Icons of Love // Rev. Matt Kennedy // Nov 17 2024

Constellations, sunsets, oceans, mountains, forests, flowers, butterflies, orcas, and panthers... the first page of the Bible tells us all these beautiful creations are signs of a beautiful creator. But the first chapter of Genesis is yet to climax.On the sixth day of creation, among the various animals, the Bible zooms in on one animal in particular given a special designation: the human is made in the imago dei, "the image and likeness of God" (Genesis 1:27). God's glory is not found in only the elite and mighty members of the human race, but in all the ancestors of Adam and Eve (Genesis 5:1). It is when this animal is given a special charge to "have dominion" of creation that God looks upon the world and declares it not just merely good, but "very good" (1:31). The doctrine of imago dei is the foundation of Christian ethics: to seek compassion and justice for the poor and powerless (Proverbs 14:31), to honor human dignity in all its forms (Matthew 25:35-46), and to protect human life as sacred (Genesis 9:2). Being made in the image of God establishes the meaning and value of our lives: to reflect God's glory in service to God's world.