Genesis 1:27
So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
In God’s Image
I think we’d look at people differently
and maybe even look at ourselves differently if we remembered that God
created us in His image. I don’t mean that we are like God Himself
because God is Spirit and doesn’t have hands, feet, or other physical
human attributes (John 4:24). What I mean is that God has attributes of
justice, equity, fairness, and other natures that we share with Him. If
we remembered this fact, would we look at people differently? Every
person ever born was made in the image or likeness of God. That’s why I
believe abortion is so wrong because they are taking a life that was
created in God’s image and treating it like a mass of tissue instead of
what they really are: a human made in the image and likeness of God.
Seeing People as God Sees Them
I believe we do people injustice when we
see them in any way less than being created in God’s image. Every human
being that’s ever been born was created in God’s image and deserves
respect and to be treated with dignity. I don’t care if someone believes
in God or not; that’s not the point. The point is that we must see them
as someone whom God wants to save because He doesn’t want to see anyone
perish but that they’d all come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9). He doesn’t
delight in someone’s destruction, even if they’re wicked (Ezek. 18:23,
32), so neither should we. This is all the more reason to be witnesses
for Christ. Since God doesn’t wish anyone to be lost, neither should we!
What If…
My wife and I take walks nearly every
day (weather permitting). When I walk, I try to see people through God’s
eyes. No, I’m not perfect, and, sadly, sometimes I judge them by sight.
But then I think, how am I looking at them? Do I see them as God sees
them, or do I see them through the eyes of a human? I would rather look
at people as someone whom God’s created for His purpose and for His
glory and try not to judge them by sight. How would I feel if others
judged me by sight? And they probably do in many cases. I must try to
think about looking at people as God sees them. What if we all looked at
each other as people who were created in God’s image? How would our
life be different if we saw God in everyone we encountered?
A Closing Prayer
Father, please forgive me when I judge
by sight and not by seeing them as You see them. I need to look at
people as being created in Your image and not in the way that I tend to
see them, and in this I need Your Spirit’s help. In Your Great Son’s
name, Jesus, I pray.
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