“Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”
“And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.” – Genesis 1:26-27; 31
This past Sunday, Dr. Long started a new sermon series, “3 Questions.” These are questions that we should wrestle with. They get to the core of who we are and our purpose in this world. The first of these questions is, “Who am I?”
I enjoyed thinking about this challenging question. I believe the answer to this question is found in the creation story. The book of Genesis tells us clearly that we are all made in the “image” and “likeness” of God. Although our culture often highlights our differences, the Bible opens with a celebratory statement that we have a common origin. We are God’s creation. We are all God’s children.
Being made in the image of God, we have the capacity to know love, to embrace kindness, and to do good. Created in the likeness of God, we have free will. We have been given the gift of choice. Our actions in life are not predetermined. We have witnessed the love of God and we too can choose to live a life that reflects the love of God for all His children.
We do not exist by accident. We were created by a thoughtful, creative, and loving God. When creating humanity, God used Himself as the model. We were brought into being by the powerful words of God. We were animated by the powerful Spirit of God. We were shown how to fully live by the Son of God. We are the children of God created to love, serve, and do great things.
To get to the answer of the question, “Who Am I?” we must start in the right place. That place in the beginning, when the Heavenly Father first said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…” We are God’s workmanship. We are God’s creation. We are the children of a loving God, created to do as our Father has already done.
– Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
