology, palm readings and tarot cards to unlock the future and to learn how to live.

Seattle Indians Offer Psychic Readings

Yet while all this goes on the very heavens above us declare by day and by night the glory and wonder the God who spoke His Word and called all this into existence, as the King David said.

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. - Psa 19:1-4 ESV

However, as is the rule rather than the exception, men study the sky, the weather, the stars and the immensity of the universe, but do not worship and honor the Creator. Surely such study should lead them to recognize the eternal Creator who brought it into being and continues to rule over it (Rom. 1:20), but it does not. Instead, many who ponder it's wonder, merely celebrate its complexity and refuse to give thanks to the Creator of it all. They reject even the idea that there is a Creator. As one atheist puts it, "The truth is that an atheistic worldview is at least as compatible with the human sense of spirituality as any religious worldview is." What the author means by spirituality is unclear.

Beyond that the Creator has given us His Law, written first on human hearts. Our philosophers and law makers speak about natural law. They claim that there is a rule of right and wrong written in our hearts and natures, a law that accuses and excuses our actions. Many wise men, dating back to the days of the ancient Greeks, have written about it. Much can be learned from their writings. Thousands of laws are wisely based upon these writings. But do these laws lead men to the true God? Does natural law cause men to ask who put it into human hearts and lead men to humble worship and obedience? Obviously not, because our world bulges with law breakers.

To make His will even more clear God revealed His Law through His prophets. The Jews were entrusted with such oracles (Rom. 3:1-2; Gen. 17:4-5) They were not to keep them to themselves, but to spread them throughout the world. They were commissioned to lead men to worship the one true God and Father of all.

Three ways are thus open to all men to obtain the knowledge of God.

1. The harmony and wonder of creation should lead men to know the Creator, the Word of the heavenly Father who rules over and guides all things. To know Him is to know the Father. 
2. Wise men know about natural law. It is written in men's hearts. Surely men should acknowledge that a Creator has put His Law within us.  
3. Finally God has revealed His holy Law through Israel's prophets. They offer us all a sacred school of the knowledge of God and how to live a spiritual life. 

In spite of all this the Word of God is not acknowledged and honored. The worship of idols, the pursuit of pleasure and power and the love of the creatures continues to this very moment. And yet every man, woman and child on this earth is made in the Image of God, created to reflect the Word of God in all they say and do. Granted, the Image is clouded and the knowledge of God is hidden, but the fact remains. Men are not mere animals. They are made in God's Image. How then should God free His children from this slavery to the lies of all the multitude of idols and the deception of evil spirits led by the god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4)? Men cannot, for they are only made after the Image. They are not the Image Himself. Angels cannot do it, for they are not made in the Image of God. So who is left? Only He who is the very Image of the heavenly Father (Col. 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-4). Only He can recreate man after the Image.

I will take up the process of re-creation in my next post.  


  

Thank God For Good Government

A couple months ago I found myself in the emergency room of St. Lukes Hospital, Houston, hooked to a monitor, waiting for the results of some tests. I had experienced angina pains and the doctors were concerned that I had suffered a heart attack, that my heart had been damaged. For hours I waited with my wife and children in a small room, waiting to be admitted to the hospital's cardiac care unit. Finally, shortly after midnight, they wheeled me into an elavator and up to my room where I was hooked to blinking machines and monitored throughout the night. In the morning the doctors came by to announce that I had not had a heart attack and could go home.

I mention this personal incident as an analogy of secular government. We live in a rebellious, fallen world. Satan and his minions are behind this rebellion against the good and gracious rule of our Creator and rightful King. Consequently our bodies and all of creation suffer. As the apostle says, God subjected creation to futility in hope that it will finally be set free from its bondage and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans 8:20-21).

I was born into that rebel world. Like all mankind, I suffer from the futility the apostle Paul speaks about. I was born into sin. My very nature is to sin. And so my body, together with the rest of creation, suffers. For nearly eighty years my sinful body has been growing old and dying. One day this body will indeed die, as have all men before me.

But even in this fallen world of men, our heavenly Father provides us with an emergency room otherwise known as governments. By means of these worldly or secular governments the Father continues to preserve life. In this way He demonstrates His continued love for His creation. This is why Jesus told us that Pilate, Caesar and all governments derive their authority from God. When they  do their proper work, good governments preserve order, punish evildoers, protect citizens and provide for their well being. In this world such governments operate by means of  law and that law is enforced by the fear of punishment and rewards for those who do good.

Jesus answered (Pilate), “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” John 18:36 -ESV

The Jews had falsely delivered Jesus over to Pilate in a trumped up and illegal trial. Jesus said to Pilate that if he was indeed a king with a worldly kingdom there would have been a battle. Jesus' soldiers would have fought the Jews to protect their king and his right to rule. But he was not such a king, though king he was. Pilate, however, was a worldly ruler, with authority ultimately derived from above, from God (John 19:11). 

So Jesus teaches that good governments must be respected. Pilate at that moment represented such a government of good law and order. The Jewish Sanhedrin on the other hand was operating contrary to its own nation's laws. The members of that worldly government—for that is what it was—were driven by greed, a desire for personal power and wealth and hate. As such Jesus' servants would be within their rights to resist that government's decisions, even with force if necessary. 

It is not within the scope of this blog to spell out the details of what is and what is not good government. I must leave that task to those better equipped to study and write about natural law. Even as I write the citizens of my own nation are arguing back and forth about the election of a new president and other rulers. Voters will soon cast their votes to decide by this democratic process who these rulers will be. These rulers will pass laws and argue back and forth in the coming years about what is best for the citizens of this country.  These laws will be based upon the Law of God written into our hearts. And in this way our gracious Father will continue to provide a measure of  peace, unity and goodness within my country— but it will always be imperfect, because we live in a fallen and rebellious world, a world of men ever tempted to follow the ways of the prince of darkness and his kingdom. 

But the day approaches when our true King will return. And then all will be put right and true peace, harmony and goodness will reign forever. Meanwhile we Christians join with others in whatever ways we can to promote peace and care in love for our neighbors. And, going back to what I mentioned in an earlier blog, this is why the church I served joined Interfaith in The Woodlands, Texas, to assist in caring for the very human needs of our community.