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What does being made in his image mean?

Genisis 1:27 

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them” 

If you asked me this question when I was younger, I probably would have assumed you were talking about the physical attributes of God. I envision God to have white hair, a white beard and all the other facial features of a man. Without context, it’s easy to make this association, but if we look at the root of the word “image”, we get other words like “nature” and “likeness”. Chronologically, God made us in his image (Genisis 1:27) before he formed us (Genisis 2:7): clearly showing that our likeness and nature are more important than the formation of our body (in other words flesh) 

So, in simplicity, being made in his image means we share the same characteristics of God, not physical, but internal. But still, what does that mean? 

We can’t truly understand our nature and likeness, if we don’t understand God’s nature and likeness. Luckily for us, God maps out his character in 66 books in the Bible, but today I want to zoom in on only three: all of which consist in Genisis. 

One of the first characteristic of God that is explored is his creativity. In fact, within the first line of the Bible this is demonstrated. From the very start of existence, God was creating (Genisis 1:1) This shows that creativity is part of the identity of God, and if we are made in his image, that also means part of our identity is to create. This isn’t me saying that God is calling you to paint the ‘Mona Lisa’, but part of your inheritance is to explore your creativity, whatever format that may look like. 

The next characteristic isn’t explicitly mentioned but if we look at all the actions of God, it all points to the fact that God has authority. God’s authority isn’t explained it’s illustrated. He doesn’t just have authority, he is the authority, and that is over everything seen and unseen. Because we are image bearers, God gives us an element of authority (Genisis 1:28) and this is done through responsibility (Genisis 2:15) But through our own authority, we should never neglect the source of authority.  

The last characteristic explored is his goodness. Throughout Genisis 1, while God is creating the earth, a common phrase is “And God saw that it was good”. God in nature is “good” and so everything he produces externally is good. We adopt that same goodness but because we were born into sin, our “goodness” is achieved through God. “Goodness” is a fruit of the holy spirit, and we must first accept Jesus into our lives and receive the gift of the holy spirit.  

If there’s one thing you leave with today, meditate on the fact that you are more than just the formation of your body. Your flesh doesn’t have sovereignty over you, because you are made in the image of God.  

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