God Created You and I; Are You Gods Likeness? The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, We are his offspring. Therefore since we are Gods offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone--an image made by mans design and skill.” Acts 17:24-29 (New International Version) God created you and I at the climax of the 6 days of creation; but before He did all that He created for us the heavens, the moon and the stars. O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Psalm 8:1-8 (New International Version) He created the earth and tells us the purpose of the sun, moon, and stars and you and I; our mighty God created. To him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever. who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever. who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever. who made the great lights-- His love endures forever. the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever. the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever. Psalm 136:4-9 (New International Version) You and I are wonderfully and skillfully made by the God of creation and when our Father speaks it is the sound of many waters and all of creation stands still to hear the voice of God and to think this powerful God cares for you and I. What is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet. Psalm 8:4-6 (New International Version) What kind of love is this for you and I? Think about the depth of this love that all of creation was given to you and I “You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet:” Check this out beloved and on top of all that He gave Himself to you and I through Jesus “The Christ” to pay the redemption price to save us from our self. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. Romans 5:8; Hebrews 6:17-18 (New International Version) Are you getting how amazing you are in the hands of a mighty God? Are you getting the depth of this message deep down inside of your soul? God said: Then God said, Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground. Genesis 1:26 (New International Version) Image and likeness of God; You and I! We have two Hebrew words that make up “Image and Likeness” being “Selem and Demut”; powerful words saying you and I were made to be in union with God; to display a godly character of meekness and humility in loving others, in enduring all things; humble in word and in deed all for the glory of God. This kind of stuff Wows me as I consider again and again that God created the human person (you and I) in his image (selem), according to his likeness (demut), unfolding a royal dignity given to those of us who accept the gospel truth; a truth that positions man and woman on equal footing with each other as well as an equal footing with God as we humble our selves and learn obedience according to the word of God. Beloved this phrase “Image and Likeness” is also found in Genesis 5:3 When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth. One really cool aspect of this is Moses reverses the terms saying that Adam had a son in his likeness (demut) according to his image (selem) What I like about all this is that if we look more closely at Genesis 5 where Adam’s descendants are listed we notice that demut (likeness) receives priority. So we have Adam being created in the likeness of God and Seth being born in the likeness of his father in verse 3 showing us that this word demut in Genesis 5 is pointing to the likeness children have to their parents through birth, and also to the likeness humans have to God through creation. Teaching us that this word demut is more concerned with the descendant aspect of mankind than that of any other reason and it also beloved suggests a likeness between God’s role as creator and the human role as procreator. Now this word selem (image), on the other hand, is more concerned with power and stresses that the human person shares in God’s power. Say what? Thats right you and I were made to share in God’s power. This statement is saying that humanity is ‘in the image, according to the likeness of God Genesis 1:26 combines its self to speak you and I are entrusted by the Holy Spirit with power to help humanity by God through his blessing. God’s partner. When God decided to make a creature in his image, he made it, as it were, his own mirror. After God had made all the other creatures, he made a creature similar to himself in whom he could recognize himself—a partner with whom he could communicate and build a relationship. Image and likeness speaks of a sonship and daughtership as one with God and not by any thing we can do or have done but because of His great love for you and If we accept Him only through His gift of the word becoming flesh and it is through this word that we become one with God by, in, and through Christ Jesus. So if our image and likeness is ultimately derived from God himself; then are we not truly sons and daughters of the most high? For in him we live and move and have our being. As some of your own poets have said, We are his offspring. Therefore since we are Gods offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone--an image made by mans design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother. Acts 17:28-30; 1 John 3:10 (New International Version) Are you Gods offspring? Or are you living the life of another offspring? Beloved settle yourself in the Holiness of Christ and walk in the authority as an heir to the Kingdom of God.
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 09:18:49 +0000
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