A child discovers their parent has been watching them play—not to correct or instruct, but
simply because the parent delights in watching. There's a particular kind of being known that feels less like
surveillance and more like love
Genesis 1:26-27 "Then God said, 'Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness'... So God
created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them."
The creation myths surrounding ancient Israel told a very different story about humanity. In the Babylonian
Enuma Elish, humans are formed from the blood of a slain god, created to be slaves to the divine. In Egypt,
humans were an afterthought, workers to serve the gods' needs.
Then Genesis speaks its counternarrative: you are made in the image of God.
The Hebrew word is tselem—image, likeness, representation. In the ancient world, kings would erect images of
themselves throughout their territory to remind subjects of the ruler's authority and presence. Genesis takes this
royal language and democratizes it utterly. Every human being—not just kings, not just priests—bears the
image of the divine.
This changes everything. The person who frustrates you, the stranger who differs from you politically, the one
you're tempted to dismiss or dehumanize—tselem. Image bearer. A walking icon of the living God.
"Every person," Chad reflected in the sermon, wrestling with a week of tragedy and violence. We can
acknowledge brokenness, call out evil, and pursue justice while still recognizing that even those we are tempted
to hate sat under Christmas trees two weeks ago, hugging their families.
Who in your life is difficult for you to see as an image bearer of God?
What would change in your community if everyone genuinely believed that every human reflects divine
glory?
Picture someone you struggle to love or understand. Now imagine them as God's image bearer
—marked with divine dignity, beloved by their Creator. Ask God to help you see them as he sees them.
Theological Insight: The Trinity's self-reference—"Let us make"—suggests that being made in God's image is
inherently relational. We image a God who exists in eternal communion. Our capacity for relationship,
community, and love is not incidental to who we are; it's the very shape of the divine imprint on our souls.
Psalm 8:4-6; James 3:9; Colossians 1:15