What does it mean that I’m created in God’s image?
“God said, ‘Let us make man in our image.’” – Genesis 1:26
Humans are special in all of God’s creation because we were made in His likeness. That doesn’t mean that we are little gods, but we do share some of God’s attributes, including emotion, honor, time, beauty, language, love, and rule.
One of the most obvious of those attributes is demonstrated within this week’s memory verse. God said, “Let US…” Since God exists in community, so should we.
Rugged individualism is a great American trait, and one the world often champions in achievements that seldom bring the satisfaction they promise.
But individualism isn’t something the church should adopt. Often, we mistakenly try connecting with God only personally, when we were designed to experience Him in community. For instance:
- We ask people to accept Jesus as their “personal” Lord and Savior. Yes, each person has to make their own decision to follow Christ, but the Bible calls us to a kingdom, being built into the body of Christ.
- Communion becomes the most individualistic event at church, even though the name itself indicates a communal celebration. Our New Testament example, the Last Supper, demonstrates this truth as Jesus and the apostles took communion together.
- Bible reading is practiced as a solitary discipline, when in fact the majority of the books in the Bible were written to and read in communities, not individuals.
- We’re often called to pray with “every head bowed and every eye closed.” In the Bible, however, prayer was primarily communal. This was true for the church in Acts, for the prayers printed in the epistles, and for the psalms sung in the temple.
Yes, we each have a personal relationship with God through Christ, but our true identity is found in community, not in individualism.
