Genesis 1:24-31 In the Image of God

May 16, 2011

Today’s sermon was about our role in creation and how we were created. Feel free to read the notes and listen to the recording. I also showed a video which you can watch at the end. You can also download my sermon as a podcast on iTunes.

Genesis 1:24-31

Prayer: God make us more like you.

God created all things with the ability to keep creating more things, and better things.

Hebrew word Dasha, to make more, new, better, more organized.

- Trees to created more, new, and better organized trees

- Dogs to create more, new and better organized dogs.

- Cats to um…no not cats. God didn’t create cats. They serve no purpose. They were not created by God. That is why their ears look like horns and they have pointy tales. Who else has a pointy tale?

God rules over everything.

God created us to rule over or have dominion over all things

Kabash – Rule

Not like put the kabash on something but instead A more literal meaning of Kabash is to Co-create.

Our job is to help creation be better, more organized.

This is why some of you love to build things, because you are connecting with the very reason you were created.

Those of you who are crazy organized are connected with why you were created.

Those of you who love to create art, music, dance, drama, building, you are connecting to God who in Genesis created you to do those things.

Words like make, organize, order, build, manage, they all come from right here in Genesis and you know when you have found that thing that connects you with God because it is that thing that when you do it you loose all track of time.

Do you like to talk…so does God…his words build new worlds…what do you build with your words?

When you do these things you make the world a better place, not just for you but for your neighbors and for the whole world.

- Give examples of muslim neighbor, Atheist, and pollution, and starving in Africa, and for chickens and goats

When we don’t do these we deny what God has called us to do and that is called sin.

Sin is saying we know better than God.

Sin is saying we can do our plan without God

Sin is stepping out of our created order and trying to become like God or stepping down and worship the created.

That sort of plan leads to corruption, violence, destruction, disorder, chaos, addictions, all the things opposite of the good that God created.

You can choose to do either one, no one will stop you. but one makes the world better and the other makes the world worse because of your actions.

- Shalom

- Shalom is not without conflict. But it means that everything is in its proper place and functioning as it should.

Every action you choose, regardless of your ability either brings us closer to Shalom or further from Shalom.

So then, where and how you start the story matters. Where and how you start the story will determine where and how you finish the story. If you start in Genesis 1, like we did today, then you are created by God to do something specific. You are already loved by God whether you do what you were created to or not. God is already on your side and God is making this world better because in the end, at Revelation 20-21 there is a city…we start with a garden and finish with a city. A well organized city that is full of people and is here on this earth.

If you take all references and consequences to sin out of the Bible you end up with a pamphlet but a pamphlet of Genesis 1-2 and Revelation 21 that describes a movement from garden to city.

If on the other hand you start in Genesis 3 then we start with a fallen world that is always bad and getting worse an will never get better and the only hope is to leave the world and try and create something on our own. This ends in pain, suffering, heartache, and death. This is not how God created the world this is not how God will finish the world. Too often we find ourselves trying to force creation and we find ourselves in Genesis 3. You were not created sinful and you will not stay sinful. You were created in the image of God.

Moses is writing to a bunch of people and telling them that they are not objects. They are not valued because of what they can produce. They are humans with intrinsic sacred value simply because they were created by God.

This has profound impact on your whole world.

Justice: Genesis 3: Get what they deserve. Genesis 1: restore

Work: Genesis 3: because we have to Genesis 1: because we were created to.

Art: Genesis 3: waste of time Genesis 1: because God does it.

Tithing: Genesis 3: Money is a tool, if I give it to God I can get more. Genesis 1: Money is a blessing from God and since I am borrowing I can use it to bless more people.

Recycling: Genesis 3: no point, we get out of here. Genesis 1: because God gave us this place to make it better

Ever heard a sermon that sounded great but in the end left you feeling like you have been punched in the gut? They started with a worldview of Genesis 3.

To often TV preachers do this, you aren’t good enough and you don’t have enough but if you send me your money then God will bless you and give you more. This starts in Genesis 3 that you aren’t good enough

Commercials on TV start with Genesis 3…you aren’t good enough but if you buy this you will be.

For us, whatever you do you are making the world more broken or you are healing this world and bringing it closer to the new city.

It is like this:

God’s chisel skit

So where are you? What is your starting point? As we pray, ask God to help you move from Genesis 3 worldview to a Genesis 1 worldview.

Sermon Audio