In God's Image

Sunday, 3rd February 2008

When I was an undergraduate, I joined the Music Ministry of the Varsity Christian Fellowship. One of the songs I remember singing was a very moving song called "In the Image of God"

In the Image of God

In the image of God, we were made long ago,
with the purpose divine, here his glory to show;
But we failed Him one day, and like sheep went astray,
thinking not of the cost, we His likeness had lost.

But from eternity, God had in mind,
the work of Calvary, the lost to find;
From His heaven so broad, Christ came down earth to trod,
so that men might live again in the image of God.

Now that I have believed, and the Saviour received,
now that I from the cry, of my guilt am relieved,
I will live for my Lord, not for gain or reward,
but for love thinking of, what His grace has restored!

I'll never comprehend, redemption's plan,
how Christ could condesend, to die for man;
Such a Saviour I'll praise, to the end of my days,
as I upward, onward trod in the image of God.

In Gen 1:26-27, we read that man was the only creature that God created in His image. Not only that, man was the pinnacle of God's creation. When God's created the heavens, the earth, the stars, the seasons, the plants and the animals, He saw what He had made was "good" (Gen 1:10,12,18,21,25). After creating man on the 6th day, what He made now became "very good" (Gen 1:31).

But what exactly does it mean to be created in God's image?

1. Man is a spirit being

Firstly, man is a spirit being, just like God (and the angels) is. While all the others created on those 6 days were via God saying them into existence, we read in Gen 2:7 that man was created by God breathing into his nostrils the breath of life. So while other living creatures like plants and animals perish and are no more, man continues to exist indefinitely like other spirit beings. They will either spend eternity in fellowship with God in heaven, or eternally separated from God in hell.

2. Man's words contain power

This was something I learnt as a result of being exposed to the Word of Faith movement. I remember TRAC President's wife Catherine (whose birthday happens to be today, happy birthday Cat!) sharing verses like "calling for things that are not as though they are" (Rom 4:17), "eating the fruit of one's lips" (Prov 13:2) and that "life and death is in the power of the tongue" (Prov 18:21).

God spoke "light be" and light came forth. Likewise, we as humans created in God's image, can speak into our physical situation or circumstance and cause it to change, for better or for worse. Unlike a dog's bark, a cat's mew or lion's roar, human words contain power. Jesus said in Matt 12:21 that if we say to a mountain "be cast into the sea" and not doubt in his heart, it will come to pass.

Let us therefore use our tongue wisely. When we speak, especially in alignment with God's Word, things start to happen in the spiritual realm that ultimately becomes manifested in the physical realm.

Let us therefore be quick to praise and speak blessings upon our children, so that they grow up well-established and assured. Let us proclaim daily that we are healthy and wealthy, and sicknesses and poverty cannot come near us. Amen?