Tuesday, 26 July 2016
IN HIS IMAGE HE MADE YOU
God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 (The African Bible)
Greetings to you child of God in the name of Christ our saviour. I welcome you to this day’s daily reflection and I pray that it will be worth your time. Today I want us to reflect on this particular verse above, taken from the chapter one of the book of Genesis, precisely verse 27. I have captioned the reflection “In his Image he made you”. So relax, take up your bible and enjoy the wonderful reflection from the word of God that gives life.
Let me first make some simple clarifications. The Old Testament scripture as it is in our hands is in the English language, but it was originally written in the Hebrew language. The word used here as “man” does not mean a specific individual sex “man” but it is used in its generic sense. What do I mean? In the Hebrew language, the word for humankind is Adam, which is always translated in most of the bible versions as “man”. The sense it is used in this particular verse is a collective noun, which does not mean a single male Adam. This particular tradition tries to portray the idea that male and female were created at the same time, thereby implying a sense of equality between the two sexes.
Having said this, let us look at the preceding statements. The scripture says that God created man in his own image. What is the image of God? Do want to see the image of God? Then look at yourself. Go deep into your soul for a while and there you shall find the imprint of God in you. The Catechism teaches that it is in your spirit that you resemble God. Remember, when God finished creating, the scripture records that God saw that everything he created was perfect (Genesis 1:31). This can be inferred to mean that God saw that he had made no mistake. So don’t make any mistake about it, you are a perfect work of God. The culmination of creation is mankind because that is where God finally made a deposit of his image. He came to create you and he waited, and then invited the Trinity because you need to be formed with all perfectness. Can’t you see how much care God took in creating you?
Now let me tell you a secret you may not know. Look around you and try to visualise the whole universe, see the beauty, the landscape, and the immensity of artistry and creativity God embedded in creation. Now look at yourself. Listen now: It Took God Six Days To Create This Great Universe You Are Looking At Now, But Look At You, It Him Nine Months To Create You In Your Mother’s Womb. Isn’t that awesome and great? Consider the very precaution he took, how he creatively fashioned you so that you will not have any spot or wrinkle. You are a flower of Sharon, a lily of the valley (Songs 2:1). You are so precious to him. That is why he didn’t just create you and abandon you to rot and ruin. Even in your sinfulness and wickedness, he still desires to come to you.
You are his very own; his image and a very costly diadem placed upon creation. He said he shall never abandon you, in fact, I love the way prophet Isaiah puts it, the one who made you shall be your husband (Isaiah 54:5). You see, you are not alone. You are not just his image, you have been bonded to him in an intimacy that is like that of a married couple.
Child of God, it is up to you to uphold yourself in glory and righteousness as befitting an image of God, a person that carries all the excellencies of God’s creativity. Do not sully it with sin, do not let the concupiscence of your senses to destroy your soul and damn this priceless image of God to hell. Remember, always call on the help of God and saints to help you because the devil is never happy seeing you (the image of God). He will surely find a way to break you. Remember Paul’s admonition, “but we hold this treasure in an earthen vessel, that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us”.
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